Maguire led the Magpies for 23 years. This included the highs of winning premierships and a recent low of the Do Better report, which revealed systemic racism within the club. Do Better discovered a gap between what the club says it stands for and what it does.

"A selected shortlist of high-profile incidents is compelling and speaks to systemic racism of the kind that means the concerted efforts of individuals are not able to be translated into club-wide change," the report read.

The Do Better report provided 18 recommendations, including addressing the past, community leadership, and ensuring a culturally safe workplace and club values. The report was commissioned after former player Heritier Lumumba described a racist culture at the club he called home between 2005 and 2014.

"It's like I was running a 100-metre race with a ball and chain around one of my ankles, with broken glass, hurdles and an uneven surface to contend with in my lane, while the league's majority, the white players' lane was clear because they didn't have to deal with the any of the obstacles from the league's serious issues with systemic racism," he said.

While the report was damning, it was Maguire's response that became the focus when he called the release of the report "a proud day" for the club. The spin attempted was reminiscent of a recent US president.

As the report stated, real change cannot occur without addressing the issues raised in the past.

"If racism is endemic throughout the broader community, it is not surprising to find it within institutions such as sporting clubs," it said.

As a society, we must do better because the defensive culture revealed at Collingwood cannot be the only organisation described this way.