Brisbane coach Leigh Matthews has slammed the AFL’s official involvement with gambling as “unhealthy, unsavoury and unfortunate”.

The four-time premiership coach and player of the 20th century today hit out at the league for its virtual endorsement of gambling by being “in bed” with betting agencies.

Betfair and TAB Sportsbet are both corporate partners of the AFL, sponsorships that reap six-figure sums each year.

While stressing he wasn’t anti-gambling, Matthews demanded the AFL ignore the bookmaking industry altogether for fear of betting-driven suspicions.

“The one thing that really annoys me is any thought that whatever we do as a game has something to do with people betting on it,” he said.

“I hate that. I would prefer that no one bet on the AFL and then all innuendos wouldn’t exist.

“That’s one of the unfortunate progressions in the evolution of the world probably, because betting agencies are betting on everything aren’t they, not only AFL.

“But I think it’s really unhealthy, really unsavoury and really unfortunate.”

The four-time premiership coach’s comments come just four weeks after Sydney coach Paul Roos was subjected to an AFL investigation over allegations he wanted the Swans to lose a pre-season match.

Matthews branded the investigation “ridiculous” before Roos was cleared of attempting to affect the result by allegedly telling Jarrad McVeigh not to kick a goal late in their close loss to Hawthorn.

Roos, whose team plays the Lions on Saturday night at the Gabba, was stunned by the AFL’s reaction and believed it was motivated by gambling interests.

Matthews was today also aggrieved the league, which bans players and officials from betting on games, “pandered” to bookmakers and gamblers when they should be ignored.

“I don’t believe the AFL should be in bed with any of the betting groups,” he said.

“I think the AFL should say `you want to bet on the footy fine, don’t include us. Don’t ask us to have rules and regulations that pander to people who might want to bet on the game’.

Matthews said the by-products meant the AFL’s financial incentives for betting agreements should be sacrificed.

“If they’re making a million dollars a year out of TAB, as a football person I would not like them to make the million dollars and not therefore have to pander in any shape or form to betting on the footy,” he said.

The AFL today defended its position, arguing its partnership with Betfair and TAB Sportsbet allowed the league to check for trends and illegal betting by players and officials.

“While we have the agreements with various agencies it gives us access to their betting records so that we’re able to track any wages that may be suspicious that we need to follow up,” a spokesman said.

“We also have access to who is betting.”

But the AFL doesn’t have full access to all betting agency records, and lack complete control, even though four players, including Adelaide star Simon Goodwin, were caught out last year.

Goodwin was slugged $40,000 and ordered to undergo counselling while David Hale, Daniel Ward and Kieren Jack were also fined.

Matthews expressed his feelings in response to an innocuous question at his weekly press conference about whether he entered a tipping competition.

“I feel the game is so unpredictable and I couldn’t be bothered spending 30 seconds thinking about who’s going to win,” he said.

“I have a punt on the horses. I’m not anti-gambling.

“I’m a fun punter but the two human teams playing each other and people betting on them, you can do it if you want to but don’t make it official.

“The competition itself should be ignorant of that in a way and not taking into it in any shape, and I think the AFL do a little and that’s a bit sad to me.”

© AAP 2012

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