In the days, weeks, and months ahead, Essendon faces a terribly difficult and possibly catastrophic time.
There is no point hiding the fact that the club appears to be in big trouble. A sporting club does not call in ASADA for a random audit.
The use of supplements such as Peptides is widely practiced across many sporting clubs. 90% are legal and approved by various sporting bodies around the world. It’s the remaining 10% that is cause for concern.
So the big issue, if the Peptides given to Essendon players are in the 90% why would the fitness staff ask players to sign a waiver to protect themselves or the club?
The content of the waivers is unknown. It could be as innocent as a simple medical waiver covering off side effects or perhaps something more sinister.
It appears the players under the guidance of fitness guru Dean ‘The Weapon’ Robinson and sports medicine innovator Stephen Dank have conducted a supplements program that has been described as on the edge.
Naturally, social media exploded on Tuesday when the news broke amid the speculation of alleged supplement abuse and waiver forms signed by Essendon players.
Kyle Reimers was front and centre of fan anger as it appears he has gone to the media over the supplement use. Reimers was delisted by Essendon at the end of 2012 season and has not signed with another club.
However, in my opinion the anger at Reimers although understandable is misplaced. If Essendon have done nothing wrong he is just a disgruntled ex-player; it happens in football. Reimers though is the least of the problems for the club.
Dank left the club last year and Robinson has now been stood down subject to the investigation.
Tens of thousands of Bomber fans are left in sheer bewilderment and distress that this is happening to our club. Essendon was founded in 1872, this scandal could rock the club to its very core.
Player or club ignorance is no excuse. Even if the players thought the substances and injections were all perfectly fine and it’s found they have been given illegal supplements they face a lengthy ban.
The worse case is a two year ban for a large group of players or the club itself suspended for two years. That is nothing short of catastrophic for many people who hold the red and black very dear.
Until the investigation is over this is all speculation. I just hope it’s not a king tide.
Chris
Guest
And one more point .... Apparently these "peptides" can only be detected for a few Hours after being administered which makes the idea that somehow they couldn't Find a clean room at the training ground...make sense...horrible sense...in that Apparently the club was removing players from the possibility of being tested in those Hours after the injections.....
Chris
Guest
The horrible thing about this is the way essendons performances of the Last year "gel" quite nicely about what we know about the greatest game on Earth, it is unique! Apparently these peptides work in the short-term... Say 10-12 weeks but cause injuries long term due the fact that bodies are Being pushed beyond what is possible for the level of athletes that essendon Possesses... But then they start to break under the load as the season progresses.....
Bert
Guest
I'm pretty sure that the Bombers weren't on performance-enhancing drugs last year. If they were, then it's a scandal, and they should ask for their money back.
NeeDeep
Roar Pro
As it turns out, good move going after Goddard, Red. At least you'll have "a" player come round 1! I did say to you in our previos discussion, that something didn't seem right at Windy Hill - "bulking up last year" and "slimming down this year" didn't make a lot of sense to me. I guess Bomber must have let the "Cat" out of the bag!
Redb
Roar Guru
Melbourne have been Tanking Essendon have been Danking St Kilda caught W......
NeeDeep
Roar Pro
Actualy, they're playing Brendon Goddard. He's come over from a club where drug use doesn't appear to be an issue - at this point of proceedings. Strange for the Saints to be in the clear for a change! Normally they're on everyones hitlist and at the bottom of every bit of bad news that ever comes out of the AFL.
checkside
Guest
Does this mean Adelaide have a bye in the first round?
Redb
Roar Guru
New title required. Can Australian sport hold back the peptide?
Had enough
Guest
Whatever comes of this, I feel completely dismayed with sport in general and yearn for a return to the days where you could believe what you saw. I know that we will never return to the (cliched) 'good old days', where skill and natural talent/effort/determination etc produced results, but where is this all going to end? Do we need to now watch all sport with the same attitude as we watch professional wrestling - purely as entertainment but, ultimately, make believe?
Nick
Roar Guru
See the bombers shoot up, UP!
Nick
Roar Guru
I'm certain that there would be an industry body out there, sanctioned and authorised by the government to be the accreditors of people. Much like the APA for psychologists, or the AMA for doctors.
Jutsie
Guest
Even though im a dons supporter I hope these revelations do have the silver lining you describe above
Redb
Roar Guru
Very much so. Every sports science 'guru' at an AFL club and in other codes will find themselves at the centre of an audit. They are now a major risk to any sporting organisation and thus will have dropped down a peg in the eyes of the club's senior management allowing much greater scrutiny.
Redb
Roar Guru
My take as above.... McVeigh spoke with honesty and integrity (now backed up by Jobe Watson). I believe the players did not knowingly take PED’s and nor were they directed to my someone like James Hird. Reimers implied this was official policy of the coaching group/football dept and the players were being bullied by signing the waivers to take PEDs. That is absolute rubbish. So McVeigh has cleared the air and I think you’ll find his ‘story’ turns out to be much more credible than Reimers. It is significant. This Dank character has some suspect connections and I bet much of the investigation is due to him. It is too early to know what will transpire. As no Essendon player has tested positive to PED’s, ASADA will need to find strong evidence that any PED’s procured by Dank were given to Essendon players. As far as Essendon players and PEDs goes this story is now a storm in a teacup. That does not mean Essendon has not been dragged into a tawdry affair due to Dank and there may still be consequences but I seriously doubt evidence of systemic cheating at Essendon will be found. As for the waiver/consent form this becomes a process issue. If it an official WADA form or the drugs listed signed off by WADA then it will be very difficult for ASADA to make a case. If a vitamin injection was substituted by Dank or someone else with an illegal substance then ASADA will have no choice but to exonerate Essendon players. There are exceptional circumstances for this to occur.
Redb
Roar Guru
McVeigh spoke with honesty and integrity (now backed up by Jobe Watson). I believe the players did not knowingly take PED’s and nor were they directed to my someone like James Hird. Reimers implied this was official policy of the coaching group/football dept and the players were being bullied by signing the waivers to take PEDs. That is absolute rubbish. So McVeigh has cleared the air and I think you’ll find his ‘story’ turns out to be much more credible than Reimers. It is significant. This Dank character has some suspect connections and I bet much of the investigation is due to him. It is too early to know what will transpire. As no Essendon player has tested positive to PED’s, ASADA will need to find strong evidence that any PED’s procured by Dank were given to Essendon players. As far as Essendon players and PEDs goes this story is now a storm in a teacup. That does not mean Essendon has not been dragged into a tawdry affair due to Dank and there may still be consequences but I seriously doubt evidence of systemic cheating at Essendon will be found. As for the waiver/consent form this becomes a process issue. If it an official WADA form or the drugs listed signed off by WADA then it will be very difficult for ASADA to make a case. If a vitamin injection was substituted by Dank or someone else with an illegal substance then ASADA will have no choice but to exonerate Essendon players. There are exceptional circumstances for this to occur.
Gordon smith
Guest
Time to apologize to the west coast eagles?
Anthony
Guest
So Demetriou was on the right track last year when he criticized the influence of "Sports scientists"!
Jack
Guest
could the contents of the vial and the waiver be different? You can label a bottle with anything
Jack
Guest
Everyone knew the waivers were signed according to today's developments
Jack
Guest
Either they're not illegal or they were designed to pass tests eg masking, timing etc. The banned lists are not comprehensive enough because there are guys in labs designing hybrid after hybrid drugs that either keep levels within the guidelines, can be masked or flushed by the body in time to avoid detection. The drugs are light years ahead of the authorities eg Armstrong was taking EPO long before they could even test for it