The response to the Australian Crime Commission’s report into Australian (men’s) sport was sadly predictable only days after the report was released publicly.
It seemed that representatives and supporters of the AFL and NRL in particular were crying foul because the ACC wasn’t “naming names” and the whole sport was being tarnished due to the misdeeds of persons or organisations unknown.
The Penrith Panthers’ head and Channel Nine commentator Phil Gould led the charge out of the blocks, but only days later after a meeting with ACC representatives had moderated his tone and declared his support for the ongoing investigation.
It was as close to “mea culpa” as Gus will likely get.
A variety of coaches and officials from both codes appeared on news reports, grim-faced, demanding to know why the “entire code” had been sullied by the releasing of the report. Saying how unfair it was and how “innocent” clubs were in danger of losing valuable sponsorships because of their implied involvement in alleged illicit drug supply and match-fixing.
It was bleeding hearts stuff, worthy of “In The Name Of The Father”. (Utterly brilliant movie, if you haven’t seen it, finish reading the article then go rent/buy it now!)
It took a sombre assessment from NSW Sports Minister and former NRL referee Graham Annesley last Thursday to quell the growing histrionics from sections of the media and the clubs themselves.
After receiving a confidential briefing from the ACC, Annesley said, “There is reason to be concerned about this stuff.
It is a threat to the integrity of sport in some areas.” The Minister admitted to feeling the same way initially about the entire sport being tarred with the same brush.
But he added: “Has the action that has been taken and the damage that may have caused, is that offset by the potential to perhaps bring undone some of these elements that are within our sports codes who are trying to bring sport into disrepute?”
It’s hard to feel sympathy for clubs in either the NRL or AFL who miss out on sponsorship money as a result of the report’s release.
The only club so far that has been cited as having these difficulties are the Cronulla Sharks, but no matter which clubs may be adversely affected, their knee jerk solution – to fire verbal bullets at the ACC – reeks of self-interest rather than a collective desire to see those involved in illegalities caught and weeded out of the sport for life.
It’s absurd for the codes to demand that the ACC make public any and all information in order to save the reputation of “innocent” clubs. Investigations simply don’t work that way, and the pain-staking process the ACC have undertaken in the last 12 months was again commented on by Annesley.
“When you sit across the table from these guys, who spend their lives trying to fight crime at the highest level in this country, and they present you with information that they work on 24/7, I think it’s a bit hard to sit on the other side of the table and say, ‘That’s not right – you’re only scaremongering,'” he said.
Perhaps the major codes need to forget about playing the victim and ensure they have a sport which is intolerant of the kind of activity cited by the ACC, as well as not introducing elements that naturally lead to the circumstances the report has thus far alleged (gambling sponsorship and exotic betting, I’m looking at you.)
And maybe they should take a leaf out of Australian women’s team sport, which seems not to have strayed from the ethic and concept of what playing the game is about.
Great stuff, Southern Stars.
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