Essendon getting thumped by Hawthorn last Friday is the least of their worries at the moment as their six-month drug crisis has got uglier.
It claimed another big scalp on the weekend in chairman David Evans, who after suffering a physical breakdown in the rooms after the Hawthorn defeat made the right decision to stand down the following day.
As James Hird said in his post match press conference, this matter and the ASADA investigation needs to come to a conclusion as soon as possible, because lives and families are paying the price. David Evans is one of those.
He and Hird, who were so close for so long, seemed to suffer a fallout in recent weeks over having a different view on the contents of a phone call between Evans and Demetriou back in February, the day before the Essendon drugs story broke.
That subplot became bigger than the drugs investigation for a day last week.
Hird seemed to indicate in his ASADA meeting in April that Demetriou may have provided some information to Evans in that phone conversation to make him aware that the Bombers were the club ASADA were closing in on to investigate allegations of extensive supplement taking, some of which may have been banned.
Demetriou has strongly denied it over the weekend and Hird’s large legal and PR teams are now engaged in a war of words with the AFL accusing them of leaking other information relating to a meeting Hird had with the AFL’S integrity officer, Brett Clothier, back in 2011, as well as when ASADA had their meeting with him three months ago.
Correspondence from the League to Hird’s legal counsel has been rigorous in denying this too.
With the ASADA findings due out next week and then the relevant parties having a further two weeks to respond to them before sanctions, if there are any, are handed out, the breaking down of relationships and the huge role of the media in this saga threatens to continue to take centre stage.
The League is furious, and rightly so, that their organisation the code appear to have been put into disrepute over these alleged drug practices employed by the Essendon Football Club.
The AFL has to make an example of them, and it’s set to happen on the eve of the finals, which has the Bombers as certain participants at the moment.
To ensure this never occurs again, the penalties need to be severe and as has been speculated long and hard, the stripping of premiership points could come into play.
You can understand James Hird’s frustration that the matter and investigation has dragged on for six months, but it has to be an exhaustive process and if Essendon players are found to have taken banned substances and supplements, the club will only have themselves to blame.
If it’s discovered that Hird played a significant role in this and some high profile media folk remain convinced of that it could spell the end of his coaching career. Though if it was up to new Essendon chairman, Paul Little, ‘Hirdy’ won’t be going anywhere.
If he does stay beyond this season, don’t expect the push for his demise to stop. Hird has constantly claimed his and the club’s innocence that they’ve both done nothing wrong.
He has to be admired for coaching his side into a position where at this stage they should still finish top four, but are clearly not good enough to beat the top three despite the ongoing issues around the club.
If the Bombers were to lose premiership points in the next few weeks it obviously wouldn’t be ideal, but it would be better than if it carried over to 2014, because they might be ready to challenge for the flag next year.
As relationships in the game fall apart and key figures resign as this sorry and sordid affair drags on, we hope that by September the finals action will be front and square. But don’t count on it.
Mark
Guest
Alleged, asserted, supposed, suspected, purported, professed, suspected etc etc etc All adds up to nothing Ian.
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
Mark, See this as the source of the Interleukin-6, TA-65 and Cerebroylsin. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/essendon-report-may-be-delayed-as-four-more-drugs-probed/story-fni5f6kv-1226675061758 Regarding BodyShaper, there are a lot of substances that normal people can legally use that professional athletes covered by WADA cant. Experimental drugs like AOD-9604 are in that class, and it doesnt matter if you sniff, snort, apply, eat, drink or inject them - prohibited substances are prohibited. The fact it can legally be put in cosmetics or used as a food supplement is irrelevant - the rule says all drugs used by players must be approved for *thereaputic* use ... and thats assuming the experimental AOD-9604 doesnt deserve a S2 ban.
Mark
Guest
AOD 9604 was available for sale from Myers and Priceline a couple of years ago in the form of Bodyshaper, for all i know it still is, i would suggest if there was a problem, we would know about it. I am not aware of the other drugs you mention being claimed to have been injected, injested or whatever by Essendon players. As i posted in another thread, so far the ACC and the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority have failed even to land a minnow. At the beginning, we were told that drugs and organised crime were ‘rife’ within Australian sport. And what now? Players may have unknowingly taken a substance that might be illegal (but might have been cleared by ASADA itself), that might have been provided by someone who knows (?) a bikie, who might have imported them, possibly illegally, but probably through lawful channels. And the ‘150 players’ from two codes to be interviewed? A number fabricated by an executive ‘under pressure’. And quite frankly Ian, and i have seen many of your posts, you verge reguarly on hysterical.
Lroy
Guest
Wow, interesting (in a bad way) stuff.. sounds like you have done your homework.. well done ;-)
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
AOD-9604 never completed it's clinical trials - indeed, the vast majority of the trials were with the drug in pill form, which isnt how Essendon took it. Thymosin beta-4 was purchase from Shane Charter in bulk by Stephen Dank, and the instructions Charter gave Dank for it's use were repeated on the "consent forms" signed by Essendon players. Interleukin-6 is scary, scary stuff. TA-65 is scary stuff. Cereboylsin is not TGA-approved in Australia, and is an anti-psychotic. At Cronulla, Jon Mannah is dead, CJC-1295 (failed clinical trials after a subject died) and warfarin (a blood thinner, which means impact injuries can kill) were given to players. Yeah, you can soft-pedal things all you want, but systematic, club-based doping is pretty damn dark. Im expecting 2-4 year bans for coaches, 2 year ban from the draft and 2 year suspensions for Essendon players. Im expecting lawsuits from players, Workcover investigations and a number of medicos to lose their licences.
Mark
Guest
Drugs were not untried, nor is AOD 9604, and other drugs which have not been claimed to have been used by Essendon illegal, the TXT were 2 years old, and a private convo with a sports scietist, a convo most coaches would have. Just becasue clubs have supplement programs, does not make them bad or illegal. The darkest day in Australian sport has netted exactly nothing. At a guess Trevor Chappells underarm bowling will be in hindsight much worse.
TW
Guest
Totally agree and the usual Victorian paranoia about the Eagles shines through from Jimmy. We had our backsides handed to us by the AFL over the Cousins and others saga, and everything that comes into the club is strictly monitored now. Again I say the Bombers wanted an edge in the arms race.
donster57
Guest
It would appear that James Hird is also near to breaking point with his attempt to implicate various other AFL clubs in the same mire as his own. Personally I can see only a bleak outcome for Hird, the EFC medical staff and the Essendon FC as the findings appear to boil down to two outcomes. (i) The EFC experimented with untried drugs on its own young playing squad, endorsed by the club's own medical staff (ii) The EFC used known illegal performance enhancing drugs on its own young playing squad, once again, fully endorsed by the EFC medical staff. In either case the punishment will be severe to both the club and the staff involved. I feel for the young kids involved here as they have obviously placed their trust in both Hird and the club. These players are also in the firing line with regards to punishment by the AFL or Federal law.
kick to kick
Guest
According to today's Herald Sun any sanctions apply immediately from the time players are placed on a drug using "register". They can appeal but remain suspended until the appeal is concluded., even if successful. It is presumably possible however that a non sporting court (ie under Commonwealth or State law) could make an injunction against suspensions pending a full court hearing. I'm still of the view that the real penalties will flow from the AFL Commission which has extensive powers to suspend, deregister, strip premiership points and draft choices - and that will be about brining the game into disrepute. Such a finding that does not have to rely on a WADA breach or WADA/ASADA processes.
Pot Stirrer
Guest
What a mess this one bloke has brought o AFL and RL, What i worry about is if the Sharks and EFC are found to be guilty then the lawsuits from players being used as guiney pigs will force the end of these clubs.
Matilda
Guest
Huh? He is the sherriff (CEO) of AFL town (Commission). ? Three organisations with any say in all of this - ASADA, WADA, AFL. Two have not spoken publically and specifically on Essendon, one has. ASADA/WADA have only reiterated what their code and regulations say but have not specifically interpreted these regulations in regards to the Essendon case. Will do soon. This step is important - it's why we have courts - to interpret laws in relation to the specifics of a case. Seems too few care for this process... 'Just bring in the executioners already I know everything I need to know. I've googled AOD9604. Hang him!' Not saying the club is innocent - how the hell would I know? No right-minded person should say otherwise unless they are privy to all the info and have the necessary skills and knowledge to decipher that info correctly. What I am saying is that they deserve the presumption of innocence until findings are announced. I'm not an Essendon supporter, I'm just saddened by the amount of armchair experts that are baying for blood... because their bored, or have an over-inflated view of their own expertise in all things because they know how to use Google. Calum, mate, you saying 'I'm with Ian' doesn't mean anything.
Radelaide
Guest
I'm starting to think that the teams that stay at the top consistently and vice versa are starting to show the haves and have nots of "medical science".
calum
Guest
Atilda, I'm with Ian on this particular matter. Whilst I wouldn't go as far to say AD views are 'utterly irrelevant', they actually aren't very important. AD is swaggering around like he is the the Sherriff of AFL town. Unfortuantely he is coming slowly to the realisation that there are bigger boys in town WADA and ASADA.
Redb
Roar Guru
AR, This is going around in circles. Both Wilson and Smith have to be seen to be whacking Demetriou to protect their source. I'm not clutching at straws, suggest you look deeper and understand how these relationships work for both sides. Start with the article below my Mick Ellis.
Australian Rules
Guest
"Find me an article where Caroline Wilson calls for Demetriou to resign." Resign...for what? Wilson is constantly critical of Demetriou and she has relentlessly bagged him for the Rendell affair. You know this. But resign? I'm not sure he's done anything that warrants an immediate resignation. You're clutching at straws.
Redb
Roar Guru
"Do you really think Dank alone had the power to push Essendon into that " Yes. It's not about power, its about being relied upon as the expert in sports science and having your own agenda. Check why was Dank sacked? Check Dank expenditure at the club? Club insiders have told me and I quote "he ran amok"
Kasey
Guest
"His handling of the tanking affair was a joke." ~ redb So what gives you or anybody else in AFL-land the confidence that he wont handle this 'affair' in a similar manner?
Stavros
Guest
Massive difference. Hird has not denied that there was a supplements program going on. He believes that his players were talking approved substances. He has told the ASADA investigators what they were. The ASADA report will reveal all.
Dean
Guest
I have a question for Essendon fans, would they rather lose their first two draft picks for the next two years or lose their chance to play finals this year. Long term pain or short term pain, what would the bombers go for? (Or what would the fans be least upset with?) From the AFL's perspective, the very least Essendon will face will have to be something on-field. They've never stripped points before, so I'm tipping it will be via draft picks that the AFL will focus. If you thought the booing in Perth was bad, imagine if they front Collingwood or Carlton at the G in the first week of finals having been found guilty of anything.
Malevu
Guest
I recall hearing one of the investigators who brought down Lance Armstrong say that Armstrong had told so many lies for so long, that in the end he had started to believe what he was saying was true. Like many people I've admired James Hird for many years but just recently I've started to question the sincerity of his comments. You'd like to believe it was the continued stress he's been under that was causing it, but I can't help notice the similarity between Hird and Armstrong's demeanour.