A lawyer has launched legal action against the AFL, its chairman and its chief executive, alleging misconduct during the supplements saga.
Jackson Taylor filed a writ with the Victorian Supreme Court on Tuesday in which he claims senior AFL figures knew Essendon was being investigated by the Australian Crime Commission before the club self-reported in February 2013.
The writ alleges the club only requested the AFL and Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority conduct a joint investigation into the club after being alerted to the ACC investigation.
Comment has been sought from the AFL.
Mr Taylor is a lawyer who previously urged Essendon members to push for an extraordinary general meeting at the club in order to investigate the handling of the saga.
Now he is focussing his attention on the handling of the saga by the code’s governing body, alleging that former CEO Andrew Demetriou, current CEO Gillon McLachlan and chairman Mike Fitzpatrick made comments both in the media and the AFL’s annual report that were misleading.
“Companies that act with the values and integrity the AFL claimed that it had, do so at an economic cost,” Taylor said.
“Those companies, the public and other stakeholders, are entitled to the protection of the law from companies who claim to act in ways they do not.”
With AAP
Aransan
Guest
You missed the full stop before "the".
Pumping Dougie
Roar Guru
That's a very long sentence Sharon
Pumping Dougie
Roar Guru
Maybe Jacskon Taylor is an alias for Tania Hird and the motives are emotional and defensive rather than rational.
Pumping Dougie
Roar Guru
Anthony, that article refers to the use of injections by 20 players across 6 clubs (true, including Hawthorn) to treat injuries. That's a hell of a lot different to what Essendon did. Nothing wrong with needles to help recover from an injury. Plus it's re-injecting a person's own blood, as opposed to Pig's testicles mixed with bat droppings, Danks' sweat particles, haggus and tequilla.
Pumping Dougie
Roar Guru
What a time-wasting, vexatious litigant jerk!
BigAl
Guest
Ahhh! . . . now I understand what Jackson is on about...
Sharon Kirk
Guest
Well this should bring the afl to its knees demetrio new when to jump ship as for the two other idiots running the afl it has come back to bite them on there arse there's that many lies that have been told about this saga it's a joke why would a CEO tell a football club to stop the injections if they new about this was it to protect the club that was a cash cow club to the afl with there supporter bass million dollar club that now has lost millions of dollars fighting this saga and will do so until it all ends .the afl and Hird are as responsible for everything that has gone on for three yrs and could go another twelve months can garantee Hird is behind this mess when he was sacked he had no time for the CEO or Fitzpatrick on this saga now we will sit back and see where this all goes,these two blokes will be gone as Hird said he will go down fighting can't wait to see where this could end up a few jobs on the line need someone that knows how to run this game of ours not the two monkeys they have now.
Frank R
Roar Rookie
Actually the article says it all came from Essendon: But the player who encouraged Marks that the treatment could revolutionise AFL football came from Essendon. Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/hawks-set-the-pace-in-injection-science-20120924-26hhg.html#ixzz3kez1qdc6 It also says: Orthokine is approved by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority So it would appear your implied accusations against the Hawks are baseless as proven by the very article you hold up as proof. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.
Edgar Slosh
Roar Guru
Maybe he wants a slice of the cash the AFL have with the new broadcasting rights. 2.5 bill...maybe have some change thrown at him. I still think he is going to work back to where Demetriou ALLEGEDLY warned Hird.
Aransan
Guest
Better to let lying dogs sleep.
Aransan
Guest
This is not a zero sum game unless you include the lawyers.
andyl12
Guest
That's easy. The article makes it clear that those injections are totally different to what Hird did. None of them caused any of our players to break down with injuries, none of them brought the game into disrepute, none of them were believed by ASADA to be illegal, none of them made players want to leave the club, none of them caused the sort of infighting that made people laugh at the EFC, none of them left anyone with the fears mentioned in this article: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/essendon-bombers/emergency-essendon-meeting-planned-as-players-health-fears-grow-20130816-2s0y5.html It is in some ways understandable that a club like Essendon would try to deflect attention when they know they've done bad things. Luckily most of the public see through these tactics.
Anthony Maguire
Guest
Wriggle out of that then. http://m.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/hawks-set-the-pace-in-injection-science-20120924-26hhg.html
jax
Guest
If only it were as simple as that. We are talking about the writ now I thought.
andyl12
Guest
Tell me about this injecting, Anthony! If you have evidence that my "mob" have done what Hird did I suggest you publish it. But then, it's not like Hird and his disciples to produce evidence of anything, is it?
Anthony Maguire
Guest
You mean like your mob of cleanskins? You know, the ones that started all the injecting down at Waverly? Glass houses mate. Glass houses.
andyl12
Guest
"It may be as simple as him seeing what the AFL has done to EFC and him." How dare the AFL believe the EFC is not above the law! Hird and the EFC got done in court twice, I think that proves it wasn't just a dodgy conspiracy against them. Remember, the AFL still generously gives the EFC blockbusters they don't deserve- if another club had injected like Hird and the EFC I fancy the penalties would've been far harsher.
jax
Guest
It may be as simple as him seeing what the AFL has done to EFC and him wanting to take others down with them.
jax
Guest
There could be many reasons.
andyl12
Guest
I don't see how the AFL had an opportunity to prevent what happened at Essendon- it could hardly go put a padlock on the front door of every player's house to stop them going to the injection clinic each day. Demetriou warned Hird not to use peptides but since the AFL had no rules to prevent it (and couldn't exactly bring in new rules at the snap of a finger), Hird was able to thumb his nose at Demetriou, the same way he's thumbed his nose at so many other wiser people since then. Remember there were similar lawyers who thought Hird could get a judge to rule the ASADA investigation as illegal, and we all know how that turned out.