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You can mark 2015 as one of the AFL’s most shameful years to date.
Be it the ongoing Essendon drug saga, the treatment of Adam Goodes, the denials that it was racially motivated, or the assault of a women in front of her children, you can rest assured that 2015 will be a year that we can be anything but proud of.
Dissecting this carcass known as AFL 2015, the coroner’s report can be brought down to three issues.
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The continued drug saga
Despite the best efforts of the AFL hierarchy to sweep this up as quickly as possible it is an issue that simply won’t go away. Bombers great Tim Watson has said there will always be a “stain” on Essendon, and that long-time golden boy James Hird’s association with the club will always carry an asterisk.
Even to this day the AFL is facing legal action in the Supreme Court over its handling of the saga, with claims the league “engaged in multiple acts of misleading or deceptive conduct”.
Placing blame squarely at one person’s feet would be unjustified as many parties have ensured that Australia’s only true national sport has been tarnished with the brush of performance-enhancing drugs and cover-ups.
The silent majority ignoring the ugly few
A late contributor but a terrifying one. Australia’s prime minister Malcolm Turnbull called on all Australians to make a “cultural shift” and stop disrespecting women, and that “violence against women is one of the great shames of Australia. It’s a national disgrace”.
Days later one Fremantle supporter’s response to this was to hurl abuse at a female off-duty officer who confronted him as his behaviour was disturbing her children and others watching the game. He then followed it up by physically assaulting her. Honourable mention for the mob who restrained the man but the question remains why she was the only person willing to stand up to him in the first place.
Furthermore, on the very same night Hawthorn Hawks players Isaac Smith and Luke Breust were also involved with fans either striking or attempting to strike them. The severity of the strikes or whether they connected is irrelevant, the fact that the fans thought this was appropriate in the first place is reflective of some of the attitudes held in the crowd.
Adam Goodes driven out of the game
This has been the issue that has divided not only the AFL but the whole country. Goodes, a two-time Brownlow medallist, premiership winner, Australian of the Year and proud indigenous Australian has endured some of the most abysmal treatment by elements of the AFL supporter base, leaders and hierarchy.
Rather than getting a job commentating on the footy, Goodes has been met with an unwarranted amount of hatred. I’m all for people being forgiven for their actions but what has Goodes need to apologise for?
Those who claimed it was not racially motivated said that he was a dirty player who played for penalties. This was quickly debunked as the stats showed he was in the middle of the pack when it came to this, no saint but definitely no sinner.
The next reason that popped up was his treatment of the 13-year-old girl who racially abused him. They said he went too far, and I did a double take when I saw the article in which the girl’s mother demanded that Goodes apologise for his behaviour and not the other way around.
At 13 someone is perfectly capable of telling right from wrong, particularly when it comes to racism. Goodes had every right to call her out on it. Attitudes are opinions which are developed early on and if intolerant or racial ones are met with indifference or ignored they can easily grow.
Perhaps Goodes’s greatest crime was separating himself from the silent majority, when he took the podium to deliver his speech as Australian of the Year. Rather than continue the status quo of having our footballers seen and not heard he used the opportunity to challenge our beliefs
“I believe racism is a community issue, which we all need to address, and that’s why racism stops with me,” he said.
“There are always two ways we can look at a situation. We can choose to get angry, or not. We can choose to help others, or not. Or choose to be offended, or not. We can keep our silos, or educate ourselves and others about racism and minority populations.
Unfortunately for Goodes people decided to get angry and rather than help themselves or others they decided it was easier to say the fault lies solely with him. Fans booed, and respected AFL personalities, rather than go against the grain and their loyal followers to defend Goodes, continued to keep the status quo.
Sam Newman called him and idiot, Miranda Divine a pillock, Dermot Bremerton called for Goodes to change his attitude. Whether he was going to retire or not this year, the AFL will be worse off without his presence on the field.
Perhaps the sad and final nail in the coffin is Goodes declining to participate in the lap of honour at the MCG, in what should have been a fitting end to a remarkable career. The AFL was spared the embarrassment of fans booing a retiring player.
Rather than write 2015 off as a year to forget, perhaps it’s an opportunity for the AFL and Australia alike to reflect on how we can ensure that a year like this is never seen again.
For those who disagree feel free to unload in the comments section below.
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