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Exactly when will Essendon be able to play by the rules again? When will the penalties end?
The latest round of debates about whether or not Essendon should be able to receive the first selection at this year’s draft is another example of some fans, commentators and officials actually encouraging the AFL to make the rules up on the run.
There is no current rule stating that Essendon is disqualified from receiving the first pick in the draft.
Yes, Essendon were found to have brought the game into disrepute with their cavalier supplements program and lack of due governance. For that, their penalties have been served.
Remember?
They were kicked out of the finals in 2013, fined $2 million, were banned from participating in the first two rounds of the 2013 AFL National Draft and also lost picks in the first two rounds of the 2014 Draft.
At the beginning of this year 34 past and present Essendon players were found guilty by the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) who were comfortably satisfied that they were injected with an illegal substance during the supplements program of 2011 and 2012.
Twelve of those players were still at Essendon as listed players when the CAS verdict was handed down in January and as such, they are sitting on the sidelines until November.
And, of course, without twelve of their best players, Essendon are likely to finish last and be rewarded with the precious number one pick.
Some people appear outraged by this, claiming that granting Essendon the first pick will simply be rewarding them for their past crimes. Port Adelaide President, David Koch, stated on Sunrise that he doesn’t think it’s a good look. But then again, neither is potting your own team on Twitter.
The AFL will ultimately do what the AFL wants to do – they have a rich history of doing that. But when will it end? When will people start to acknowledge that Essendon has served all penalties handed down by the AFL and are currently serving the further penalties imposed by CAS?
The AFL has known since January that Essendon would probably finish last. They did not impose a rule stating Essendon is disqualified from receiving the first pick. Why would they introduce a rule now?
To those who are outraged at the thought of Essendon being rewarded with the first pick, will you also be outraged if they receive the second, or the third? There’s not a hell of a lot of difference between them. Would you like them to be banned from the whole first round, or are you satisfied that’s already happened in 2013?
And if you truly do want the AFL to come out and ban Essendon from receiving the first pick, that’s fine, just don’t carry on the next time the AFL creates a new rule on the run, because ultimately that’s what you’re asking them to do here.
The Essendon players were banned in January. It’s now June. There is no rule saying they are disqualified from receiving the first draft pick.
A rule should not be introduced now.
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