A 20-year-old man braved the media yesterday.
Admitting to a mistake he made three times, he spoke full of disappointment in himself. The remorse was as evident as Steve Smith’s was in South Africa last year.
There wasn’t the tears or fanfare. But everyone knew we were seeing Jaidyn Stephenson facing a make-or-break moment in his life.
The suspension for his accumulative $36 total of bets on three Collingwood games involving his and his team-mates’ performances is 22 weeks, with ten to be served immediately.
What he did was stupid, especially in a day and age when betting on the AFL is evidently outlawed for all players and officials involved in the organisation.
It’s no Hanse Cronje move, but it doesn’t look good when Stephenson bets on himself to kick a certain number of goals in a match, or a team-mate to collect a certain amount of disposals.
Does that impact who he passes it to or what decisions he makes? We can’t confirm that. But practically the answer is that this appears to be an innocent mistake.
Stephenson definitely deserves some sort of severe punishment. A fine and more importantly a suspension. That is universally agreed on.
But was ten weeks and a further 12 suspended on top of a $20,000 fine too harsh? What message does that send to other members of the AFL community and us fans?
By making this decision, the AFL are flirting with a fine line of hypocrisy.
Isolated, the harsh stance against betting is understandable. It has ruined the integrity of other sports, such as cricket and its match-fixing issues. Players have ended up in jail because of it. Therefore, any action – no matter how unintentional – that strays into an AFL player betting on the sport should be met with a suspension.
(AAP Image/Julian Smith)
But a key factor is that the AFL have different policies for other transgressions.
Taking illicit drugs is arguably a bigger problem facing the AFL. Think Ben Cousins and the allegations surrounding West Coast. How many more players have been caught taking illegal substances than they have betting?
In the time since the last gambling suspension was handed to Heath Shaw in 2011, players from Collingwood (Sam Murray, Josh Thomas, Lachlan Keeffe), Fremantle (Ryan Crowley) and St Kilda (Ahmed Saad) have been found guilty of taking illicit drugs, on top of the Essendon saga.
Yet with their current three-strike system, a player who self-reports their drug use will receive privacy and counselling, not suspensions or fines. Not once, but on three separate occasions. That doesn’t sit right.
Also, the AFL still has many betting companies as major sponsors. Multiple AFL clubs have pokies systems that generate a large part of their earnings. When players grace the grounds, they see gambling ads. When they watch other games or shows at home, they see ads encouraging them to earn some money by betting on a sport they know the intricacies of.
This is no excuse for Stephenson’s actions, as they are dumb and pointless. But this case highlights the AFL’s need to change their rules.
If a player can confess three times they have taken illicit drugs without any sign of remorse and not be made public or punished, then how can a player who self-reports a series of gambling misdemeanours be publicly exposed and giving such a hefty ban and fine, especially when the betting industry is so important to the AFL’s bottom line?
The AFL have also stuffed up the investigation process. Stephenson confessed three matches before this suspension was handed down.
The whole games after a guilty plea. That’s not thorough, that’s problematic. That’s three games where Stephenson was allowed to play against other teams and score important goals that contributed to Collingwood’s success.
That’s another three games he’ll miss at the end of the season, where he’ll be left to wallow in his mistakes.
Yet the AFL will admit to no mistakes. They’ll have excuses for their ways, explaining their decisions and why they are so unequal when you compare them to illegal drug punishments.
They’ll also have excuses for they came to this decision so slowly, which threatens the integrity of the game more than a $36 series of bets from a 20-year-old player.
Mark.
Roar Rookie
“There is always a minority in every debate” Biting commentary!
ChrisH
Roar Rookie
You can’t call it an “innocent mistake”. To make an innocent mistake requires not knowing the rules. Player are strongly educated that betting on the footy is against the rules for them. Stephenson knew exactly what he was doing. Which makes it all the more mind-bogglingly stupid. I think the penalty was reasonable, given he only self-reported when told to. Everyone says “It was only $36”. Nowhere have i heard how much he stood to win. The value of the bets shouldn’t matter, it’s the return that would most motivate him to influence the outcome of a game. Multi-bets pay a lot higher than single bets. Totally agree it calls into question how lightly AFL deals with illicit drugs. You could be a club leader getting junior players into drugs, and it will all be dealt with with kid-gloves and hush-hush.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
Filthy lucre (it's not a case of need either, just very lucrative).
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
So some in here think the kid should have got life and some think the ten weeks is way over. Seems none of us have any idea really. It is probably because of the numerous mixed messages from the AFL itself over several years under Gilligan. None of us have a clue what on earth is happening on Gilligans Island
Macca
Roar Rookie
Why do we need a 5 minute add for Sportsbet in the program?
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
Wouldn't a virtual reality kid, dreamed up in cyberspace by another virtual creation just now be free to transmit across the ether and access gambling resources anywhere? I would've thought it was too soon for them to see anything at a game, given one isn't being played today, even supposing said monitors are hooked up to the internet at the stadium.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
"Very rich man". Oooh to be one of those would be great!
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Bit harsh there, Jonboy.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
I don't know what happened to my reply here it seems to have gone walkabouts.... - Yep the 830 timeslot is at the very edges of family viewing really. - Fair enough your point about impressionable teenage minds. But we can't realistically hermetically seal in teenagers, so at least within a program like that it allows you to have a conversation with them and better arm them to deal with the temptations of gambling. We're probably better off not trying to tell teenagers what to do and risk further arming their independence defences. You really just want to provide them with the best resources that they'll realistically use and offering someone they can turn to and honestly discuss things with. - TV probably isn't going to be the place where they get full access to exposure to gambling anyway, with them being online, accessing social media and often insidiously within electronic games there's gambling rewards and reinforcement.
Jonboy
Roar Rookie
Anyway Sean brilliant article could not agree more, i am sure 85% would agree with you and i doubt a few subscribers did not actually read what you said they were more intent on crucifying the kid, there is always a minority in every debate.
Jonboy
Roar Rookie
His parent's have done that and he has acknowledged it, he is aware of the consequences but do You really believe 18 yo kids are not going to do what they want to. Get a life, you obviously have not had kids.
Cat
Roar Guru
And it is up to parents to teach their children responsibility and not to believe everything 'TV' teaches them.
Jonboy
Roar Rookie
I have read your post's in the past and your not into alcohol or gambling, so you will end up a very rich man, Good luck to you.
Jonboy
Roar Rookie
How old was Jack Crisp when he ''Forgot you weren't allowed to bet " and received a lighter penalty than Stephenson.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Eh, fair enough. I dunno, I've personally just never understood the appeal of betting.
Republican
Guest
.......match fixing is pervasive across all codes and this includes at the junior tiers, where betting is common place today.
Jonboy
Roar Rookie
He is not that young 1 year younger than Stephenson. He plays footy with his mates, i don't know what the trend is but i would be surprised if he is in the minority. Maybe he is.
Republican
Guest
....... we support the AFL's sanctioned culture of punting whenever we place a bet on a game, follow the odds promoted on the tele, download the gambling app's to our phone et el. The AFL as with other elite sporting leagues across the board, are akin to any multi national truth be told. While their double standard is breathtaking in more ways than one, those of us who prosaically support this behemoth of avarice and power, are symbiotic of the contagions that debase our once great game......
Macca
Roar Rookie
When you can bet on everything and anything just by pick up you phone it is certainly to easy. I you had a gambling problem how do you get away from it, an alcoholic can not keep any grog in the house and not go into the pub, a gambler wherever they go they have the temptation in their pocket and are constantly bombarded with "you can't lose" ads.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
I know nothing about your grandson's circumstances, but betting on footy surely isn't too good a trend to keep up with, especially at a young age.