Willie Rioli speaks out after ASADA suspension

Did I say that? There's big difference in making ambiguous statements on social media that can be read in a specific way as opposed to letting the professionals manage the information stream. First thing that came from this was Peter Sumich saying the entire club needs to be investigated as the issue is unlikely to be a single person making a decision. Maybe if someone from West Coast had grabbed Willie and said here's what you say in public and here's what you don't then this type of scuttlebutt and inuendo could have been controlled minimising damage to the rest of the club and team Now Willie has come out and said he's guilty he cannot expect anything less than 4 years. If it had been managed then they could possibly have managed the extent of the punsihment a lot better. Geez - I thought that would be basic a&%e covering 101 that somone like you anon would be all over

I totally agree with you WCE.

he was dehydrated, panicked when he couldn't produce and stupidly applied gatorade instead. he will regret this for a very long time. His sample B was clear and the blood test given after was negative for any substance. my comment to all the bashers of the club because of this stupid mistake by one individual is to get your facts straight before the verbal derogatory comments start flying about of drugs abuse when drugs isn't even part of this situation. i think its extremely sad and disappointing how some people have behaved & carried on with this.

Well it might be even more bizare, Ive just posted something on this. He claims he couldn't pee after 4 hours so poured in Gatorade out of frustration. https://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/afl/west-coast-eagles-claim-willie-rioli-poured-sports-drink-into-urine-sample-out-of-frustration-ng-3c4a1d345bab59f0de9aec05cac35580

There's an article in ''Perth Now'' which says Rioli still couldn't pee after 4 hours so in frustration poured in gator aid... even more bizarrely...blood tests came back negative!! Hard to know what to believe but if the blood tests came back negative thats at least some good news.

The problem with your accusations that Rioli is a "drug cheat" is that "subsequent blood tests have shown that there was nothing illicit in his system." As usual, I'm certain you won't recant your unfounded accusation. In fact, you won't even acknowledge you made them.

Where a Player or other Person can establish how a Specified Substance entered his body or came into his Possession and that such Specified Substance was not intended to enhance the Player’s sport performance or mask the Use of a performance-enhancing substance, the period of Ineligibility found in Clause 14.1 shall be replaced with the following: First violation: At a minimum, a reprimand and no period of Ineligibility, and at a maximum, two (2) years of Ineligibility. To justify any elimination or reduction, the Player or other Person must produce corroborating evidence in addition to his word which establishes to the comfortable satisfaction of the hearing panel the absence of an intent to enhance sport performance or mask the Use of a performance-enhancing substance. The Player’s or other Person’s degree of fault shall be the criterion considered in assessing any reduction of the period of Ineligibility.

We have not heard his side of the story. He is not allow to speak about it under investigation. What we have heard is only through the Media. So that is gossip enough. So Until we heard the his side it is just gossip.

He has already admitted to tampering with his sample. That isn't gossip, that is fact. The penalty for sample tampering is 4 years.

:angry: Good to see that everyone on here has hanged Wil Rioli already. Just wait until he is allow to tell his side before will hang him it is only just pure gossip which is terrible.

Urine?

I'm sure he's going through a lot right now because if ASADA and the AFL are serious about drug cheats then he'll cop four years and that's effectively the end of his career. I'm sure he's upset, but he hasn't been given a cancer diagnosis. He hasn't lost his job and now doesn't have enough money for rent. He hasn't been kicked out onto the streets with no money. He'll be looked after by the richest footy club in the country. He'll be given all the support he needs to find a new career. The guy is only 24. Plenty of time to hit the books again, go to university, become an apprentice, etc.

How come everyone else can do what they're told and not tamper with a vial? Testing has been going on in footy for decades. If he's that unintelligent that he thought nothing would come of tampering with a vial, then there's no helping him. He would have come unstuck at some point in life from something else.

I am curious what would show up if you drug tested gatorade haha.

That's rubbish. Petr Korda was busted for steroids. Shane Warne busted for using a steroid masking agent.

If you're a drug user in an occupation where you have drug testing protocols drummed into your head and you know it's an absolute no no to put an illicit drug or PED into your body, then you should probably find a job where they don't care what you do in your own time. No-one put a gun to his head and told him to take the illicit drug or PED. No-one put a gun to his head and told him he has to play AFL football. His choices and he's responsible for the outcome. If the footy club offered him rehab and counselling that would be very generous of the club, but they're not under any obligation. The club couldn't have done more to outline the potential consequences of using drugs.

Absolutely. Some have written here about playing the mental health card as an excuse. No one had done that though, just said his wellbeing is the most important, which is true.

Another 'broken clock' comment - could well be right, but even a broken clock is correct twice a day. You've based your comment on some very circumspect press releases and a tweet from an emotionally wrecked footballer; Twitter being that medium renowned for giving good context. On top of having the consequences of taking prohibited substances drummed in, footballers are also told of the consequences of tampering with samples. I imagine Rioli's also been tested numerous times, and would know that he is being watched the whole time - would be pretty hard to forget. There's a fair way to go before the facts of the matter come to light, including whether ASADA'S evidence arises from the test chaperone, the lab, both, or neither. In the same vein (maybe a poor turn of phrase there) you'd do well to read the details of the Sun tampering case. There's more to it than a hammer and a full vial.

Hi Ritchie...I certainly don't think he's done nothing wrong,and I certainly think he will be punished. I'm just also considering his mental health in the future,like Gil is,and of course he has done something wrong. I've only been on social media a couple of weeks and have already seen all sorts of people,even stalkers. Male suicide is a serious topic,and maybe we need to sometimes reflect when commenting.

Anon has been pretty consistent on this topic. On the other hand you seem ready to assume it was just a silly thing to do and he had otherwise done nothing much wrong. I think Anon is being realistic and others are being naive.