'Relentless pursuit and persecution': De Goey's extraordinary response to 'uneducated' media over Bali video

Jordan De Goey has taken a stunning swipe at the AFL media, following widespread criticism to the Magpies star’s questionable activities during a trip to Bali.

In vision obtained by the Herald Sun, De Goey was filmed making a series of crude gestures, before allegedly attempting to expose a woman’s breast, though it is unknown whether the hand seen on film was the 26-year old’s.

Having since been pilloried by football journalists and former greats alike, De Goey has responded in an Instagram post, bemoaning the ‘relentless pursuit and persecution of athletes’ by the media, and warning it will ‘end in tragedy’.

“I want to openly address the relentless pursuit and persecution of athletes by the media to create an uneducated, bias and ill-informed narrative that has gone too far,” De Goey wrote.

“I am one of the lucky ones with amazing support, however not all athletes are so lucky.

“This will end in tragedy if no one speaks up. It’s time for change. #enoughisenough”

Remy Jackson, the woman at the centre of the video, also posted to Instagram defending De Goey.

“Hey everyone, I can’t believe the backlash towards Jordy & Myself over here in Bali… nothing to see here,” she wrote.

De Goey’s comments come after copping a barrage of criticism, for both his trip to Bali and the actions captured on video.

Speaking on Fox Footy, former St Kilda great Nick Riewoldt lamented De Goey’s choice of ‘indulgence over discipline’, saying his latest incident is indicative of his frustrating career on-field.

“I think you always get a pretty good indication of someone‘s professionalism and how much they care about their careers when you look at the choices they make,” Riewoldt said.

“Every player is entitled to go overseas if they want in the break, but it’s a choice. I think in this case Jordan has chosen indulgence over discipline.

“That’s something all clubs are going to look at … unfortunately it seems to be a pretty regular theme for him, that he chooses indulgence over discipline from a football point of view.”

Fellow Fox Footy host Garry Lyon was even more damning, taking particular issue with De Goey’s alleged harassment.

“That‘s entitled behaviour that’s not acceptable in any way, shape or form; the public grabbing of someone’s top in an environment such as that,” Lyon said.

“That has to be stamped out, and could and should get players into more trouble than they have been in the past.”

De Goey’s trip to Bali during the Magpies’ mid-season bye was already controversial, with many pundits including Kane Cornes adamant that the club shouldn’t have permitted him to head to the known party destination, given his many past indiscretions.

De Goey spent a night behind bars in New York late last year after being charged over a bar fight, while he was charged in July 2020 with indecent assault over an alleged incident with a woman in 2015, before those charges were dropped in August last year.

Former Essendon great Matthew Lloyd said regardless of any wrongdoing, that De Goey would choose to act in this way in the public eye was ‘so silly’, adding that he ‘can’t help himself’.

“He’s old enough you can’t tell him not to go, but it’s so silly that he wouldn’t just hang out with friends at a villa with no phones,” Lloyd said on 3AW on Friday.

“There’s people everywhere filming you… he can’t himself, he’s just a party boy.”

“His manager and football club would have said ‘go, but look after yourself’. It’s the optics of it.

“He would have been told ‘be good, look after yourself, don’t embarrass yourself, don’t embarrass the club’.”

Not even Collingwood’s 1990 premiership captain Tony Shaw could offer a defence of De Goey, criticising him from refusing to learn from his mistakes and suggesting future indiscretions could see the Magpies lose patience entirely with him.

“He’s probably not a smart person. I don’t think he’s a smart person,” Shaw said on 3AW.

“It’s not a hanging thing, but he’s got to understand that there are standards as a person, not a footballer, that you do anywhere in public.

“While he was there, say if he got in trouble again and he got charged – criminally charged – I’d sack him on the spot. I would sack him on the spot, or have him that he wouldn’t ever play for Collingwood again, and I’d have him up for trade.

“Would anybody else fall into him? I’m not sure… if he goes … ‘well I didn’t think I didn’t anything wrong’, you’ve got to start educating him again.”

(Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

The most scathing review came from Herald Sun chief football writer Mark Robinson, who described De Goey as ‘the dumbest player of his generation’.

“Other players have made mistakes, but this guy could represent Australia if we had the dumb games,” Robinson wrote.

“That probably sounds harsh, but all Collingwood wants, and what all football fans want, is for De Goey to give himself the best opportunity to get the best out of himself.

“Bali can be a temptress, but De Goey surely had to know his behaviour in the Aussie loved enclave would be observed.

“And if he didn’t know that, his minders needed to warn him to not be stupid.”

However, De Goey was defended by former Magpies great and 2011 Brownlow Medallist Dane Swan.

“Get off the plane and somehow in the last hour it’s been written in stone that AFL players are not allowed to enjoy themselves, smile or have fun on midseason [sic] breaks,” Swan posted on Twitter.

“F–k me.”

According to Swan, the only lesson De Goey needs to learn is to ensure his behaviour isn’t filmed in future.

The club is yet to determine whether De Goey will be sanctioned for the incidents. The Magpies’ next match is against GWS in Round 15.