August 2013
Essendon has taught sport a valuable lesson
In 2009, the AFL exceeded $300 million in annual revenue for the first time. The league is made up of 18 teams each of which operate annually on budgets in the tens of millions of dollars. The AFL is big business. Yet, we have witnessed a saga in recent times at the Essendon Football Club […]
Read More →AFL delivers strong message to Essendon and the competition
After six months of investigations and two protracted days in discussions with the AFL, the Essendon Football Club has had its finals aspirations dashed with the governing body removing it premiership points as a result of the ASADA investigation into the club’s medical protocols in 2011 and 2012. Equally as significant is the fact that […]
Read More →Aussies well placed for return Ashes series
On face value, Australia’s 3-nil Ashes series defeat does not bode well. In essence however there is much to take from this series ahead of the return encounter starting in Brisbane in late-November. There were two glaring facets that hamstrung Australia. The first was Ian Bell and the second, Australia’s inability to win the big […]
Read More →Was James Hird simply jumping at shadows?
Everything points to the fact that James Hird is going to be suspended as coach of the Essendon Football Club tomorrow when the AFL hands down its list of sanctions against the club. It has been widely reported that the 1996 Brownlow medallist and one of the club’s favourite sons will likely receive a 12-month […]
Read More →Hird the next Essendon domino to fall
In the first week of February the Essendon Football Club’s triumvirate faced the media to explain that it had approached the AFL and ASADA to investigate the club’s medical protocols after concerns had been raised about its practices in 2011 and 2012. The three men who sat at the table were chairman David Evans, CEO […]
Read More →Australia has to stop revolving door selection policy
At present being a member of Australia’s top-seven must be a bit like playing musical chairs – when the music stops, grab a seat. Or perhaps, more correctly, slump down in the one the selectors have slipped behind you. Australia headed to England with major questions over its Test batting line-up. It will return home […]
Read More →The AFL charges relating to Essendon are damning
We finally know what charges the Essendon Football Club and four of its key employees – coach James Hird, his senior assistant Mark Thompson, football manager Danny Corcoran and club doctor Bruce Reid – are facing. The AFL publicly released the 15-point charge sheet (which summarises 135 points pertaining to the club’s conduct) at AFL […]
Read More →A letter to Stephen Dank
Dear Stephen, I trust this correspondence finds you well. I can only imagine how hectic life must have been lately. Fear not though, I left the ABC a few years back and I am not writing to try and line up an interview – I’m sure you feel you have given enough of them already […]
Read More →Essendon knows what it faces, we now await the outcome
In the past six months, Essendon coach James Hird has morphed into the AFL’s version of Tutankhamen – ‘The King of Denial’. As late as yesterday morning, Hird responded to questions from journalists who door-stopped him at his house by saying that he would be “staggered and shocked” if the AFL laid charges as a […]
Read More →How should Essendon treat any AFL imposed bans?
It appears D-Day is just around the corner for the beleaguered Essendon Football Club. The Bombers have been under the microscope all season with respect to ASADA’s investigation into the alleged use of banned substances at the club in 2011 and 2012. From all reports, the AFL is going to come down strongly against the […]
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