Essendon players issued with show cause notices

[uncanny]

so when the fan got hit by the bomber's excrement at the start of this sorry saga...
Hird says he will take full responsibility.
And the other club leaders agree to a joint investigation involving ASADA and the afl.
Now that the investigation comes up with show cause notices they are trying to weasel their way out , saying the investigation is denying them natural justice and they have been bullied...
Give me us a break and take your medicine Essendon.
They should throw the book at them and increase the penalty because of Mr Little's corrupt response.

[Big T]

I have a solution

Deregister essendon for 2 years

Have a bomber draft, where all players are selected by the other 17 clubs.

All players suspended for six months effective immediate.

[think positive]

To an extent, but less overtly. Obviously Olympic sportspeople can't change countries. AFL players won't be guaranteed of getting a chance elsewhere, but they'll at least be able to nominate for the draft.

It goes without saying that there's going to be negative consequences for everyone involved in a situation like this. I guess the question is whether the players should be punished directly.

Yes

They have to be or our games a mockery

Yes I gave some sympathy, but as a coach, it would piss me off playing cheats wether they did so half knowingly or not

[partypie]

I don't feel sorry for the players. Off site injections in the stomach etc. Jobe Watson was pretty outspoken about issues when he became captain, but had no concerns about the supplements program. Not much of a leader.

As for Little, is his macho stance a reaction to early childhood taunting because of his sir name? His accusation of being bullied is laughable. It might be more useful if he stated how the federal court case will be funded. Will Essendon be yet another club that has to be propped up by the other clubs?

[35forever]

Cute how all the speculation ends right at the moment we stuffed our own season with the most insipid performance in Collingwood history. Yesterday's loss absolutely de-railed our season, much as the Gold Coast fiasco did last year. Essendon suddenly doesn't seem so important. I think everyone has been wondering about us, ourselves included. We have this ability to stop teams scoring, but can't score heavily ourselves. Our injury list changes by the hour, we have incredible depth but won't play any of them, then 'rest' our no.1 possession getter while Sidey is out and Swanny is in the doldrums.
What the hell kind of team ARE we?! I won't be at all stunned if we beat Hawthorn, but it won't tell us much about where we are (like it would have if we'd managed the standard comfortable win over Footscray and cemented our spot in the 4 instead of handing it over meekly!).

Frankly, and I know it's wrong, my real concerns about Essendon revolve entirely around how it affects us. I simply want them prevented from winning a flag for at least 10 years. Long enough for us to get at least 2 more and regain our rightful position above them & Carlton.

I'm less concerned than others about our game being besmirched. These days a drug debacle is almost a rite of passage all sports must endure, and the fact that it was limited to a single side in a single year mitigates the damage somewhat.
Which major sporting code remains unsullied by the taint of drugs? Each of America's codes has been affected, as have athletics, cycling, soccer, swimming, golf, and on it goes. At this point I believe professional tiddlywinks remains free of scandal, though the situation is fluid.

Bottom line: Essendon not affected... Bad.
Collingwood benefitted... Good.
Demetriou jailed & stripped of pension... Better!

[AN_Inkling]

To an extent, but less overtly. Obviously Olympic sportspeople can't change countries. AFL players won't be guaranteed of getting a chance elsewhere, but they'll at least be able to nominate for the draft.

It goes without saying that there's going to be negative consequences for everyone involved in a situation like this. I guess the question is whether the players should be punished directly.

Brendan Schwab seems to share your view: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/why-austral ... zs8k1.html

Can't say I disagree with much of it.

[ronrat]

WADA is a self licking icecream. Smartarse stuff like waking waking Swanny up at 6 in the morning in Utah. Demanding bigger penalties for Shane Warne taking a slimming tablet.

[David]

Great article Inkling, thanks for posting.

Let's not forget that WADA still tests for marijuana and LSD. They're less a bulwark against cheating than a political imposition.

[Damien]

So we have a president who says in one breath we know for certain that no player took a banned substance and then on the next says we need Stephen Dank to come forward and tell us what we don't know. Come again?

The text messages in today's herald sun shows that the players are GORN!!

It shows Dank ordering the banned Thyomosin beta 4. (Not new info I know)

History shows that it's clearly enough evidence for ASADA to penalise them.

However if I was a player and wasn't sure that's what I got injected with why plead guilty to something you don't know you're actually guilty of?

It's a horrible catch 22 for them.

Meanwhile Essendon is portraying an image of looking after the players when clearly they are looking after the club first and foremost.

If I was a player I'd be getting my own independant advice. Unfortunately the best advice might be: cop 6 months, serve most of it in the off season and get the f;ck out of bomber land by breaking your contract on a technicality...and sue the pricks too.

The alternative is to stick fat and go down with the whole ship and cop 2 years which for most will mean end of career.

Mark my words the whole Easendon board will roll over this and lots of those 34 players will be elsewhere next year.

[think positive]

Yep I should roll then watch the dominos fall

No wY they should cop 2 years if they can take 6 months

The club didn't care when they pumped them full of chemicals and they sure as hell won't care now

Every man for himself

[Brenny]

[AN_Inkling]

^^The players, or certainly the club, are already branded as cheats.

I agree that it's fairly unlikely any player will accept a 6 month ban. The only reason to do this is if they are almost certain that they'll be found guilty. Then it becomes a no brainer, guilty and 2 years (probably more like 1), or guilty and 6 months? But Essendon have been in denial for a long time, so it would be a surprise if any player decided that they're going to be found guilty.

[1061]

If you fight the charges, then you risk getting banned for yrs and if you decide to take the 6 months (it works out to be 10 games apparently), then you will be forever branded a drug cheat for the rest of your life.

Taking the 6 months sounds good, but you will be booed and branded a cheat forever. People on this form at the games would yell 'drug cheat' towards the player; because that's the society we live in.

I think you under estimate the Aussie Fair Go principle.

Player A; rolls over and gets 6 months leaves EFC and gets picked up by another Club. He will be respected as someone who was prepared to take his punishment and get on with his career walking away from EFC.

Player B; sticks fast with EFC and fights like all hell to "clear" his name. Whatever his outcome is EFC and any players staying with them in the fight will be seen as dirty cheats and will never regain any respect as a player again.

[KenH]

If you fight the charges, then you risk getting banned for yrs and if you decide to take the 6 months (it works out to be 10 games apparently), then you will be forever branded a drug cheat for the rest of your life.

Taking the 6 months sounds good, but you will be booed and branded a cheat forever. People on this form at the games would yell 'drug cheat' towards the player; because that's the society we live in.

I think you under estimate the Aussie Fair Go principle.

Player A; rolls over and gets 6 months leaves EFC and gets picked up by another Club. He will be respected as someone who was prepared to take his punishment and get on with his career walking away from EFC.

Player B; sticks fast with EFC and fights like all hell to "clear" his name. Whatever his outcome is EFC and any players staying with them in the fight will be seen as dirty cheats and will never regain any respect as a player again.

Agree the players that fight this will always be branded, but the one's that put their hand up and say I am not sure what I have taken and cop the 6 months will gain more respect and sympathy. Essendon need to replace all the board and the coaching staff otherwise they will always be branded as cheats from now on.

[ANNODAM]

If a player decides to cop a 6mo ban & he decides to take it in the off season would that mean no pre-season?