Ha ha! This was on the Governor, twitlonger:
Guys
Is there no limit to the AFL’s desire to control the media? Isn’t there anyone in the media who won’t cower to the AFL?
During his unpaid weekly advertisement on 3AW on 18 August 2017, AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan told Neil Mitchell that taking accreditation away from AFL journalists “was quite a good idea”. To his credit, Mitchell said it was a “Stalinist” idea. But that was about as indignant that Mitchell and a couple of other journalists felt. A love tap was as offended a response from the ■■■■■■■ in the media.
I expected Caroline Wilson and Mark Robinson to report the outcomes of Greg Hywood and Peter Blunden’s fiery meetings with Richard Goyder. But no, it appears that Hywood and Blunden are still in their underground bunkers where they have been for the last four years as their journalists trashed the media’s reputation over the ASADA/AFL scandal
To be honest, if you guys want to take it lying down then that’s your problem. I have done your work for you over the last four years. If you want to wallow in self-pity now over your lack of intestinal fortitude, so be it.
What I am concerned about is McLachlan’s hypocrisy and double-standards. Sorry, “standards”, my first oxymoron for the day.
McLachlan is a LAW unto himself and had made a ROD for his ownback.
Eddie’s Friday night little puppy, Jon Ralph, reported McLachlan’s comments to Mitchell as follows:
“I think there is responsibility everywhere. Our players, coaches, officials, everyone [BUT ME] is held incredibly accountable every day but we are talking about people’s livelihoods and careers and this allegation talks to integrity.
My Comment:
McLachlan helped destroy James Hird’s livelihood, career and reputation, despite knowing that as joint employers, the AFL Commission and the Essendon board had more responsibility for the players’ health and safety than Hird. According to my understanding of the Victorian Occupational, Health and Safety Act (2004), at least 30 people, including the current Governor of Victoria, Linda Dessau, and the current chairman of the AFL, Richard Goyder, had more responsibility for providing a safe work place at Essendon than Hird. But none had the guts to own up. What miserable human beings they are.
As Hird was on a separate branch of the organisation structure from the football department, where general manager football operations Paul Hamilton insisted the supplement programme was run, McLachlan had no evidence to prove Hird was guilty of anything. But he insisted that Hird plead guilty and accept a 12-month ban because of the” “optics” and because AFL general counsel Andrew Dillon believed the scandal ”needs a face”.
Starving people were sent to Australia with the First Fleet for stealing a loaf of bread. But McLachlan potentially contributed to Hird nearly taking his own life, and he wants to talk integrity. Give me a break.
On 9 February 2013, four days before the corrupted AFL/ASADA joint investigation commenced, McLachlan told ASADA, the Gillard Government and Essendon board the result he wanted from the upcoming AFL/ASADA investigation. McLachlan said “Come to arrangement. Players found to be innocent. This is the outcome [I require]. Sanctions against Essendon. [Essendon FC] held responsible. Hold individuals [Hird] responsible.” ASADA delivered on 1 August 2013 and McLachlan delivered his pre-determined result before that.
McLachlan’s response was arguably tantamount to match-fixing. Three Pakistani cricketers, including a 19-year-old, went to gaol for conspiring to bowl three deliberate no-balls at a precise time. Who deserved the biggest penalty, the Pakis or Teflon McLachlan for denying Hird, Danny Corcoran and Mark Thompson procedural fairness?
McLachlan’s demand that the players be found innocent before the investigation was a flagrant breach of the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC). How ironical and how unjust. The then AFL deputy chief executive conspired with the government, ASADA and the Essendon board to break the WADA Code by finding the players innocent, and at the same time hold James Hird accountable, despite Hird emphasising verbally and in writing that the players had to comply with the WADA Code. A rule breaker sends a rule complier to Coventry. Not much integrity in that decision!
McLachlan not only told the jury, the AFL commissioners, that Hird and Essendon were guilty before the investigation was completed but told them what the penalties would be. Such misconduct, enabled the AFL to arguably defraud Essendon members of $2 million.
McLachlan: “If someone is making something up that has such significant ramifications, there has to be an accountability for that. “It is not an opinion, it is making something up that is completely wrong and is something which I would say is a complete lie.”
My Comment:
The record indicates that McLachlan knows what a lie is.
On Friday 24 February 2017, McLachlan told SEN radio “In terms of actually being called someone who lies, the day that I lie to someone is the day I can’t do my job.”
In 2015, McLachlan was interviewed by Alan Jones on Radio 2GB. The following is a verbatim transcript of a part of that interview:
Alan Jones: “There have been many complaints that ASADA ran a corrupt investigation. There are have been allegations that ASADA changed evidence, fabricated evidence and omitted evidence. And even the AFL has been accused of getting its hands dirty. During Justice Middleton’s hearing it came to light that on 26th of June, 2013, that ASADA’s chief operating officer (sic) spoke to you and she told Middleton’s hearing that your comments were as follows: ‘Take points off Essendon, we need all the detail to get through that. Problematic if not [the] full report. Get the outcome we need. Take bits out that might compromise what we need.’ Is there any way of interpreting that other than saying it was inappropriate, bordering on corrupt?”
Gill McLachlan: “ … I can’t comment on anything other than to say it was a Federal Court Case brought in terms of the process and it was clearly found that the AFL, there has been no inappropriate interference of the way the AFL behaved and the investigation was entirely legal.
Alan Jones: “Hang on, you are a bright man and you come from a very honourable family, did you say to Andruska take bits out that might compromise what we need? There is a simple answer, yes or no.
Gill McLachlan: “Alan, the simple answer is no.”
My Comment:
McLachlan lied to Jones and thousands of listeners when he implied that Middleton cleared the AFL of interference. Middleton wasn’t asked to rule on AFL or ASADA interference or corruption.
McLachlan lied to Jones when he denied making the comments to Andruska
McLachlan lied when he implied he would resign if he lied.
The above were not the only McLachlan lies. The first lie in the saga was told by McLachlan and Demetriou on 5 February 2013, and it has been perpetuated ever since by them and the sycophantic media. They claim Essendon self-reported on 5 February 2013. It was impossible for Essendon to self-report on 5 February because the AFL and ASADA agreed to investigate Essendon on 1 February 2013. The lie by McLachlan and Demetriou appears to have been motivated by a desire to help David Evans in return for him batting for the AFL against Hird. I am stuffed if I know why the media perpetuated the lie. Clearly, it knows no shame.
Time nor space permits listing all the lies. You will have to buy the book. Hopefully, one more lie will suffice to motivate the media to force McLachlan to resign.
On 8 August 2013, the Herald Sun contained the following comments:
“AFL deputy chief executive Gillon McLachlan said this week he was unsure if there would be action … ‘Obviously, Andrew Dillon, the general counsel of the AFL and head of the integrity unit (another oxymoron) is considering the report, and first things first, [and will build the case] if there is any action to be taken.’”.
My Comment:
McLachlan told the Herald Sun reporters Jon Ralph and Carly Crawford (both of whom have blocked me for three years because they can’t handle the truth) and its 400,000 readers that he didn’t know the outcome of the investigation because Dillon was still considering the report and hadn’t even decided whether charges would be laid.
A tape recorded on 8 August 2013 and released in February 2017, proves McLachlan was lying. He was already bullying Hird and Paul Little to accept the penalties.
It bemuses me that McLachlan jumped in to support Eddie McGuire by attacking Brad Hardie. It’s a shame that he didn’t jump in to denounce a lie shared by Hardie about Hird’s private life. A lie I might add that was shared by Andrew Demetriou. I don’t know who started the lie, but I do know both repeated it. If I knew about Demetriou and the lie, McLachlan surely knew and should have spoken to at least Demetriou with the same enthusiasm as he attacked Hardie a couple of weeks ago about Collingwood.
In the scheme of things, if Hardie told a lie about Collingwood, it did no harm. In contrast to Demetriou’s lie about Hird and McLachlan’s lies and behaviour during the Essendon/AFL/ASADA saga, they did immeasurable damage to Hird and his family.
Although, most of you guys are aware of all of the above, none of you has written a word about it. In your shame, you have attacked the messenger. You all need to look in the mirror and acknowledge that you have contributed to the trashing of the profession. It’s not too late to seek redemption. Call for McLachlan’s resignation now.
Bruce Francis
