Looking forward to seeing Cale ‘plonk’ himself in the square.
Better the hooker vino
Love this guy.
Cale Hooker says the CAS drugs ban was ‘death by a thousand cuts’ JON RALPH, Herald Sun an hour ago Subscriber onlyCALE Hooker dared to believe he had prepared himself for the worst-case scenario.
As the agonising days ticked down to the Court of Arbitration’s ruling this January, he knew a guilty verdict was possible.
After three years of false promises, dense legalese and “death by a thousand cuts”, as he calls it, he wasn’t naive enough to rule out that option.
NO THANKS: HOOKER’S ‘NO REGRETS’ OVER FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
NEW ROLE: HOOKER READY TO FILL BOMBERS’ FORWARD VOID
And yet the only eventuality that never seemed at all likely was a lengthy ban from AFL football.
After all, when even the AFL’s own submission to that Swiss hearing urged a lenient sentence, a season-long ban just didn’t seem possible.
“I think we had been told a lot of things. Our advice was around that was it would most likely be a month or no time or the most likely case was we were not guilty,’’ he says.
Jobe Watson, Travis Colyer and Cale Hooker thank fans at Essendon training. Picture: Michael Klein
“Even the fact the appeal actually happened was a shock. There had been so much uncertainty, death by a thousand cuts.“And then for (a season-long ban) to actually happen it took a while to sink in. I was a bit lost there.
“I lost my purpose of what to do and a finding a good reason to get out of bed.
“We weren’t prepared for that size of sentence. You are so invested in each season and we had done a full pre-season and the rug got pulled out from us.
“I was probably a bit lost for a couple of months working it all out.”
In his first feature interview since returning, Hooker is sitting in a Port Melbourne cafe recounting a year that could have broken Essendon and lost him to the only club he knew.
As he says of the potential for the banning of 12 players to irreparably damage this list: “I must admit that was one of my bigger worries when we all got banned in January, that the club would fall to pieces and fall apart a bit.”
And yet despite yet another horror week — with Jobe Watson handing over the Brownlow and a $9.8 million loss declared — Essendon has lived to fight another day.
On Tuesday Essendon’s fans will be invited to an open training session to herald the returning 10 players that will mark an emotional line in the sand to four years of turmoil.
And one of the players cruising across the turf will be Hooker, who ignored overtures from at least five clubs to sign a five-season deal worth around $750,000 a year.
Hooker says it has been a year that started in search of direction and eventually fuelled an intense hunger he has never felt before.
None of it was easy, but Hooker says he and his teammates have come out of a barren 2016 having parked their anger and returned to make up for lost time.
“Yeah, it’s good to be back. There is definitely a real excitement about the club that I haven’t felt before,’’ he says.
“We are obviously very hungry. We said after the first week of training we wished the games were coming up in the next couple of weeks.
“It’s still so long away, we have got to keep bottling it up, you feel a bit like a caged lion.
“So once the games start we can let the animal out of the cage and get into it.”
Cale Hooker in the backyard of his bayside home. Picture: Wayne Ludbey
Those memories of that sentence are still vivid, as the banned players congregated that night with a feeling Hooker describes as “devastation”.“For the first month or two I felt pretty lost. There were so many balls in the air about what does it mean for me, for the club, the teammates and our reputations,’’ he says.
“There were so many things in the air and it took a while to get my head around that and once we got some structure, the training program of Monday, Wednesday, Friday really helped.”
That training session with fitness guru David Buttifant and former Essendon assistant Sean Wellman at least gave the players a reason to throw the covers back three times a week.
As the cameras and media pack gapes at them from atop a hill at St Bernard’s College, Buttifant whipped them into shape.
They would train hard for a month then pull back, as the players plotted a European getaway to help escape the distractions of the Melbourne winter.
But before 28-year-old Hooker could contemplate a return, he needed to work out what club he would even be playing with.
As one of the game’s handful of great defenders, the free agent had his pick of Essendon, Fremantle, Hawthorn, Geelong, Collingwood and Hawthorn.
“I wasn’t really sure what I was doing,’’ says Hooker.
“It was basically (home state) WA or Melbourne and there were a few teams interested.
“I wanted to take my time to let it unfold and not make a decision out of pure emotion and not regret it later.
“My manager Tommy Petroro spoke to quite a few teams to let me know what my options were, but we did speak to quite a few.”
He is deliberately vague about how many face-to-face meetings he had with coaches — “It was a hard one with the (anti-doping) rules, we had to see what we were allowed to do.”
And yet by late April, as Fremantle came hard with a monster offer, he became just the third Essendon player to re-sign.
That five-year deal worth $750,000 was some reward, yet Hooker also wanted to send a signal.
“It got to the stage where I wanted to give the other boys some direction about what I was doing and the club some direction and it just felt like the right time,” he says.
“I felt so passionate about it and felt so close to the other guys and it still feels right. I am really glad I did it.”
So how could Hooker so quickly park his anger when his defensive partner Michael Hurley felt such a fury at his betrayal by the club?
“I can definitely understand it. Everyone went through that at some stage and everyone felt slightly different and it affected their contract in different ways,” he says.
“It was a really hard subject and it wasn’t about saying let’s just stick together. It was, ‘Do what is best for yourself and we will support you no matter what’.
Cale Hooker and James Hird in happier times. Picture: Wayne Ludbey
“So for him it was definitely something I could understand. I think the thing I found hard was the anger was more directed to two individuals in particular but they are not at the footy club any more. Where do you direct your anger and at what level?Clearly it is the architects of the supplements program, Stephen Dank and Dean Robinson, rather than coach James Hird, who so enrage Hooker.
“No, it was mostly towards those two guys.”
Hooker finished off a commerce degree as the year went on and returned to his parents’ Swan Valley winery to churn out 100 cases of Hooker Shiraz.
Finally free of the stifling restrictions of footy’s 24/7 demands, he found perspective with family and friends.
“People said (the saga) will make you appreciate footy more but I always appreciated footy.
“It makes me appreciate the rest of my life more, relationships with people, family, that sort of stuff and how much you don’t do that and can be focused on footy to be successful.
“My parents have been (winemaking) for 10-15 years and it was nice to be able to do that with them, get out in nature and do that with them.
“Coming back I will be a more balanced and well rounded person. I can see how it consumes you being in the football bubble, so it’s nice to step out for a little while.”
For that midyear holiday, Hooker and housemate Tom Bellchambers visited Jobe Watson in New York and toured Europe before finally meeting most of his banned teammates in Croatia.
“We ended up on a boat in Croatia and we all relaxed and got some sun and did a bit of reflecting. It was a good time away.”
If he is like most Australian males half a dozen beers eventually become a rare truth serum.
“Yeah, there was a lot of time having fun but there were also times when we chatted and you have a few beers under the belt and there are always a few honest conversations and a few emotional conversations,” he says.
“It was healthy to be able to do that with each other. We all knew what we had been through so it made it a bit easier to talk to each other.”
In Pamplona he, Hurley, Bellchambers and Michael Hibberd might or might not have run with the bulls in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
As always, what goes away on a quasi-footy trip stays away.
“I was there and watched it, I didn’t run, I just watched it.”
Maybe he did?
“Maybe,” he says laughing.
Eventually those mates trickled back, from Bellchambers to Travis Colyer to Brent Stanton and even Hurley, who will shave his beard for charity in coming weeks.
But always Watson was the holdout.
“I had spoken to him a fair bit through the time but he kept his cards pretty close to his chest. He told me just before that (Instagram post) or a couple of days before,’’ Hooker says.
“At the end of the day I was happy for him as long as he was happy.
“But the fact most of the guys have come back is great for us and the footy club and it gives us a chance to achieve something special in the next couple of years.”
Add in the ruined season of 2012 as the supplements program backfired and Hooker has had five seasons of his career ruined by this interminable saga.
Finally he can allow him to dream of simple notions such as on field success again in a side that has not won a final since 2004.
“It was frustrating when 2012 came about because we felt like our list was at a stage where we could built towards regular finals,” he says.
“I can see the potential in the future so that’s what I am excited about.
“We missed out on those finals (in 2013) and I can’t remember the last time I played a NAB Cup game.
“So we have got no expectations, but we always have big hopes and dreams.
“The competition is so close but we will just be able to play with a lot of freedom this year.”
Originally published as Hooker’s ban shock: ‘I was a bit lost’
Cale Hooker believes he can fill Essendon’s forward line void … centre half-forward
JON RALPH, Herald Sun
November 19, 2016 7:00pm
Subscriber only
CALE Hooker believes he can fill Essendon’s gaping on-field hole, desperate to play centre half-forward under coach John Worsfold.
The All-Australian defender was switched forward by James Hird in 2015 and had 49 shots in 10 weeks as an attacking revelation.
Only poor conversion dulled his effectiveness, Hooker kicking 21.21 from those 49 shots with seven total misses.
But with Michael Hurley settled in defence and Patrick Ambrose, Michael Hartley and Mitch Brown all emerging as solid tall defenders, Hooker can be thrown forward full-time.
Asked if he was pestering Worsfold about a new role, he joked: “I haven’t been pestering, I have just been telling him I am playing forward.
“I am not sure yet, I have been training with the forwards and have enjoyed the challenge in a new position but I want to give him as many options as I can on game day.
Cale Hooker kicked the winning goal against Hawthorn in 2015. Picture: Wayne Ludbey
“I don’t know what (Hurley and Jake Carlisle) don’t like about it, it’s good fun up there.”
Thrust forward by Hird, Hooker became the third-most targeted forward in the league and dominated his one-on-one contests.
He says he has already put a real emphasis into his goalkicking routine and invested hours of practice.
“It was a weird situation, Hirdy said I would be playing forward and I said, ‘I have only just got the hang of this caper down back and am starting to influence games’.
“But he said to give it a go and I enjoyed the second half of that year.
“We have got a young forward group and when you look at our list we have got Hurls and a few other young guys in the backline.”
Cale Hooker out marks Robbie Tarrant. Picture: Michael Klein
Hooker says not only is the enthusiasm of the list off the charts, he is thrilled by the progress made by the youngsters in his absence.
“Even from the last time I was at training you can see the development in those guys, you can see they have a bit more hardness and they are running better.
“It’s not just the hardness but the physical improvement in the guys.
“You look across the whole ground, in the midfield we have got more depth with (Zach) Merrett and Kyle Langford and in the forward line we have seen Joey (Daniher) and (Orazio) Fantasia bob up, that’s where the improvement will come from, the younger guys coming up, not just me changing positions or guys coming back.”
Cale Hooker has ‘no regrets’ after Essendon players rejected an ASADA deal
JON RALPH, Herald Sun
November 19, 2016 6:00pm
Subscriber only
RETURNING Essendon star Cale Hooker says he has “no regrets” about chasing justice all the way to the Swiss Federal Tribual unlike his NRL counterparts.
Cronulla’s 10 NRL players accepted a deal late in 2014 that saw them serve only three-week bans and return for the first round of the 2015 season.
Essendon’s players were never explicitly offered the identical deal but it was widely reported there were high-level discussions to make a similar offer available.
That deal would have seen them give up their finals participation in 2014 - they lost an elimination final to North Melbourne - but Jobe Watson’s Brownlow would likely have been salvaged.
Yet Hooker, who says his only remaining anger is directed at Stephen Dank and Dean Robinson, loses no sleep over the decision to continue fighting.
Ultimately Essendon’s players were cleared by an AFL anti-doping tribunal but then banned for an entire season by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Returning Essendon players - including Jobe Watson, Travis Colyer and Cale Hooker - thank fans at pre-season training. Picture: Michael Klein
“I don’t have any regrets. We left no stone unturned to try to clear our names,’’ he told the Sunday Herald Sun.
“We were promised a lot of different things across the journey and personally I have no regrets.
“If you go back in time, I don’t have any regrets because I felt at the time we ticked everything (in the supplements program) off (as legal).
“If we knew what we know now, it might be different. But you only know what you know at the time, so I have got no regrets.”
Hooker ultimately signed a five-year deal to remain at Essendon and says he has never seen such energy and “hunger” for success at his football club.
He says former captain Jobe Watson will still have the ultimate respect within Essendon’s headquarters despite handing over his Brownlow Medal.
“As friends and teammates you support him and feel for him,’’ he said of Watson.
“You can’t take away the respect people have for him and the esteem we have for him and the way he has held himself.
“You can’t take away that from him and hopefully now we have got some closure and can move on.
“You have got to ask him (how he feels), it’s up to him but hopefully once we get back into the games the footy world moves on pretty quickly.”
Hooker says playing without the shackles of Essendon’s four-year ASADA saga will allow him and his teammates to play with a rare sense of freedom.
“The whole thing has been a bit of a mess. And it’s been on our minds a lot and there has been so much uncertainty through the years.
“It can be a bit of a killer, that uncertainty. So it’s just to be able to play footy and just worry about the challenges of playing footy.
“Because we can play with some real freedom and express ourselves on the field.”
Seriously, Jon Ralph? Why the hell would we allow players to be interviewed by the bloke that has barracked for a mass exodus, barracked for Jobe to lose his Brownlow and campaigned for Hird to be sacked?I get we want positives and fluff in the media but surely we can be selective who interviews them.
IMO Ralph is the worst out of the lot. Not just cause he hates us, more because he guesses and rarely gets it right!
I actually thought he wasn’t too bad through out the saga their were way worse then him.
“I don’t know what (Hurley and Jake Carlisle) don’t like about it, it’s good fun up there.”GOLD.
[assuming the names inserted are an honest reflection of what he said]
Seriously, Jon Ralph? Why the hell would we allow players to be interviewed by the bloke that has barracked for a mass exodus, barracked for Jobe to lose his Brownlow and campaigned for Hird to be sacked?I get we want positives and fluff in the media but surely we can be selective who interviews them.
IMO Ralph is the worst out of the lot. Not just cause he hates us, more because he guesses and rarely gets it right!
It shows that we don’t mind if people keep taking pot shots at the club, we’ll still help them build their career.
Seriously, Jon Ralph? Why the hell would we allow players to be interviewed by the bloke that has barracked for a mass exodus, barracked for Jobe to lose his Brownlow and campaigned for Hird to be sacked?I get we want positives and fluff in the media but surely we can be selective who interviews them.
IMO Ralph is the worst out of the lot. Not just cause he hates us, more because he guesses and rarely gets it right!
I don’t think Ralph has any malicious intent. He’s just really stupid
Ralph is one of the more positive footy writers and when speaking on SEN about Essendon he’s usually coming from a encouraging angle
Ralph is one of the more positive footy writers and when speaking on SEN about Essendon he's usually coming from a encouraging angle
Agree. Not saying he’s an angel or anything but he always talks us up (as far as on field) when I hear.
Thanks for posting the articles.
Ralph is a moron who just makes up ■■■■ and guesses. That is his job. He is also absolutely lid off about Essendon this year, which is interesting.
I will never forget the ****holes in the media who waged asymmetrical warfare against our players for 4 years. On the other hand I want to really enjoy footy again, and see our players and our club enjoy success again for me that is #1.
Taking the article on face value its OK, its vanilla but more and more I get the feeling that most of the players have turned the negative into a positive. Like Hooksey finishing and Myersy doing their commerce degrees, or Dois "the flipper " Heppell finding gold in Essendons realestate market.
The thing I like in the interview is that Hooker says that he has anger towards two people - Dank and Robinson, but no-one else.
It’s about time someone said that. I hate all this “angry at the club” “angry at certain people” crap. It only gives the journos the opportunity to suggest it is Hird they really blame. Without wanting to re-open an old debate, it sticks out like the proverbials that Dank and Robinson were both responsible for the program, and for keeping it legal and safe.
It is a long, long way past time that the blame was placed where it belongs.
Good on Hooker for coming out and saying it.
In a fair world both the AFL and WADA would have punished Robinson and Dank for running the program, and punished the club in a minor way, for failing to adequately oversee them. The players, Hird, and all others did not deserve any punishment.
PS As for Ralph, he tries hard to bait Hooker with the idea that Hibberd was ■■■■■■ off at the club, despite Hibberd repeatedly saying otherwise.
Well said, Jodi.
I love a good hooker
I love a good hooker
I certainly appreciate the skillset.
49 shots in 10 games for a team that was emotionally completely shot.
Perfectly capable of kicking 60 this year.
If he and JD manage 100 between then with Fanta and the smalls bobbing up for around 60 or so collectively we’ll be well on our way to giving things a proper shake at the business end.
Can’t stand The Forehead*.
Irks me that he not only gets to call himself a journalist, his position should be Bloke Who Says Stuff About Stuff, but at such a friggin’ high level.
It makes me despondent, it really does.
*My forehead gets bigger all the time, but I could shave what little I have left and he’d still have a bigger forehead than me.