AFL Blogs

01 October 2022

• ‘Something good will come of this’: Kennett slams ‘unfair’ Hawks racism scandal
  01 October 2022

  Outgoing Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett has called the leaking of racism allegations at the AFL club “unfair” and hopes the unfolding saga can be resolved by the end of the year.

  Speaking at the club’s best and fairest awards function on Saturday night, Kennett said the club is not in crisis and has described the issue as a “bump along the highway”.

  But he told the audience he was “somewhat flabbergasted – and worse” when he read the draft report of the club’s investigation into the experiences of Indigenous players and their partners while at Hawthorn.

  More AFL

  • 'Something good will come of this': Kennett slams 'unfair' Hawks racism scandal
  • 'Only wanted the best for me': Hodge comes to Clarkson's defence as new allegations claim mistreatment of Sam Mitchell
  • Bad faith AFLW takes are stupid and miss the point entirely
  • AFL Top 100: Retirements and delistings
  • AFL News: Sheedy reveals he wanted Hird over Scott for Bombers coach, De Goey makes his choice

  AFL

  That report was handed to the AFL, which will establish a four-person panel to look at the allegations.

  Four-time Hawks premiership coach Alastair Clarkson was named in an ABC report last week detailing historic allegations from some Indigenous players.

  Earlier on Tuesday, Clarkson’s friend and Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said at a function in Perth that Clarkson is “not in a great place”.

  The racism claims were revealed last week, with Clarkson, his then-assistant Chris Fagan and ex-Hawthorn welfare manager Jason Burt named in the ABC report.

  On Saturday, The Age also had a report alleging that Clarkson was unsympathetic to Sam Mitchell, now Hawthorn’s coach, when he was playing under him and dealing with family issues.

  Clarkson, who was recruited by North Melbourne, and Fagan have stood down from their coaching duties.

  “I do not consider this to be a crisis,” Kennett said at the best and fairest night.

  “When I read the draft report … I was somewhat flabbergasted – and worse.

  “It wasn’t a good read. I hope this matter can be resolved quickly by all parties involved.”

  Kennett said the people interviewed for the report had requested confidentiality and Hawthorn respected that.

  “Sadly, they made a decision to talk to the press … they named people with whom they had very real issues,” he said.

  “That was unfair to those (people), so therefore we need to have this resolved.

  “I don’t see this is as a crisis – I know this club, I know its history and I know its strength.

  “We will deal with this and assist in any way we can.”

  Jeff Kennett, President of the Hawthorn Football Club. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

  Kennett also said the issues were historic and called on any Hawthorn employees to tell the club at the time if they believe inappropriate behaviour has happened.

  “The one thing the investigation showed was that we have a safe cultural workplace now. So these are issues of the past,” he said.

  He hopes there can be some form of mediation so any issues can be resolved quickly.

  “It could be resolved before the end of the year so people can get on with their lives,” he said.

  At the end of his speech, Kennett again insisted the Hawks would “overcome” the issue.

  “Understand this as being a bump along the highway, but … it is an important bump and it has to be dealt with professionally,” he said.

  “I will not accept the fact that we as a club cannot overcome this latest issue.

  “We have the people, we have the desire and we have that indelible ingredient which is togetherness.”  

  Meanwhile, Hardwick was quoted as speaking at a function before the WAFL grand final.

  “He’s not in a great place, let’s be perfectly honest,” Hardwick said of Clarkson.

  “To have that accusation and alleged incidents thrown at you and then splashed across the media when you don’t have an opportunity to defend yourself is incredibly disheartening and probably a little bit distasteful.”

  Also on Saturday, former Hawthorn captain Luke Hodge supported Clarkson and Fagan in a social media post, and Brisbane star Lachie Neale backed Fagan after winning the Lions’ best and fairest award on Friday night.

  Mitchell did not refer to the latest allegations against Clarkson involving him or the racism claims in his speech at the Hawthorn best and fairest count.

• Judge, jury, executioner — the AFL's iron grip authority is being challenged
  01 October 2022
  External pressure is rising on the AFL in the wake of the abuse allegations levelled against Hawthorn, writes Tracey Holmes, with the Federal Government watching developments closely.
• Former Roos coach says North should “absolutely” split pick 1 this year
  01 October 2022

  Former North Melbourne senior coach David Noble is urging the Kangaroos to trade the first overall pick this year, splitting it in order to bolster their future draft hand.

  After finishing bottom of the table in the home-and-away season, North Melbourne have prime position in the 2022 national draft, owning the number one pick for the second year in a row.

  With Noble at the helm last year, the Kangaroos selected the country’s top prospect Jason Horne-Francis first.

  However, with this year’s presumed number one pick Will Ashcroft set to go off the board early if the Brisbane Lions - as expected - match a bid for the father-son prospect, Noble believes North Melbourne should go in a different direction for the draft.

  “I’ve always been an advocate for the split, I think that the picks are a bit overvalued to be honest at times, the North pick this year, I would absolutely split it, 100 per cent,” he said on AFL Trade Radio’s The Late Trade.

  “The reason being, you’re not going to get the best kid in the country, Ashcroft, you’re not getting number one.”

  “The way I look at it, you’ve got pick two, so split pick two and take as many picks as you can.”

  With the Kangaroos having already traded away their second round pick this year as part of the deal for Callum Coleman-Jones, and more of their draft capital potentially heading to Fremantle as compensation for Griffin Logue, Noble believes it is vital for the club to “stock up.”

  “North don’t have a second round (pick) this year, if they get Griffin Logue and it’s a future second… therefore you’ve got a bit of dearth in there in regards to picks going forward,” he said.

  “They need to stock up, so I would grab that (first) pick and try and split it as many ways as I can to get as much talent coming through.

  “North had the first pick last year as well, so therefore if you get a third pick and then you get a future pick five, or you get pick ten and pick three.

  “So in the last two years you have pick one, pick three, pick ten, that’s actually pretty good going.”

  Former Carlton list manager Stephen Silvagni agrees that the first pick could be traded this year, however stressed that North Melbourne should be careful in doing so.

  “I think if you’ve got the number one pick, you’re looking for two early first round picks, whether that’s in this year’s draft or one in this year’s draft, one in next year,” he said.

  “Definitely one of them needs to be in that top five, top six and then the next one still in the top 10.”

  “With the information I’ve got on the actual draft at the moment and the talent at the top end… I’d be certainly looking at trying to get best value for that pick.

  “That’s where you’ve got to be careful because whoever you’re trading with, if you’ve gone for a future pick, you want to make sure that it’s relatively a certainty that it’s going to be in that top ten, that it doesn’t sort of float out to 16, 17.”

  “History will tell you that there’s been plenty of kids that have been taken further down that end up being the stars of the competition, it’s just about knowing where the talent is and how deep it goes.”

  During his time at the Blues, Carlton had possession of the first pick multiple times, however Silvagni stated it was only in 2018 that the club gave serious consideration to trading it.

  “When I was at Carlton, we had the number one pick several times, there was a year where we were certainly considering trading that first pick,” he said.

  “That was the (Sam) Walsh year, and we obviously rated Walshy… we wanted two picks inside five, six, so if we could get two in there, we were really going to consider doing that trade.

  “We had conversations but there was a reluctancy from clubs, and one of the clubs at the time, I think it was Gold Coast, had a couple of picks in there, I think they ended up getting (Izak) Rankine, (Jack) Lukosius and Ben King.

  “You see the quality of players there, Max King was in that draft, (Connor) Rozee was in that draft, so you knew the depth was in that draft.

  “So if you could trade one pick for a couple of picks knowing you were right in that slot of quality players, you’d certainly look at it.

  “It was just more to see what else is out there, you just never know, someone might have thrown three first round picks in there and you go ‘well, we’ve got to do this deal’.

  It was just more to know what value does it hold and can we do something, you’ve got to look at all the options and then come back and go ‘what makes sense’?

  “You’ve got to look at what talent pool is there, because it can fall away or it can be quite deep, so it’s about knowing.”

  The AFL trade period will get underway on October 3, with the national draft set to take place on November 28.

• St Kilda’s budget: Acquire difference-making A-grade talent
  01 October 2022

  Every club has a wishlist but every club also has a budget.

  But not many out there know exactly what is on said list or exactly what each club has up their sleeve to spend.

  Josh Jenkins has given each of the 18 clubs a round $1 million figure to spend THIS trade period on a player or players they require.

  This is a hypothetical look at what a club needs, but ensuring the players in question are somewhat gettable and the deals are not fanciful.

  It is what Jenkins thinks is needed and how the clubs in question should spend their $1m.

  Next up is St Kilda who according to Jenkins need some quality.

  St Kilda’s budget – Grab an A-grader

  Jenkins has urged the Saints to find a big fish, but cannot quite identify who.

  “Acquire A-grade talent,” he said on AFL Trade Radio’s Trade Mornings.

  “Go and get the best player you can get. You need it to be a fit and you need to identify and be able to foresee a way that the player fits within your side and the way you want to play.

  “They need more top-end talent. If you were to talk about top-10 players at their position, Max King is probably in there for mine. Callum Wilkie, Jack Steele and Jack Sinclair also.

  “To me, they don’t have enough top-end, difference-making, A-grade talent.

  “It’s hard to identify someone for them and that’s the challenge. And that is the challenge, take on the challenge and go and find someone who you can attract to your footy club.

  “They made some strides with Jordan De Goey, but ultimately he picks Collingwood and remains where ehe is.

  “So, onto the next one.

  “Also, keep Hunter Clark. That would be the other element as well. Don’t let Hunter Clark walk out the door.”

  Listen to Jenkins’ budget below:

• The indicative National Draft order ahead of AFL trade period
  01 October 2022

  The indicative draft order as of 20/09/2022 is as below.

  We'll update this list continuously throughout the trade period.

  Round One

  1. North Melbourne

  2. West Coast

  3. Greater Western Sydney

  4. Essendon

  5. Adelaide

  6. Hawthorn

  7. Gold Coast

  8. Port Adelaide

  9. St Kilda

  10. Carlton

  11. Western Bulldogs

  12. Richmond

  13. Fremantle

  14. Sydney (tied to Melbourne)

  15. Brisbane

  16. Collingwood

  17. Sydney

  18. Geelong

  Round Two

  19. Richmond (tied to North Melbourne)

  20. West Coast

  21. Greater Western Sydney

  22. Essendon

  23. Adelaide

  24. Hawthorn

  25. Gold Coast

  26. West Coast (tied to Port Adelaide)

  27. Port Adelaide (Karl Amon compensation pick)

  28. St Kilda

  29. Carlton

  30. Western Bulldogs

  31. Richmond

  32. Gold Coast (tied to Fremantle)

  33. Melbourne

  34. Brisbane

  35. Gold Coast (tied to Collingwood)

  36. Sydney

  37. Geelong

  Round Three

  38. Western Bulldogs (tied to North Melbourne)

  39. West Coast

  40. Greater Western Sydney

  41. Essendon

  42. Melbourne (tied to Adelaide)

  43. Collingwood (tied to Hawthorn)

  44. Gold Coast

  45. Brisbane (tied to Port Adelaide)

  46. St Kilda

  47. Geelong (tied to Carlton)

  48. Collingwood (tied to Western Bulldogs)

  49. Collingwood (tied to Richmond)

  50. Hawthorn (tied to Fremantle)

  51. Melbourne

  52. Geelong (tied to Brisbane)

  53. Gold Coast (tied to Collingwood)

  54. Port Adelaide (tied to Sydney)

  55. Geelong

  Round Four

  56. North Melbourne

  57. Port Adelaide (tied to West Coast)

  58. Greater Western Sydney

  59. Essendon

  60. Greater Western Sydney (tied to Adelaide)

  61. Geelong (tied to Hawthorn)

  62. Hawthorn (tied to Gold Coast)

  63. Carlton (tied to Port Adelaide)

  64. Melbourne (tied to St Kilda)

  65. Carlton

  66. Western Bulldogs

  67. North Melbourne (tied to Richmond)

  __68. Gold Coast (tied to Fremantle) __

  __69. Melbourne __

  __70. Brisbane __

  71. Gold Coast (tied to Collingwood)

  72. Sydney

  73. Fremantle (tied to Geelong)

• ‘Only wanted the best for me’: Hodge comes to Clarkson’s defence as new allegations claim mistreatment of Sam Mitchell
  01 October 2022

  Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell has been dragged into the allegations of mistreatment of First Nations players by Alastair Clarkson during his time at the Hawks, with claims emerging the former star was also on the receiving end.

  According to The Age’s Caroline Wilson, Clarkson is alleged to have instructed Mitchell to hand in his mobile phone during a mid-season interstate game alongside the rest of the team, despite his daughter being in a vulnerable state of health back in Melbourne.

  More AFL

  • 'Only wanted the best for me': Hodge comes to Clarkson's defence as new allegations claim mistreatment of Sam Mitchell
  • Bad faith AFLW takes are stupid and miss the point entirely
  • AFL Top 100: Retirements and delistings
  • AFL News: Sheedy reveals he wanted Hird over Scott for Bombers coach, De Goey makes his choice
  • The pride of South Australia! Crows claim state bragging rights, thrash Power in first ever AFLW Showdown

  AFL

  Wilson goes on to report that Clarkson publicly announced Mitchell was missing a game against Richmond due to health concerns over his twin children, without Mitchell or wife Lyndall’s consent, before agreeing to be more respectful when confronted at the end of the season.

  “The majority of the former players contacted stressed that Clarkson saw himself as a father figure at the club who, while at times overstepping the mark in interfering in their personal lives, firmly believed he was prioritising the best interests of his footballers,” Wilson writes.

  Clarkson has fully denied any accusations of wrongdoing since the allegations first emerged in grand final week.

  The latest allegations come as former Hawthorn triple-premiership captain Luke Hodge released a statement strongly defending Clarkson and Brisbane coach Chris Fagan, who was also heavily implicated by an ABC report into the claims, as well as then-Hawks player development manager Jason Burt.

  Taking to Twitter, Hodge wrote that while ‘honest truths’ were part and parcel of his relationship with Clarkson and Fagan, they came ‘exclusively from a place of love’.

  He also noted that he could not confirm or deny the ‘confronting accusations’ made against the pair.

  “Alastair Clarkson shaped me into the person I am today,” Hodge wrote.

  pic.twitter.com/5dUNWdlyu2

  — Luke Hodge (@LHodge15) September 30, 2022

  “Inheriting a bit of a brat from Colac, he was never afraid to give me the honest truths that I needed. At times that was hard to hear but it came exclusively from a place of love and care for me and my future.

  “Then when [wife] Lauren and I started a family he was the one I turned to. He has always shared his own stories and helped me to be comfortable in my own skin.

  “Such is the trust and belief that I have in Chris Fagan that as a person, I moved my whole family interstate solely because he was leading that club [Brisbane]. He is the most extraordinary mentor and confidant. I am just so proud and not one bit surprised of the culture he has created and what he has built in Brisbane.

  “The work Jason Burt did to help young and not so young players transition in and out of footy was simply tireless.

  “I know people will have their own opinions on what I’m saying, but I just had to show support in a tough time for those that did exactly that for me throughout the more challenging moments of my life.

  “My experience with each of these men is that they only ever wanted the best for me and my family and I wish them well in what is an extremely challenging time for everyone involved.”

• Richmond’s budget: Drop interest in one of two Giants mids to get a young key forward
  01 October 2022

  Every club has a wishlist but every club also has a budget.

  But not many out there know exactly what is on said list or exactly what each club has up their sleeve to spend.

  Josh Jenkins has given each of the 18 clubs a round $1 million figure to spend THIS trade period on a player or players they require.

  This is a hypothetical look at what a club needs, but ensuring the players in question are somewhat gettable and the deals are not fanciful.

  It is what Jenkins thinks is needed and how the clubs in question should spend their $1m.

  Jenkins has cast his eye over Richmond and identified what he believes their needs are.

  Richmond’s budget – Abandon one of two GWS mids to get a young forward

  __Jenkins believes the Tigers should recruit just one of Hoopper or Taranto and spend the remainder on a young key forward. __

  “I would like them to go after one of the two midfielders that have been spoken about,” he said on AFL Trade Radio’s Trade Mornings.

  “Jacob Hopper and Tim Taranto are the two mids that have both requested trades to Richmond. I’m saying go for Hopper and not Taranto, but I don’t mind either way, one of the two.

  “They are both going to be in the $700-750,000 range from all reports, so there’s not a lot left.

  “A young key forward is important. Jack Riewoldt is close to 34, Tom Lynch is not young either (29) and Lynch has had some injuries. A nasty PCL which slowed him up and he had some injuries last year.

  “Mabior Chol left, Callum Coleman-Jones left, because they just couldn’t provide them opportunities.

  “They need depth in that space. Samson Ryan is a guy I’ve spoken about. Early days he was considered a key forward prospect but he’s developed and grown, he’s 206(cm) and whether he becomes a Rory Lobb type, I’m not sure.

  “I think the Tigers need to spend that remaining $250,000-odd and go and poach a young key forward. I’m not talking Mitch Georgiades, because he’s going to cost a lot more, but I’m talking about someone who is not getting a game.

  “A young, tall forward who the Richmond recruiters can look at and say, ‘We identify him as a talent of the future, he needs another year in the VFL, then hopefully he can take Jack’s spot in 2024’.”

  Listen to Jenkins’ budget below:

• Wilson reveals further details on Clarkson’s ‘controlling behaviour’ amid racism allegations
  01 October 2022

  Veteran journalist Caroline Wilson believes the racism allegations against key Hawthorn people will be the biggest story she’s ever covered if the claims are “proven in any way to have substance”.

  A report in the ABC with testimony from numerous families provided significant allegations against former Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson, assistant coach Chris Fagan and player manager Jason Burt.

  A Hawthorn external investigation into racism at the club – which parts of the ABC report drew from – had similar findings.

  However, Clarkson, Fagan and Burt are yet to share their sides of the story and the claims currently remain unproven. Clarkson and Fagan have strenuously denied the allegations and the AFL is assembling an independent panel to investigate.

  But with the seriousness of the claims – including the allegation in the ABC report that Clarkson told an indigenous player to tell his partner to abort their unborn child – has Wilson highly concerned.

  She hinted that Nine’s Footy Classified could return during the off-season if further developments in the story occur.

  “I think this Hawthorn story and if something really big happens, I remember Footy Classified came back out of season a few times during the Essendon drugs scandal, and if these allegations are proven in any way to have substance then I think this will be as big. Well, it’ll be a bigger story,” she told the Don’t Shoot The Messenger podcast.

  “What Alastair Clarkson is being accused of is probably the worst thing a coach has ever been accused of in my time in football.

  “I mean it’s horrendous.”

  It comes as a report in The Age from Wilson on Saturday morning detailed further allegations of controlling behaviour from Clarkson.

  EXCLUSIVE: Fresh allegations of controlling behaviour have emerged against former Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson. But this time the accusations relate to non-Indigenous past players and notably the current coach Sam Mitchell https://t.co/AOIuXE1Z0I

  — Real Footy (AFL) (@agerealfooty) October 1, 2022

  Wilson provides details from non-Indigenous players including Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell, naming four occasions on which Clarkson treated Mitchell with a level of disrespect during 2011 with the Mitchell family facing a number of health problems.

  Mitchell did not comment in the article.

  Her report also says: “The majority of the former players contacted stressed that Clarkson saw himself as a father figure at the club who, while at times overstepping the mark in interfering in their personal lives, firmly believed he was prioritising the best interests of his footballers.”

  But the white players interviewed in Wilson’s article also state their experiences should not be compared to those of Indigenous players.

  Despite announcing a four-person panel would be appointed within 24 hours last Wednesday, it’s yet to be revealed more than 10 days on, promoting the likelihood the investigation could draw on for several months to come.

• 'They only ever wanted the best for me': Hodge throws support behind Hawthorn coaches
  01 October 2022
  Three-time Hawks premiership skipper Luke Hodge backs his former Hawthorn coaches, as the AFL investigates allegations of racism.
• Noble would be “staggered” if “invaluable” Stocker not playing AFL in 2023
  01 October 2022

  Former North Melbourne coach David Noble says he would be “staggered” if Liam Stocker isn’t playing AFL next year.

  Carlton delisted Stocker early in September to the surprise of many fans, with Andy Maher left “genuinely stunned” when the news broke.

  Stocker was a first round pick who the Blues traded up in the 2018 draft to secure under former list manager Stephen Silvagni, but he wasn’t offered a new contract after an injury-riddled four-season, 28-game career.

  However, the 22-year-old has found a big supporter in Noble, who described players of Stocker’s elk as vital.

  “He’s just got football knowledge. He’s got the footy chip and I think those guys are invaluable,” Noble said of Stocker on AFL Trade Radio’s The Late Trade.

  “They might take a little bit longer, sometimes those guys are a little bit more like your talls, they just take a little bit of time to find their feet, sometimes it’s about finding the right game style to suit you as well.

  “I would be staggered (if he wasn’t playing next year), and he’s free, there’s that benefit.”

  Stocker was drafted to be a hard-nosed midfielder in time and despite stints on the ball, he played the majority of his footy behind the ball.

  In six AFL games in 2022 he averaged 11 disposals and two marks per appearance, but only had two games below 15 touches in 12 VFL appearances this year.

  AFL Media’s Damian Barrett declared: “I’d be staggered if he wasn’t on a club list next year, for what it’s worth.”

  SEN Chief Sports Reporter Sam Edmund revealed shortly after Stocker’s delisting that the powers that be at Carlton believed Stocker’s aerobic capacity, speed and ball use simply weren’t good enough to earn a spot at AFL level.

  Stocker said “I’ll be back” in an Instagram post shortly after being cut from the list and he’ll likely have to wait until after the trade period and potentially into next year to see if he’ll earn a spot on a list for 2023.