What has stupid got to do with it? Sylvia is not a Rhodes Scholar - we know that. However, there is no evidence that he was [censored] ( but he may have been). My point is this - what harm has been done to MFC given that he was on leave , he was not driving and the police do not consider an offence has been committed. Sylvia is a victim of the fact that ther is not much footy news at the moment.

No, he is a victim of his own stupidity. He did nothing illegal but the fact he left the scene of the accident probably in the hope he wouldn't be identified tells me, he knew he was doing wrong. He clearly was not taking his Australian representation seriously and therefore represented the club poorly. He is also is a serial offender and a pi55 poor example for his young team mates.

Theres a protocol laid down and explained by the club to all concerned. He knew what was expected, He F%#*ed UP !!...Again !!

I read this thread until the words "Colin is a victim" come across the page...

The internet just sighed that someone wrote that on it.

I hate and love this simultaneously.

I love that we've done the right thing and suspended him. He needs to pull his damn head in.

I hate that we're going to run out in Round 1 with a (hopefully) fully fit Sylvia in the stands.

Right decision though.

I can't understand why it is not 1 (or 2) NAB cup games instead of a home and away game

Seems weird he is part of the team for four weeks pf the NAB cup and then misses out

I can't shake off the feeling that the team and supporters are being punished too

2 IR games $5000 and a NAB cup game would seem to be sufficient

We really are the nanny-state sometimes

What has stupid got to do with it? Sylvia is not a Rhodes Scholar - we know that. However, there is no evidence that he was [censored] ( but he may have been). My point is this - what harm has been done to MFC given that he was on leave , he was not driving and the police do not consider an offence has been committed. Sylvia is a victim of the fact that ther is not much footy news at the moment.

Spoke with Neeld last night re this.

He said it may seem harsh in some respects, but he had to do this in order to send a clear message to the playing group. Simple as that.

Whether you agree with the decision or not - thats he reasoning.

As far as MN is concerned if you play IR, then you represent MFC while you do that and drinking a night before any training session means you are not taking it seriously.

Thats why the decision was made.

Regardless of whether laws were broken etc they werent deciding factors for the punishment.

This sort of thinking is more about changing the culture of the club than anything else.

He didn't feel NAB cup was strong enough in message re the commitment and standard required to play at the top level.

How the f**k is getting [censored], walking away from the scene of an accident involving your own car (even if your not the driver) and not contacting the club for several hours (after the police, in fact) "showing a bit of mongrel"??? It certainly shows a great deal of terminal stupidity, but mongrel?.... nah! And the fact that the club is prepared to come down hard on him will hopefully be a sign that the pissant culture is on the way out.

You are upset that he contacted the club AFTER the police? Hmmm. The police should have been his first call - he had to report the damage done by his vehicle. Yes, leaving the scene was not the right thing to do, but calling the police first was the right thing to do. If I had a car accident, I am sure I would be calling the police before my employer. And yes, I do have a position where my ethics count, so my employer could take action against me if I committed an offence (which Colin didn't in this case). Gee, give the kid a break - he is a young man (if memory serves from when I was that age, common sense is still developing, particularly in the male of the species) - he obviously realised he was in no condition to drive so gave the keys to his mate. Yes he left the scene of the accident, but you know what? If there were people there with camera phones (as apparently there were), he probably panicked, thinking of the bad publicity that was going to ensue. No-one was hurt, so taking off didn't put anyone at risk of injury. He probably wanted to clear out, get home, and make some phone calls from home. If the driver of the vehicle had stayed behind as he was legally obliged to do, then this story would have been a mere blip on the media radar. So the only thing Colin really did wrong, was to drink before training, which is why he was dropped from the IR team. This reaction from the club is more in the nature of a knee jerk one, and an overreaction.

Yes, these young men are role models, but they are also human beings, with human failings. I think Colin's 'offence' is on the lower scale of some of the things that footy players have done in recent years, and really not deserving of all this hysteria. Did he hit anyone? Did he rape anyone? No. He was a passenger in a car that was involved in an accident, and he went home. He then called the police as he was supposed to do as the owner of the vehicle involved. Get off his back.

He can get as many haircuts as he wants as long as he stays off the C₂H₆O and engages in a lot of high-velocity bipedal locomotion.

Not wanting to nit pick but for future info it should be,C₂H₅OH

The OH symbol is for alcohol and C₂H₅ tells you which one, in this case ethyl.

At least that's the way we did it 50 years ago and the price of OH has risen since then so you may be correct.

FYI a 10oz beer when I was 18 cost 11 pence ie 10cents.

I can't understand why it is not 1 (or 2) NAB cup games instead of a home and away game

Seems weird he is part of the team for four weeks pf the NAB cup and then misses out

I can't shake off the feeling that the team and supporters are being punished too

2 IR games $5000 and a NAB cup game would seem to be sufficient

We really are the nanny-state sometimes

I really dont think a lot of people , players included take the NAB at all seriously. Its the season proper that sits all about. Being denied a spot in a nuff nuff game wont do anything to send a message. We often load up, as do many clubs, with younger less experienced players whilst resting the more senior ones. . Col wouldnt see this as anything special being dropped for a pre season game. . Getting a suspension from a 'real' game is an entirely different thing.

Time Col really understood what is required. Why didnt we just trade him when we had a chance

He always promising , always reneging. He's like a pathological liar. Says one thing does another

Heres one player that really needs a bit of sense knocked into. Hopefully Neeld can get the message through

You are upset that he contacted the club AFTER the police? Hmmm. The police should have been his first call - he had to report the damage done by his vehicle. Yes, leaving the scene was not the right thing to do, but calling the police first was the right thing to do. If I had a car accident, I am sure I would be calling the police before my employer. And yes, I do have a position where my ethics count, so my employer could take action against me if I committed an offence (which Colin didn't in this case). Gee, give the kid a break - he is a young man (if memory serves from when I was that age, common sense is still developing, particularly in the male of the species) - he obviously realised he was in no condition to drive so gave the keys to his mate. Yes he left the scene of the accident, but you know what? If there were people there with camera phones (as apparently there were), he probably panicked, thinking of the bad publicity that was going to ensue. No-one was hurt, so taking off didn't put anyone at risk of injury. He probably wanted to clear out, get home, and make some phone calls from home. If the driver of the vehicle had stayed behind as he was legally obliged to do, then this story would have been a mere blip on the media radar. So the only thing Colin really did wrong, was to drink before training, which is why he was dropped from the IR team. This reaction from the club is more in the nature of a knee jerk one, and an overreaction.

Yes, these young men are role models, but they are also human beings, with human failings. I think Colin's 'offence' is on the lower scale of some of the things that footy players have done in recent years, and really not deserving of all this hysteria. Did he hit anyone? Did he rape anyone? No. He was a passenger in a car that was involved in an accident, and he went home. He then called the police as he was supposed to do as the owner of the vehicle involved. Get off his back.

Strangely Suzanna the club disagrees entirely with you...

I really struggle to understand how anyone just leaves a car like that and expects people to gloss over it. As the owner of the car he does have certain responsibilities.

As a player he has obligations to the club. These are spelt out and agreed to. These arent debatable, they arent negotiable per se. You either do it or you suffer the punishment.

Give him a break ?? how many shall we give him Suzanna , how many ?

Poor Colin, poor Colin, dont blame him he's just a naughty boy.

Break? Give me a Break !!

I really dont think a lot of people , players included take the NAB at all seriously. Its the season proper that sits all about. Being denied a spot in a nuff nuff game wont do anything to send a message. We often load up, as do many clubs, with younger less experienced players whilst resting the more senior ones. . Col wouldnt see this as anything special being dropped for a pre season game. . Getting a suspension from a 'real' game is an entirely different thing.

Time Col really understood what is required. Why didnt we just trade him when we had a chance

He always promising , always reneging. He's like a pathological liar. Says one thing does another

Heres one player that really needs a bit of sense knocked into. Hopefully Neeld can get the message through

you are really blowing it up too much, seems you just wan't any excuse to get on a high horse and pontificate

sure it was stupid, but it was out of season, and getting kicked off the IR team to represent your country would surely hurt

what do you want? blood?

nanny state

you are really blowing it up too much, seems you just wan't any excuse to get on a high horse and pontificate

sure it was stupid, but it was out of season, and getting kicked off the IR team to represent your country would surely hurt

what do you want? blood?

nanny state

As i said earlier - its more about changing the club culture and sending all players a message.

Col knows better....

New culture starts now..

you are really blowing it up too much, seems you just wan't any excuse to get on a high horse and pontificate

sure it was stupid, but it was out of season, and getting kicked off the IR team to represent your country would surely hurt

what do you want? blood?

nanny state

No.. you simply suggest anyone having a diametrically opposed view in this manner is either huffing..or pro nanny.

I dont want blood from Colin, just for him to grow up. He seems incapable of this. We as a club are paying a lot of money for him to abide by the rules of his employ. He seems incapable of this also.

...nah...lets just let idiots do whatever they want huh.

p.s Doing STUPID things has no season. .

As i said earlier - its more about changing the club culture and sending all players a message.

Col knows better....

New culture starts now..

So, that's the only way to change culture? really imaginative.

Fair dinkum dipstick. Apologies in advance if this upsets anyone.

You are upset that he contacted the club AFTER the police? Hmmm. The police should have been his first call .

Maybe my wording was ambiguous, but if you bothered to read the article that was linked by another poster, you would have seen that Sylvia contacted the club several hours after the accident and after the police had contacted the club.

And scale has nothing to do with the clubs reaction. They have rules, he is very aware of those rules, and the club acted according to those rules. No knee jerk reaction, but rather a well considered response that was in accordance with those rules.

Youthful exuberance has absolutely nothing to do with it... he did the wrong thing at the wrong time plain and simple.

No.. you simply suggest anyone having a diametrically opposed view in this manner is either huffing..or pro nanny.

I dont want blood from Colin, just for him to grow up. He seems incapable of this. We as a club are paying a lot of money for him to abide by the rules of his employ. He seems incapable of this also.

...nah...lets just let idiots do whatever they want huh.

p.s Doing STUPID things has no season. .

who said let idiots do what ever they want?

i just said the punishment doesn't fit the "crime"

he got three separate punishments (spread over 6 months) plus the shaming and naming in the press and YOU still aren't satisfied

what are you going to do when someone really mucks up?

Maybe my wording was ambiguous, but if you bothered to read the article that was linked by another poster, you would have seen that Sylvia contacted the club several hours after the accident and after the police had contacted the club.

And scale has nothing to do with the clubs reaction. They have rules, he is very aware of those rules, and the club acted according to those rules. No knee jerk reaction, but rather a well considered response that was in accordance with those rules.

Youthful exuberance has absolutely nothing to do with it... he did the wrong thing at the wrong time plain and simple.

just out of curiosity, why the hell would the police contact the club? strange?

if you had a similar accident in your private car on a Sun morning I can't imagine the police ringing your employer

So, that's the only way to change culture? really imaginative.

I think you would know its not the only way and is one of many factors but all the same the coach told me this last night..

It is what it is - thats MN sending a message. Clearly you don't think the new coach who has his neck on the line and immense commitment to the role and experience with the Filth means nothing?

I think you would know its not the only way and is one of many factors but all the same the coach told me this last night..

It is what it is - thats MN sending a message. Clearly you don't think the new coach who has his neck on the line and immense commitment to the role and experience with the Filth means nothing?

now you are patronising me

Remember Steve Johnson kept getting in trouble and geelong finally had enough and suspended him for the first 6 weeks. He turned his career and life around. He is now a 3 time premiership player and a norm smith medalist and about to be a dad.

Im glad he has been suspended for round 1. This isnt his first incident and from the news report he broke team rules and failed to notify the club of the incident. This is why footy players keep getting in trouble because clubs dont come down on them hard enough. So I congratulate Mark and the club for making htis decision.

The thing is Colin now has to sit through this weekend knowing on monday morning he has to walk into the club and face the team and his new coach. The guy is 25 not 16. He would have known the repuccussions and new the media would find out.

Let's hope Sylvia learns his lesson.

Let's hope he also gets fully involved in pre-season training. Last year it appeared he was parked with the modified training group.

Yet he looks fit; maybe he needs to work on his aerobic capacity instead of his washboard abs.

now you are patronising me

Youre patronising the new coach DC...

Remember Steve Johnson kept getting in trouble and geelong finally had enough and suspended him for the first 6 weeks. He turned his career and life around. He is now a 3 time premiership player and a norm smith medalist and about to be a dad.

Im glad he has been suspended for round 1. This isnt his first incident and from the news report he broke team rules and failed to notify the club of the incident. This is why footy players keep getting in trouble because clubs dont come down on them hard enough. So I congratulate Mark and the club for making htis decision.

The thing is Colin now has to sit through this weekend knowing on monday morning he has to walk into the club and face the team and his new coach. The guy is 25 not 16. He would have known the repuccussions and new the media would find out.

He notified the club within a couple of hours. Nothing unusual there it was early on a sunday morning

I'm not denying he was stupid and I'm not saying he should face some retribution

I am just saying it has got completely blown out of proportion

Youre patronising the new coach DC...

I don't think you even understand the concept of patronising but thanks for trying even if unoriginal