I cant believe anyone would compare the career of an AFL footballer to a 'normal' 9-5, 5 days a week job.

Why not , they do .

They talk KPIs , have a Union , long service leave , hell many made out Scullys decision was purely a business 1.

"If you were offered twice the money for the same job , would you take it ?" etc.

My hope is that Jurrah recieves the proper rehab instead of relying on Grandmas rubbing lotion .

now thats offensive!

Just checking...

bluelegs: i know quite alot of members.

anyway as far as i am concerned i have lost interest in this thread.

I asked a few posts ago what you guys thought should occur hypothetically if this leave continued indefinitely (in regards to pay).

A few people replied then it derailed again to people making personal attacks on other peoples posts rather then contributing to the conversation.

bluelegs: i know quite alot of members.

anyway as far as i am concerned i have lost interest in this thread.

I asked a few posts ago what you guys thought should occur hypothetically if this leave continued indefinitely (in regards to pay).

A few people replied then it derailed again to people making personal attacks on other peoples posts rather then contributing to the conversation.

An answer was given which I thought was sound

there is a work related injury which can be treated in a number of ways including allowing to travel

Deal with it as such time frames are related to treatment and rehabilitation outcomes.

bluelegs: i know quite alot of members.

anyway as far as i am concerned i have lost interest in this thread.

I asked a few posts ago what you guys thought should occur hypothetically if this leave continued indefinitely (in regards to pay).

A few people replied then it derailed again to people making personal attacks on other peoples posts rather then contributing to the conversation.

Do you think Grimes should have had his pay docked when he went to Queensland last year?

Why not , they do .

They talk KPIs , have a Union , long service leave , hell many made out Scullys decision was purely a business 1.

"If you were offered twice the money for the same job , would you take it ?" etc.

My hope is that Jurrah recieves the proper rehab instead of relying on Grandmas rubbing lotion .

I agree with this. I think some people would have been annoyed if Mitch Clarke went and took some personal leave. or if T$ had stayed and was being payed a crapload and took leave for personal reasons. I don't know if there is, but i hope the club has a policy for this type of thing so that the same rules apply to everyone regardless of ethnicity.

Do you think Grimes should have had his pay docked when he went to Queensland last year?

All I will say is

Imagine you were a share holder of a company and you found out that the CEO took a holiday while still being paid to cope with stress. Or as a taxpayer if the Prime Minister decided to take pay leave on top of there usual benefits due to personal problems.

I agree with this. I think some people would have been annoyed if Mitch Clarke went and took some personal leave. or if T$ had stayed and was being payed a crapload and took leave for personal reasons. I don't know if there is, but i hope the club has a policy for this type of thing so that the same rules apply to everyone regardless of ethnicity.

Thought you'd lost interest in the thread.

Can't help yourself.

Thought you'd lost interest in the thread.

Can't help yourself.

someone made a wholesome post, unlike yourself.

All I will say is

Imagine you were a share holder of a company and you found out that the CEO took a holiday while still being paid to cope with stress. Or as a taxpayer if the Prime Minister decided to take pay leave on top of there usual benefits due to personal problems.

I would have thought that taking a holiday might be a good way to treat stress and as such could be recommended rehab for compensable illness

The pm example is a little too obscure as no paid hrs as such and not sure of relevence of workers compensation position.

I would have thought that taking a holiday might be a good way to treat stress and as such could be recommended rehab for compensable illness

The pm example is a little too obscure as no paid hrs as such and not sure of relevence of workers compensation position.

Most people do think that, sadly most successful companies and organizations dont.

Not sure where your going with this oli

You asked the question and got the answer

It seems most supporters are happy that MFC has acted appropriately and it would seem consistently.

Tar and feather him ,hang him and sack him .Draw and quarter him .How dare he attend a funeral!!!!

Fair enough if he has a fair reason like Wona did.

just seems to be a common occurance with the Melb FC and indigenous players, Sean Charles, Wona, LJ

I dont think i can name any other team which has had to give players bereavement leave for cultural reasons.

You guys are quick to jump down my throat for giving my 2c when half of you dont even know the actual reason for why he has returned home.

Personally i think all players should be on the same playing field here. I remember Clint Bartram played the next day after his dad passed away.

Firstly, three players does not a common occurrence make. Second, Clint was given the option as to what he wanted to do, and to his eternal credit in my eyes, he decided to play and had a smoker.

and yes, i am a fan of LJ, but like Mono, I think Stynes has worked way to hard for paid leave to be given to players to take indefinite leave.

Stynes has also spent quite alot of time fostering relationships in indigenous communities, specifically Yuendumu, and I am certain that he would be very keen to see that Liam is afforded the time he needs as an elder of his community to deal with the issues at hand.

All I will say is

Imagine you were a share holder of a company and you found out that the CEO took a holiday while still being paid to cope with stress. Or as a taxpayer if the Prime Minister decided to take pay leave on top of there usual benefits due to personal problems.

I find it quite interesting that Mono started all of this and has been largely silent since. I posed the question last night (hoping for an answer in this conversation you are contributing to) about Grimes, and neither yourself or Mono have bothered to answer it. You were asked again and today and have given a politicians answer, that is, an answer without answering the question. I really do want to know what your opinion of the Grimes situation is, as I do not recall any criticism of Grimes for his holiday to FNQ at all. And lets be clear here, what Grimes had was a holiday. Liam is returning to a community of which he is an elder to deal with some personal issues facing his community. What these are, I do not profess to know, but the club does, and seem to have decided that it is fair to allow him this time. As an employee, he was injured in a workplace accident, and is unable to fulfill his normal employment, therefore he is eligible to be paid his normal salary (less match payments) through his rehabilitation. I cannot see how it takes much to realise this.

The issues which Liam is dealing with are family related and are his personal business so I won't elaborate here or anywhere else. However, as he was still recovering from his wrist surgery and was a few weeks away from playing again, the club has been terrific in granting Liam some personal leave to sort some matters out back home. I expect him to return shortly eager to complete his rehab and be ready to do his bit for the team. The club should be congratulated for the understanding and support they have shown Liam.

Ok..i'll play devil's advocate...being a devillish locale after all. I sincerely wish th elad well. a speedy recovery and the where with all to sort out what will be lobbed onto his shoulders liek it or not., but at what point are we due reasoned concern that maybe, just maybe Liam is not going to realise his potential with our greta club because of all these distractions. His rehab wil be interrupted and prolonged. His required place amonhstthe best 22 will be delayed. The troubles that he has had to attnd to on more than one occasion now are it seems prerennial and not about to dissolve any time soon.

Look , I do appreciate he ( LJ) is in a unique place and situation but at some point there is a requirement to either be an AFL player...or you arent.. .

Some may think this is jumping the gun... but as Jaded has already suggested there's an uneasy wind about all this.

I have no problem with the leave so long as Jurrah is not being paid. He is welcome back any time, and to being paid when he rejoins the list.

If, however, he is being paid for his "leave", then it is just plain [censored]. The MFC is not a welfare agency.

I withdraw this, my original post in this thread. I read "indefinite leave" and imagined months (hopefully incorrectly). As Nasher and others have said, its maybe 1 or 2 weeks; with this I have no problem.

FWIW, I thought Wonna should have been let go well before he was.

bluelegs: i know quite alot of members.

anyway as far as i am concerned i have lost interest in this thread.

I asked a few posts ago what you guys thought should occur hypothetically if this leave continued indefinitely (in regards to pay).

A few people replied then it derailed again to people making personal attacks on other peoples posts rather then contributing to the conversation.

At the end of the day,

YOU ARE A [censored]!

I get the feeling that some people are assuming that since he was granted leave that Jurrah just offs and disappears. From what i understand of the Wonna situation the club was in fairly regular contact with him.

Now I don't presume to know the exact details but I'd assume that the club would be keeping up contact with Jurrah and his situation. The notion of him being absent for too long or having to dock his pay seems rather ludicrous and somewhat disrespectful to not only Jurrah, but to the club also.

This thread is an interesting one.

FWIW i sit firmly in the camp of "give Liam all the time he needs to get the personal issues sorted and then come back and give us 100% as he has to date". And the fact he is injured is even more reason not to begrudge him or the club for allowing the leave.

The reason i think this thread is interesting is becasue i expected more people to be on the unpaid leave bandwagon. Why? Becasue alot of posters on Demonland were all for Neeld "sacking" the old leadership group and his various other hardlined methods for handling the players. After all, the players are professionals ; AFL is their JOB right? I wonder wheather Neeld had any say in the decision to release LJ? Its nice to see that the majority of us draw the line on serious issues like this though.

As I see it the unfortunate problem for Liam, and so us, is that HE has no real control over the events that beseige his community. They are firmly in the hands of , dare I say it, the warring parties. As long as teh hatfiled and the McCoys are at it there will be call made upon Liam to interject and mediate, such is the duty of the initiate.

I tjhink hes done marvellously well to date to combine what much be incredibly disparate cultures to get to where he is, it just concerns me now that this may prove too much an impediment to progress and the star career so promised may become a bridge too far. Fingers crossed.

The same leave would be given to any other footballer, and most other employees in any industrty in Australia. Should be paid. No idea if he will be back.

Last season he was not at his best but still played quite well despite ongoing family issues and also injury. Far better than many others. I hope he sorts things out and gets back soon.

This thread is an interesting one.

FWIW i sit firmly in the camp of "give Liam all the time he needs to get the personal issues sorted and then come back and give us 100% as he has to date". And the fact he is injured is even more reason not to begrudge him or the club for allowing the leave.

The reason i think this thread is interesting is becasue i expected more people to be on the unpaid leave bandwagon. Why? Becasue alot of posters on Demonland were all for Neeld "sacking" the old leadership group and his various other hardlined methods for handling the players. After all, the players are professionals ; AFL is their JOB right? I wonder wheather Neeld had any say in the decision to release LJ? Its nice to see that the majority of us draw the line on serious issues like this though.

If it was a non-indigenous player I'd agree to a point. An injured player should be completing all his rehab to the point of attaining match fitness as soon as possible, as well as participating in the LTI program that Misson and the FD have developed to build their game plan awareness (if required). However, if they are able to achieve all targets set by the FD and have something of a holiday at the same time I am happy for them to be allowed to head away. If however, they wished to have a holiday and take time away from it while injured, I'm of the belief that it should come out of their leave; if they are out of leave then they must go unpaid.

But I truly believe that indigenous players need to be allowed leeway. The cultural differences, their idea of family and community is fundamentally different to the ideas most of us of non-indigenous background have. While I know I cannot speak for anyone else on this site regarding their own heritage, I know myself as an Anglo-Saxon, sixth generation Australian that I cannot begin to fathom the community understanding within an Aboriginal society such as Yuendumu. The same goes for the Tiwi Islands and the Aboriginal community in Darwin. If these players do have issues relating to their culture, which we would treat as personal issues, then they should be allowed the time to deal with them in a matter that would befit their own community.

While I normally don't have time for him, Mick Malthouse did come out with what I regarded as a fantastic comment regarding an unnamed indigenous player. He said that at times, the player in question needed to be away from the club. Malthouse said to him at those times that he'd have to be at the ground ready for the game two hours before the bounce, and that if he wasn't there there would be consequences. The match committee threw a hissy fit over picking a player who hadn't trained all week. The player showed up right on time, ready to go. MM proceeded to make a comment about the 'walkabout' idea, which I do not agree with - personally I find judging all of them with that as culturally insensitive - but certainly backing off and allowing these guys to deal with their problems in their own way can help.

I'm really quite proud of the indigenous program we have at the club. I hope it continues under Neeld. We've helped some marvelous talent in the last 15 years, and I sincerely hope that we can continue to bring through quality indigenous talent and aid them in a career in the AFL.

Im very sorry if will come across as anything other than a particularly clinical view of things. At the end of the day there is a spot in an AFL team up for grabs. Last time I looked this is not a special needs benevolent support group per se, its an AFL club. I for one have and do stil marvel at Liams talents, but it is now a that curly corssorad where people are allowed to wonder what will eventually ( if not already ) take precedence.

i fervently hope that his needs as an indigenous repected member can be intergrated ( literally ) with his desire to play Footy at the ulitimate level but we can see how easily a wheel can fall off.

Weve seen how easily it can all go to rot with Wonna, hopefully the club can facilitate a better outcome , for all concerend.

Im very sorry if will come across as anything other than a particularly clinical view of things. At the end of the day there is a spot in an AFL team up for grabs. Last time I looked this is not a special needs benevolent support group per se, its an AFL club. I for one have and do stil marvel at Liams talents, but it is now a that curly corssorad where people are allowed to wonder what will eventually ( if not already ) take precedence.

i fervently hope that his needs as an indigenous repected member can be intergrated ( literally ) with his desire to play Footy at the ulitimate level but we can see how easily a wheel can fall off.

Weve seen how easily it can all go to rot with Wonna, hopefully the club can facilitate a better outcome , for all concerend.

I don't know either of them personally, but I'll bet that as an elder and community leader, Liam Jurrah's sense of responsibility and desire to be a positive role-model would stand him in better stead that Austin Wonaeamirri, who, it appears to me, is just a guy with no real experience as a leader and thus no sense that he HAD to represent his people in the wider community. Aussie was more comfortable at home than down here, and because he had no motivating drive to stay here, he didn't. I think Liam has that drive and incentive to prove himself in the AFL.