Hirds aren't stupid. The only explanation I can see for recent events is that Hird (and Essendon) know that infraction notices are imminent and they want to escalate matters and get the AFL into court to discredit the "joint" AFL ASADA investigation to discredit its findings and/or take Demetriou down with them.

55 - I think you are onto something here although Im not sure Hird and Essendon are in the same camp. Hird is behaving like a desparate man and seems to be attempting to discredit the AFL at every opportunity. The sooner ASADA finalise this the better.

Roberta Williams denied any wrong doing by her husband as well. Jus' saying Tania.

Honestly, why doesn't Tania keep her mouth shut? Looked like James might have been hiding behind the bushes when she was fronting the press. She's got more kahunas than he has. Makes him look a touch soft IMO.

55 - I think you are onto something here although Im not sure Hird and Essendon are in the same camp. Hird is behaving like a desparate man and seems to be attempting to discredit the AFL at every opportunity. The sooner ASADA finalise this the better.

Hird and essendon definitely different camps now

another solution may have been to suspend hird's suspension until he is removed from the payroll

that would hurt

Rather like that Daisy and would add that when you "throw snowballs at city hall" I hope you have a little more serious ammo!

Bombers must reckon they have some, or could walk out of the next AFL Commission knee deep in blood.

Wanna bet ?

yep

Tania Hird, in her supposedly spontaneous interview when a News Ltd reporter, video operator and photographer happened to be in place outside her house, says she wants the AFL to tell the truth. It's time her husband fronted the media and did the same, detailing all events, beginning with what happened at the club's pre-season training camp at the Sheraton Mirage in Surfers Paradise in December 2011 and his chance meeting with Shane ''Dr Ageless'' Charter.

Hird the main game is still in play

Best article yet

Tania Hird, in her supposedly spontaneous interview when a News Ltd reporter, video operator and photographer happened to be in place outside her house, says she wants the AFL to tell the truth. It's time her husband fronted the media and did the same, detailing all events, beginning with what happened at the club's pre-season training camp at the Sheraton Mirage in Surfers Paradise in December 2011 and his chance meeting with Shane ''Dr Ageless'' Charter.Hird the main game is still in play

Best article yet

This is gonna get nasty, last paragraph was a shot across Hird's bow that details are known and will emerge...

Yikes

Is this thing ever going to stop growing legs?

Is this thing ever going to stop growing legs?

No this Train Wreck just keeps getting bigger and bigger

No this Train Wreck just keeps getting bigger and bigger

If Hird had just done what Bailey, Cuddles and co. all did, and taken his medicine quietly in the background, none of this would have happened. Well, not on this scale.

Hird the main game is still in play

The story has two layers and the article is telling us that the most important of these is still in play -

The potential for infraction notices is still the main game.

The second layer is the sideshow which is IMO a major embarrassment to Essendon/The Hirds on the one hand and the AFL/Demetriou/Fitzpatrick/Clothier on the other.

The AFL has brought out its big guns to tackle the Hird camp by threatening action which would financially cripple the EFC. There's every chance that later on, the same AFL might have to make some decisions about infraction notices as a result of the ASADA investigation. The situation is really giving credence to the Bombers' new tag of "Messendon".

Those who were critical of McLardy and co for negotiating a contrived outcome in the "tanking" case rather than spend millions in court costs to clear the club's name should now recognise the wisdom of their decision to settle.

Agreed. Why would he lie so blatantly? He could have easily buried his response in the usual fluff, qualifications and spin.

But even if one was not certain, it doesn't justify calling him a liar like R Wilson did in AFL boss Andrew Demetriou must resign or be sacked following Essendon saga unless you had firm evidence he was lying.

The pro-Hird camp are obviously confident AD won't sue them. I wonder if he will get to the point where he thinks putting up his hand for leaking ASADA's information to Essendon (with whatever penalties flow from that) and then being free to take Essendon/Hird on personally is on balance more profitable to him than putting up with this.

Rebecca Wilson is hardly an objective observer in these issues. Her partner is the former head of News Limited in Australia, John Hartigan, the same John Hartigan who presided over the Super League fiasco a decade ago, and the same John Hartigan who has directed a consistent anti Dimentriou and anti AFL line in News Limited papers, particularly the Herald-Sun, and a pro EFC and pro Hird one. She is an NRL fanatic, and for her to call for AD's head is disingenuous at the very least.

...

club's pre-season training camp at the Sheraton Mirage in Surfers Paradise in December 2011 and his chance meeting with Shane ''Dr Ageless'' Charter.

Hird the main game is still in play

Best article yet

Essendon coach James Hird linked to convicted drug trafficker Shane Charter

Someone tell me what a pharmaceutical rep is doing dispensing nutrition and exercise advice? Or why that sort of expertise wasn't available in house?

Hirds aren't stupid. The only explanation I can see for recent events is that Hird (and Essendon) know that infraction notices are imminent and they want to escalate matters and get the AFL into court to discredit the "joint" AFL ASADA investigation to discredit its findings and/or take Demetriou down with them.

I agree. It is consistent with their arrogant behavior from the beginning: the instigation of the doping in the first place to deliver the "whatever it takes" mantra; Hird's reaction at the first press conference after the EFC self reported the programme to the AFL - his comment "I don't know why I am here, I have done nothing wrong"; then his gross disloyalty to his President, and supposedly great friend, David Evans when he brought him down in order to save his own neck; the sacking of the Evans and AFL appointed PR advisors who were advising Essendon and Hird to come clean and work with the AFL, instead Hird brought in extremely expensive QCs to obstruct and fight ASADA and the AFL every step of the way. They still are, and they still believe they should be able to get around the rules by doing deals.

They can't and they won't. ASADA/WADA will get them in the end, but they are clearly determined to do as much collateral damage as they can to somehow "share the blame". Hird is rapidly going from the most respected personality in football. to becoming a name firmly associated with double dealing and dishonesty: a case study on "how to trash a powerful personal brand". It will be the subject of study at business schools around the world for year's.

Is this thing ever going to stop growing legs?

No this Train Wreck just keeps getting bigger and bigger

To paraphrase the late Jack Dyer, its testicles are reaching higher and higher.

Lets for the moment assume that Hird is being paid by Essendon. Lets also assume that the Bummers did so as a result of pressure exerted either by the Hird's and/or coterie groups (both of these assumptions may not be factual or even remotely close to the mark). As a senior exec of Toll I would have thought Little and his band of merry men would have done some creative work and "employed" Tania as a marketing exec and paid her a cool mill a year. That way they could have stood in front of the AFL with hand on heart and said Vlad we are not paying James at all - problem solved at a number of levels - just a thought

Rebecca Wilson is hardly an objective observer in these issues. Her partner is the former head of News Limited in Australia, John Hartigan, the same John Hartigan who presided over the Super League fiasco a decade ago, and the same John Hartigan who has directed a consistent anti Dimentriou and anti AFL line in News Limited papers, particularly the Herald-Sun, and a pro EFC and pro Hird one. She is an NRL fanatic, and for her to call for AD's head is disingenuous at the very least.

Interesting stuff - I didn't know these things and it starts to make some sense when this context is considered.

Thanks

Lets for the moment assume that Hird is being paid by Essendon. Lets also assume that the Bummers did so as a result of pressure exerted either by the Hird's and/or coterie groups (both of these assumptions may not be factual or even remotely close to the mark). As a senior exec of Toll I would have thought Little and his band of merry men would have done some creative work and "employed" Tania as a marketing exec and paid her a cool mill a year. That way they could have stood in front of the AFL with hand on heart and said Vlad we are not paying James at all - problem solved at a number of levels - just a thought

I am staggered they did not channel the payments through third parties anyway. There would have been plenty in their coterie groups willing and able to come up with the mill a year. In fact the AFL overnight I notice have said they are comfortable with third party payments.

The explanation might be that Tania and James Hird are so full of their own self importance that they refused third party payments in order to stuff it up the AFL (and Essendon). By doing so of course, they may have thrown the AFL and the EFC closer together, and further isolated themselves. The AFL HAVE to act on this now: they are not going to leave Dimetrou out to dry on this. It would not surprise me if it resulted in the EFC renegging on Hird's contract, as apparently even powerful coterie members, previously firmly behind Hird, are seeing how his intransigence is seriously hurting both the Club and the Brand.

It may also be related to the fact that they are now beginning to realize that infraction notices are close, and the pronouncement by a leading player manager that they have a class action prepared on behalf of players affected against both Hird and Essendon and ready to go may have caused the power brokers at Essendon to take some reality salts and to shore up their position before all this happens, including severing their relationship with Hird and Tania.

Edited December 12, 201311 yr by Dees2014

I don't think that the EFC can do anything to distance themselves from Hird untill the infraction notices are issued. They are hand in glove on this one (harder to tell who is hand and who is the glove...).

If/When the infraction notices arrive the EFC will be faced with a dilemma

1. Accept the Infraction notices and pay out players affected (i.e settle class action) sack Hird and all others associated with affair and move on .

2. Contest the Infraction Notices in court - this is probably Hird's preferred path but likely to be long, ugly and potentially futile, as the EFC fights ASADA, AFL and affected players Class action, while trying to play the 2014 Premiership season. If they lose this course of action they are faced with option 1 but have fully trashed the EFC brand, their relationships with AFL and their affected players...

By threatening to take option 2. as it appears Hird is, he must be hoping to cut off the infraction notices before they are issued. This would be the only possible thing that would save his career and reputation.

Edited December 12, 201311 yr by PaulRB

Tania Hird, in her supposedly spontaneous interview when a News Ltd reporter......]

Appropriately named 'News Limited

I don't think that the EFC can do anything to distance themselves from Hird untill the infraction notices are issued. They are hand in glove on this one (harder to tell who is hand and who is the glove...).

If/When the infraction notices arrive the EFC will be faced with a dilemma

1. Accept the Infraction notices and pay out players affected (i.e settle class action) sack Hird and all others associated with affair and move on .

2. Contest the Infraction Notices in court - this is probably Hird's preferred path but likely to be long, ugly and potentially futile, as the EFC fights ASADA, AFL and affected players Class action, while trying to play the 2014 Premiership season. If they lose this course of action they are faced with option 1 but have fully trashed the EFC brand, their relationships with AFL and their affected players...

By threatening to take option 2. as it appears Hird is, he must be hoping to cut off the infraction notices before they are issued. This would be the only possible thing that would save his career and reputation.

PaulRB I think you can delete "reputation" that is long gone.

PaulRB I think you can delete "reputation" that is long gone.

as the romans would say - his dignitas is on the nose

Rebecca Wilson is hardly an objective observer in these issues. Her partner is the former head of News Limited in Australia, John Hartigan, the same John Hartigan who presided over the Super League fiasco a decade ago, and the same John Hartigan who has directed a consistent anti Dimentriou and anti AFL line in News Limited papers, particularly the Herald-Sun, and a pro EFC and pro Hird one. She is an NRL fanatic, and for her to call for AD's head is disingenuous at the very least.

Appreciate the connection but it doesn't mean her arguments are not right. Feel free to attack her arguments,

Oh and sometimes in the closeted, cosy and incestuous world that is AFL it takes an outsider to really look at something and tell it like it is.

Just sayin..

Edited December 12, 201311 yr by jnrmac

Once infraction notices are issued it will be every man for themselves.

Then it will really get nasty. Every person involved will get their own legal representation and you will see all sorts of recriminations and protests. he said, she said,

This thing will explode.

Can't wait.