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I watch alot of Essendon games due to my wife being a supporter. Take out the fact that Watson is out and the impact of the notices, their form has been poor for 2 months. These are the games we need to start winning without excuse.

Well went along and had a thoroughly good time. How was the steak Chippy ? Parma was excellent A cosy little setting. Only about 100-125 I reckon. For the likes of Deeluded whos 'keen' for a social place the intent apparently is to make the Duke a sort of unofficial locale for drinkies before after, whenever. Was the Roos, Robbo and Bernie show. There was no ground breaking or earth shattering news or goss really. Id really like Bernie to think hes got not 2-3 years but maybe 4-5 left at the dees. Hes got his head on ok that lad. I really get the feeling that Roos is enjoying his time at the club and feels very much part of it now, not some interloper. thats about it

As an aside. Goddard and Chapman must be hoping for infractions and suspensions - Essendon still has to pay 95% of the cap - to two players only !!!!!! Now that's a salary !

There's been a terrible lack of player education about the WADA drug code that the AFL signed up to some years ago. There's a WADA Athlete Guide that's been around since 2008 that details each athlete's responsibility. There's even an iPhone app to give access. In that guide, it explains how under the WADA code, athletes have constant and updated access to the List of Prohibited Substances: "The List of Prohibited Substances and Methods (List), updated annually by WADA, is the International Standard defining what is prohibited in- and out-of-competition. The List also indicates whether particular substances are banned in particular sports. The most current edition of the List is posted on WADA’s Web site at www.wada-ama.org". The guide also specifically advises of the “strict liability” principle, which is: Athletes should know that, under the Code, they are strictly liable whenever a prohibited substance is found in their bodily specimen. This means that a violation occurs whether or not the athlete intentionally, knowingly or unknowingly, used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault. It is therefore very important for athletes to understand not only what is prohibited, but also what might potentially cause an inadvertent doping violation. Saying "I didn't know I was taking it" or "my doctor gave it to me" is the oldest excuse in the book. So I have no sympathy for the Essendon Football Club (or indeed for any other club if they did the same) and I have little sympathy for the Essendon players (or indeed for any other player if they did the same). Complaining about the length of time for, and the nature of, the investigation, when it needed over 300 interviews and over 100,000 documents to be amassed, particularly because of lax record keeping and administrative negligence on the part of the Essendon football club (and Dank etc.) is hypocritical. Doping is cheating not just because it's taking drugs, but because it's giving doping athletes an unfair and illegal advantage over the whole field (in this case the other teams in the AFL). Australia has been going on about Bulgarian weightlifters, Chinese and East German swimmers, cyclists, sprinters etc. for decades. We shouldn't squeal like stuck pigs when some of our own athletes get caught in the same net.

He has made a statement, it's being translated from French into English as we speak. Merde!

This is purely speculation but I would think ASADA's eveidence would be something like this (in simplistic terms): We have records of Thysomin Beta 4 being purchased and received (by the club) We have records of Thysomin Beta 4 being supplied (by the supplier) There is no evidence of Thysomin Beta 4 remaining with the club There is no evidence of Thysomin Beta 4 being disposed of by any other means than injection into players Players had to sign a waiver for the injection of Thysomin AND CRUICALY there is no evidence of the legal version of Thysomin being purchased or recieved there is no record of the legal version of Thysomin being supplied by any potential supplier (they would have sound record keeping practices, even if Essendon doesn't) Records of the number of injections don’t reasonably match the number of drugs/peptides purchased (excluding the Thysomin Beta 4) Provides a pretty strong argument that the players were injected with Thysomin Beta 4 and not the legal version. With an ex judge overseeing the process now, you have to assume that the evidences would be extremely compelling.

It wouldn't surprise me if GWS traded a player for an early pick. They had a bunch of draft picks in one draft, so trading one for an early pick spreads their age profile across a few more years.

Look, there was the case of a Belarusian shotputter named Nadzeya Ostapchuk who won gold at the 2012 London Olympics. She was later disqualified from the medal for testing positive for a banned substance. She was tested twice, before and after she had finished first. Both samples indicated the presence of the anabolic agent metenolone. She received a one-year ban after her coach, Alexander Yefimov, admitted to spiking her coffee with metenolone without her knowledge after being worried about her performance, stating that he thought the drug would be clear before the tests were administered. That is total "innocence" on the part of the athlete, but she lost the gold medal on the basis that it was unfair to the rest of the competitors that they were beaten by someone whose performance was still drug-enhanced. She did get a 50% time reduction because of the circumstances. There is advice in the WADA Athlete Guide for athletes to 'consult doctors and sports medicine experts' about substance administration, so if their own advisers are corrupt there is some leniency but not total absolution. Similarly, Essendon players might be entitled to a reduction in their suspension if they have been lied to by the club, but if they still had drugs in their system, they shouldn't get off entirely in relation to all the other teams and players in the AFL who weren't enhancing performance by illegal doping. (I guess there's no medal to take off Essendon.)

I couldn't make it. ;-)

This is just one thing I have found. http://www.triplem.com.au/melbourne/sport/afl/news/damian-barretts-extended-kyle-reimers-interview/

BB I would not consider her latest piece great journalism at all. She has taken a subjective stance of the Essendon doping saga from the start. In many ways she is not much better than Robbo. I will concede she is an infinitely better writer than Robbo, but then again so is my daughters hamster. Whilst I will admit to enjoying her more recent articles this is only because they don't refer to the MFC. I am more than aware how biased they are, it's just that I share the same bias, this however doesn't make it right. The truth is that the two major Newspapers in this town have both taken an opposing stance that is subjective in nature. That can never be considered good Journalism.

I just heard the Paul Little press conference on radio and, if I heard correctly, he stated in response to one question that Essendon self-reported and co-operated with the joint investigation which it is now challenging because it had agreed not to challenge the validity of the process. In other words, now that things haven't gone well for the club, they are prepared to breach that agreement. I don't think there's any basis in fact or in law for the challenge anyway but that extraordinary comment is mind boggling. I don't understand how a challenge to the process is going to help the integrity and reputation of his players either. To the contrary, a successful legal challenge on the ASADA process will still leave the question of the integrity of the players open and most of the football world would still regard them as drug cheats. Strangly enough, for a club that was calling for a swift end to the drug saga, the institution of court proceedings will only prolong it and make it harder for the players to get the minimum sanction on offer. The final nail in the coffin might be that if the saga is delayed much further, there's the possibility that ASADA or WADA might be able to apply the maximum penalty of four years rather than two which applies at the moment.

Essendon must fight legality of ASADA-AFL investigation after show cause notices issued, Mark Robinson writes This is the most addle brained lack of logic I've read in the Herald Sun's sports pages and reflects the dramatic decline in journalistic standards at News Limited since Mike Sheahan left the building. What's wrong with fighting the case on the facts rather than the processes or allegations of lack of confidentiality? And this comes from the clown who published the names of a dozen of the Bomber players implicated. What gall!!!

vas te faire encule AFL! - James Hird

The most disappointing footballer I have seen during my time supporting. Many disagree but I believe he had the talent to be anything...alas he had an attitude that made him amount to nothing.

That is giving him too much credit I think. 1) He left as a free agent. I suspect he would have left whether the club was compensated or not. 2) The credit goes entirely to the club for the astute trade of the Colin Sylvia compensation pick to Adelaide for Bernie Vince. It was a good trade, but not one Sylvia had any input in to.

They have a different surname and as such are not related

Man I wish we could just beat a team just because we are the better team. Instead there is an excuse for every win we get.

You have no idea how they will react. We hope for them to be thoroughly distracted but it could have the exact opposite effect of bringing them together - the "world against us" mindset.

Interesting that the language from Essendon has changed significantly over the last few months, to challenging the various technical and legal processes (regardless of the cost) but not setting out to prove (and insisting on) their innocence. My amateur observation is this is normally the approach taken by the guilty.

Paneful Moonie Paneful!

Really should win this game. They are ripe for the picking. McKenzie, Riley and Kent are all good ins. Will be a team that is more than capable of getting the job done.

So this is where Mitch is at. Since getting help his mental state has dramatically improved. This is clear for all to see. However, as others have pointed out clinical depression is a difficult beast that is not cured rather it is managed. We all hope Mitch learns to manage his depression so as he never falls to the depth of despair he did earlier this year. Getting professional help and reliving himself of the pressure of AFL football while he heals was the best thing he could have done. Mitch has let the MFC know that he still harbours the desire to play AFL football in fact he never ruled it out, but he is under no illusion of how far he must come to get back to an AFL level and that he may for both physical and mental reasons never make it. Mitch has asked Misson to put him on long term program to condition his body back for a possible return to football at some level. Mitch has begun this training. It is a slow conditioning 12 month program. If things are going well both physically and mentally Mitch will consider making himself available for a rookie list position at the end of the year. However, he may decide he would prefer no pressure and decide to play local football next season. He may be unable to condition his body, he may relapse into depression in which case his retirement is permanent. Only one thing is certain, if he does decide to pursue AFL ambitions again it will only be for the MFC. He will not be returning to WA, he does not want to play for any other club.

"We will not be bullied." Paul Little Funny how often you hear a bully complaining about bullying when someone challenges them. Taking ASADA to the Federal Court and blaming everyone but themselves sounds like the behavior of a trapped bully to me.

I agree that it's bad for football and it was thus since the day in 2011/12 that James Hird together with Stephen Dank decided to embark on the programme. It got dramatically worse on 7 February, 2013, deteriorated with the decision to conduct a joint AFL/ASADA investigation and then became a disaster for the code when control of the Essendon Football Club landed in Little's hands. He is now taking that club into doomsday scenario. Essendon's posturing in this instance has the potential of killing the club and whilst I will feel bad for their supporters and pity for their players, I won't cry a single tear for them.

I can understand why that is done, making the athlete ultimately responsible. But the EFC situation demonstrates to me why the player is not the one in the best position to make the decision. Jackson Merrett and Elliott Kavanagh were Essendon's first two picks in the 2011 ND. They were 18. They walk into a club with Hird as coach, Bomber as assistant and Bruce Reid as a 40 year sports medical practitioner. During the PS they are asked to sign a document and undergo a "supplements" program. Watson's doing it, Fletcher's doing it, Hirdy and the Doc say it's fine and Corcoran, who ran Athletic's Australia and as such was very aware and involved in the drug situation give it the big tick. So they do it. If people can't see they've been duped then I feel for them. Caro's article is spot on. Guilty people are escaping and the players are taking the fall. They should take their 6 months, sue the club and fight to have the instigators of all of this held to account. Very sad for the players.

Its simply implausible the players didn't know what was happening. Yes, they put faith in club leaders that all was above board but the secret nature of this is a massive flashing red light. Hird - Hey guys we are going on this new cutting edge program. All clubs are doing it. We are going to do it better. you have to sign a waiver but you can't tell anyone this is a black ops program. We have to go across the road to a clinic because we can't be seen at the club doing this shite. Doc Reid has given it the all clear so you'll be OK. Bomber did it at geelong and look at them. They are all doing it. You want a flag don't you?? Course you do. Hey you dont think I am this good looking by genetics do you?? Sign here.

I reckon Out Terlich, JKH, Gawn In Kent, McKenzie, Riley Salem as Sub

there was a particular bomber who had stress fractures in his foot who missed about 12 months in about 2004.......i think his name was herd or heard. dont remember really

I don't blame him I like them myself I wish I could get someone to pay me a million to sit in France and eat croissant

Not sure why everyone has such hate for Sylvia. Yes he never achieved his potential but gee the hate some people are expressing here amazes me. His case is free agency in motion. We need to all get used to free agency players swapping clubs it will be an every increasing phenomena in the future. Are we all going to show the same hate if Frawley leaves this year?

RtG the less I hear from him the better. With a small amount of luck he will stay in France for the next decade. I would donate $20 in a fund to keep him there.

He missed playing with Cook and Couch

To run flat out at high speed and be able to kick long low and hard, is rare. Dont see it much. For a whole team to be suddenly able to do it after a pre-season was suspicious. It stuck out like the proverbial. Im happy to believe the players, the doctors, the management and the coaches were all thinking the same thought. "How goods this!".

Be careful what you wish for it may have the opposite effect and spur them on. I would much prefer to be playing them next week.

the sad day for football was when the likes of Hird and his henchment set out to rort the game. Today is a GOOD day for football as it seeks to punish those who disregard the health of some and the best interests of the many. F**K essendon

This whole episode is sad. Sad day for football.

Not sure I get the collective mentality of all players uniting to try and fight this. Everyone and their pet cat knows they've been duped by Hird and his regime of drug-injecting buffoons. Come clean, sue the hell out of him, and show some goddamn integrity. None of these players will come out of this looking particularly ethical by sticking their fingers in their ears going "la, la, la, you've got no evidence to prove we did this!" If my employer betrayed my trust and confidence so grievously, I'd have zero allegiance to them whatsoever. I'd be trying to salvage my professional career using any means possible and seeking every legal avenue to do it. Why wait until the [censored] hits the fan with infraction notices and you've already had your name tainted for life?

Spot on, mate. The problem is, Roos and the FD should have known this was going to happen. It's what I was saying all last week. Maybe they rolled the dice and it backfired? Who knows, but I agree, he certainly should have been subbed at half time.

Most of Essendon is going to wake up to Friday the 13th. LOL

They just don't know the difference in meaning between 'continue' and 'start'.

Typical stance by Robbo " Bombers must fight " This guy is im affraid an absolute dropkick. Robbo...theres no injustice mate they brought it on themselves. They are the cause. Essendon aren't being unjustly persecuted they are being held accountable and taken to task. Only an idiot couldn't see that....oh...

Late change for Essendon. Gullibility out Culpability in

I hope he does really well. If he plays poorly it means he was likely a dud all along. If he plays well then we were just as much fault in his failure as he was. He traded himself for Vince. That sounds like a fair deal to me and all you can ask of anyone who leaves your club is that they don't leave for nothing. Still an exciting player to watch, just hope he stinks it up against us.

Absolute rubbish.Averaging 22 disposals 1 less then Tyson and 5 tackles a game this year which is 3 more then his mate. Would compliment our young impressive midfield just perfectly.

No they couldn't. We use the NEXT available pick. If we have picks 9 and 27 to be forced to use pick 9 one of the first 8 teams have to nominate him. If we don't want to spend pick 9 then the bidding team must take him. If pick 10 nominates him we can get him for pick 27.

That and Vince has desire to be at every contest he can possibly be at. Repeat efforts whether offensively or defensively.

... and there is good journalism and there is bad journalism. A few years ago I was privileged to be a function where the keynote speaker was Carl Bernstein of Bernstein & Woodward/Watergate fame. During question time he was asked what he thought of today's breed of journalists and he was critical of exactly the type of journalism that Wilson practices at the Age - pieces that combine reportage (often but not always accurate) with the journo's own opinion (but not necessarily branded as "opinion pieces"). Bernstein was highly critical of that practice. Of course, he was speaking mainly of the political arena and that phenomenon was already widespread by then. Unfortunately, it’s progressed on to sports reporting and in my view, this has been a deliberate progression in the case of the Age and its chief football writer as it descended into tabloid journalism when its circulation began plummeting. Wilson is good at what she does but she’s also become exactly what Bernstein was critical about when he spoke that night. After question time, I spoke with him briefly and asked him when he first knew he was onto something with the Watergate break in story and he replied that it was when he started getting criticism and agitated reactions from his detractors, particularly unwarranted personal attacks. That was what made him more determined than ever to dig deeper.