North Melbourne President Dr Sonja Hood has issued the following statement to members and supporters regarding serious allegations against player Tarryn Thomas.
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“In light of the serious and confronting allegations against Tarryn Thomas that surfaced in the media on Tuesday night, it was important that I write to you this morning to outline the club’s past and present actions on these matters.
“We take any allegation of threats of violence against women extremely seriously. Respect of all people is fundamental to our club values.
“The club was aware of formal allegations made against Tarryn during 2022 that were investigated by the AFL’s Integrity Unit. Tarryn and the club co-operated fully with those investigations.
“The advice provided by the AFL following these incidents was that Tarryn should undertake training and education to deal with his behavioural issues.
“The club has since built a significant and multi-layered program which includes respectful relationships education, working with psychologists, mentoring, peer support and community outreach for Tarryn to complete so he can meet North Melbourne’s values and community expectations. He has started work on this program and we’ll continue to support Tarryn as he completes this work.
“Should any further investigation arise from new information passed on to the AFL or the police, the club and Tarryn will co-operate fully, as we did in the wake of those initial allegations.
“It’s also important to acknowledge that Tarryn is still to face a matter before the courts and as such we won’t be making any comment about that particular case.
“Subject to any further investigations, the club will await the outcome of the court proceedings before confirming our next course of action.
“Finally, I know that this issue is challenging and confronting, and the club acknowledges the impact people will be feeling across the community by reading the media today. We are committed to supporting our people through this time and I want to reiterate that our whole club understands the significance of this matter.”
