Coach Alastair Clarkson IV - HFC Racism Investigation Discussion

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giantroo said:
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If that happens it will be on like Donkey Kong.

It may also jeopardise any AHRC hearings as the head of the AHRC can reject to examine claims.

Lawyerly types generally take a very dim view of people trying to fight their legal battles in the media.

I say bring it on!
 

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Devington said:
Yesterday was probably a gut punch for Clarko even if it was a "good" day, and I think his only response being from his manager and directed at the Club rather than the league speaks to that.

8 months of this s**t hanging over him, constricted by the AFL's processes, only for the end result being the AFL indemnifying themselves and telling everyone else to have fun suing each other. The sport he has invested his life in just kicked him in the nuts and acts like the coaches should thank them for not just sacrificing them at the alter.
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succinct but accurate
 
Devington said:
lol.

1: Why is Egan still involved in anything.
2: If the player was so interested in publicly taking it up to hawthorn and the AFL why did he just agree to keep the AFL out of it?
Click to expand...
Reckon after months of to and fro the AFL said. Look guys, for us to do anything you need to present evidence and go to court? But if there isn’t any chance of that happening, we legally can’t do anything our hands are tied with our involvement this investigation?
 
LB2Snake said:
With you on this Dev. AFL have just looked after AFL.
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This.

All the people saying "What else could the AFL do here?" are incredibly naive. They're basically throwing the most decorated coach of his generation to the wolves in order to protect their brand.

This lot would sell their own grandmother, lease her back (for a nominal rent) and sell her again if they thought it would play well from an "optics" perspective. F***ing scumbags.
 
 
 

Hawthorn board opted not to play a part in AFL’s ‘imperfect resolution’ to racism investigation​

The Hawthorn board rejected the AFL’s request to contribute towards a compensation fund for First Nations families, as the legal costs of the saga are revealed.

Mark Robinson, Michael Warner and Lauren Wood

2 min read
May 31, 2023 - 7:44PM
News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom



The AFL has ended its investigation into the historic allegations of racism at the Hawthorn Football Club with no adverse findings made against Alastair Clarkson, Chris Fagan, or Jason Burt. The sporting body concluded legal action can no longer be taken against the AFL. The six complainants could still take legal action against Clarkson, Fagan and Burt despite the resolution showing no adverse findings…



The Hawthorn board rejected an AFL request to contribute towards a compensation fund for First Nations families embroiled in footy’s racism saga.

As recently as Friday night, the league believed it had pulled off a deal that would have seen the Hawks pay a “substantial sum” into a financial settlement fund.
But Hawthorn opted not to play a part in the “imperfect resolution” to the eight-month probe unveiled by league boss Gillon McLachlan on Tuesday night.
The Hawks board said no because of concerns it could open the way for legal action from all affected parties.

McLachlan was determined to resolve the racism issue and wind up the AFL’s independent investigation panel before jetting out for a celebrity wedding in Europe this weekend.

The league boss did not rule out the possibility of heavy sanctions being slapped on Hawthorn when announcing a conclusion to the investigation.

A support person for one of the families involved said increased pressure was applied on Monday to play ball with the AFL.

An estimated $2 million has been spent by all parties on legal fees since the saga erupted in Grand Final week last year.


The author of the Hawks racism report, Phil Egan, “categorically” denied being the source of the leak to the ABC.
Egan told Channel 7 it defied logic how the AFL’s independent investigation had finished with “no findings at all”.

“It sort of asks the question – what did they do for the eight months?” Egan said.

It comes as the lawyer for four of the families confirmed his clients will take their case to the Human Rights Commission.

Leon Zwier, who has acted for the families from the outset, told the Herald Sun: ‘’Our clients are committed to running the human rights Commission claim against the Hawthorn Football Club, Alastair Clarkson, Chris Fagan and Jason Burt.

Zwier will have further meetings with the families before a date is set to launch proceedings.

The AFL on Tuesday acknowledged the ‘’hurt pain and anguish’’ suffered by the families when they were at Hawthorn.

It can be revealed neither the families nor Clarkson, Fagan or Burt spoke to the AFL’s independent investigation, written testimony from the families was delivered to the panel.

Despite assurances from the AFL that the report produced by the independent panel would be made public as a matter of transparency, the panel’s work remains incomplete and no report will be produced “based on the information they have been provided to date”.

All three men have maintained their innocence throughout the saga.

The deal’s summation that “no adverse findings” were discovered against the trio was the result of no findings being reached either way before the matter was resolved between the parties.

In order to make a finding, the panel – which was still gathering evidence as of Tuesday – would have required all evidence to be considered.

A source close to the proceedings described the final few weeks as “messy”, with the families involved now set to take their case to the Australian Human Rights Commission in the wake of the deal McLachlan described as an “imperfect resolution”.

Lawyers representing Amy* – the partner of a First Nations player who alleges she was pressured by club figures to have an abortion – wrote on Wednesday that “the more accurate statement would be that no findings have been made at all”.

HAWKS ENDING EXPLAINED​

Why did the investigation end?
An agreement was reached between the AFL and the First Nations families to end the investigation.
What was the outcome of the independent panel’s investigation?
The panel made no findings because the investigation was not finished. Its work was ongoing until it was dissolved by the league on Tuesday.
The AFL said in its statement “no adverse findings have been made in the independent Investigation against any of the individuals against whom allegations have been made”.
There is no investigation report, with the matter resolved after the agreement between the AFL and the families.
What did everyone agree to?
The AFL and the families involved agreed to no action being taken against the league, and that the independent investigation panel process would be ended. The AFL also acknowledged the “hurt, pain and anguish” following the parties’ time at Hawthorn.
What now for Alastair Clarkson, Chris Fagan, Jason Burt?
Clarkson, Fagan and Burt have all denied any wrongdoing and have maintained their innocence since day one of the scandal. The three could yet elect to pursue legal avenues including defamation.
Clarkson remains on leave from North Melbourne, citing the emotional toll of the long-running saga.
What now for the First Nations families involved in the investigation?
The four families who were involved in the investigation – a total of six complainants – now intend to take their case to the Australian Human Rights Commission – a process that could take in the vicinity of two years.
What about the other allegations?
A number of First Nations families including Zac* and Kylie* — who have detailed harrowing allegations of family separation and a lost pregnancy — and Amy*, who alleged she was pressured to have an abortion by Clarkson, elected not to partake in the AFL’s investigation process. They could now pursue civil action against the individuals or the club, should they wish.
What about the Hawks?
The AFL has not ruled out taking action against Hawthorn for its bungled review. It could be a financial penalty, draft picks or even competition points under AFL rules like those relating to ‘conduct unbecoming’ and ‘bringing the game into disrepute’. The league’s general counsel and AFL commission is considering the matter.
WorkSafe
WorkSafe Victoria — which revealed in October that it was looking into allegations of discrimination at the club — confirmed on Wednesday that its investigation into Hawthorn remains ongoing.
 

No swift North Melbourne return for Clarkson despite end of AFL inquiry

The end of the AFL’s racism inquiry into allegations by former Hawthorn players and families will not result in the coach making a quick return to North Melbourne.
www.theage.com.au


He said the families were not seeking a financial payout. There was also no financial compensation sought or received as part of resolving the AFL inquiry.

Marque Lawyers managing partner Michael Bradley, who is representing one of the members of a family involved in the Hawthorn review, said the AFL had achieved nothing in its settlement with those who agreed to participate in the investigation process.

Players and partners known by pseudonyms Ian, Liam and Jacqui made submissions to the AFL inquiry, but those with the pseudonyms of Zac and Kylie and Amy did not, their legal representatives questioning the investigating panel’s independence.

The moves came as the AFL turned its focus from closing the inquiry led by Bernard Quinn KC to an investigation of Hawthorn’s role in the handling of the racism case.

The AFL’s investigation of Hawthorn for the way it managed the matter prompted Hawks president Andy Gowers to say he would be “extremely disappointed” if the league sought to impose sanctions on the club. He would not rule out Hawthorn taking their own legal action if the league sought to impose penalties that they considered unfair.

Gowers stressed that the club was well intended when it commissioned Phil Egan to conduct a welfare check of players and eventually received a cultural safety report including untested allegations of serious incidents.
 

Former Hawthorn welfare manager drops bomb on racism saga

Sam Edmund has the latest.
www.sen.com.au





Former Hawthorn welfare manager Jason Burt has dropped a bombshell on the club’s racism saga, claiming one family at the centre of the case aren’t indigenous Australians.

Burt, along with former Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson and then-football boss Chris Fagan, were this week exonerated by an independent investigation and cleared of all charges under AFL rules.

But legal counsel acting for the families, Leon Zwier, has confirmed the group will pursue a claim through the human rights commission against the former Hawks trio.

However, in a post to his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts on Wednesday night, Burt said Hawthorn’s “so-called welfare check” was flawed.

“The Binmada “report” commissioned by Hawthorn and leaked to the media was a disgrace. Hawthorn’s appointment of Phil Egan to conduct it was the first example of poor governance by Hawthorn Football Club in this process,” Burt wrote.

“I also think it’s important to clarify that “Zac” and “Kylie”, who continue to make allegations to the media, are not indigenous Australians.”

Hawthorn has repeatedly claimed its findings stemmed from a welfare check on its past First Nations players and staff.

Hawks president Andy Gowers said on Wednesday: “We simply wanted to check in on the wellbeing of past First Nations players and staff to see if they needed any extra support. The club provided that report to AFL Integrity, not only because we are required to do so, but it was also the appropriate avenue to have the allegations tested and investigated.”

Burt said it “instead presented a selection of unproven and unreliable grievances and allegations which were not checked with me or many other indigenous and non-indigenous players.”

“The leaking of it to the media by whoever did it, was even worse. Yet within this process, it has been heartening to review the documents and interviews shared by all past players and officials (many indigenous) who speak a different truth about how the Hawthorn Football Club operated in the same time as these vile allegations. The AFL could not speak this truth yesterday.

“The Independent Panel had been provided with thousands of documents from Hawthorn for review. Moreover, I also provided the AFL with detailed information which I believed demonstrated our innocence, and is now supported by this finding, of the awful allegations that have been made by the complainants and leaked to the media without any opportunity to respond. Chris, Alastair and I were refused access to the Hawthorn documents until last week.
“This is a case of four men (former players) that spent time at Hawthorn who all needed substantial guidance, support and care. This is what they, and so many other players, received from many people over their time at Hawthorn, including from Alastair, Chris and myself. All four former players have spent time in my house, with my family as part of the club’s method of helping each to resolve their issues. Their time at Hawthorn was maximised because of the on and off field support offered to each.

“If the outcome of this 'imperfect resolution' appeases the complainants, then I wish them well. Unfortunately, this outcome has done little to diminish the anguish and hurt experienced by my family throughout this ordeal and most likely well into the future.

“Few people would appreciate the path Alastair, Chris and I have walked for the past eight months under the weight of these grave and false allegations. I am glad that the allegations have finally been dismissed by the AFL and the independent panel and look forward to the opportunity to reveal the truth in any further proceedings.”

Burt declined to comment further on Wednesday night.
 

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giantroo said:

Former Hawthorn welfare manager drops bomb on racism saga

Sam Edmund has the latest.
www.sen.com.au





Former Hawthorn welfare manager Jason Burt has dropped a bombshell on the club’s racism saga, claiming one family at the centre of the case aren’t indigenous Australians.

Burt, along with former Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson and then-football boss Chris Fagan, were this week exonerated by an independent investigation and cleared of all charges under AFL rules.

But legal counsel acting for the families, Leon Zwier, has confirmed the group will pursue a claim through the human rights commission against the former Hawks trio.

However, in a post to his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts on Wednesday night, Burt said Hawthorn’s “so-called welfare check” was flawed.

“The Binmada “report” commissioned by Hawthorn and leaked to the media was a disgrace. Hawthorn’s appointment of Phil Egan to conduct it was the first example of poor governance by Hawthorn Football Club in this process,” Burt wrote.

“I also think it’s important to clarify that “Zac” and “Kylie”, who continue to make allegations to the media, are not indigenous Australians.”

Hawthorn has repeatedly claimed its findings stemmed from a welfare check on its past First Nations players and staff.

Hawks president Andy Gowers said on Wednesday: “We simply wanted to check in on the wellbeing of past First Nations players and staff to see if they needed any extra support. The club provided that report to AFL Integrity, not only because we are required to do so, but it was also the appropriate avenue to have the allegations tested and investigated.”

Burt said it “instead presented a selection of unproven and unreliable grievances and allegations which were not checked with me or many other indigenous and non-indigenous players.”

“The leaking of it to the media by whoever did it, was even worse. Yet within this process, it has been heartening to review the documents and interviews shared by all past players and officials (many indigenous) who speak a different truth about how the Hawthorn Football Club operated in the same time as these vile allegations. The AFL could not speak this truth yesterday.

“The Independent Panel had been provided with thousands of documents from Hawthorn for review. Moreover, I also provided the AFL with detailed information which I believed demonstrated our innocence, and is now supported by this finding, of the awful allegations that have been made by the complainants and leaked to the media without any opportunity to respond. Chris, Alastair and I were refused access to the Hawthorn documents until last week.
“This is a case of four men (former players) that spent time at Hawthorn who all needed substantial guidance, support and care. This is what they, and so many other players, received from many people over their time at Hawthorn, including from Alastair, Chris and myself. All four former players have spent time in my house, with my family as part of the club’s method of helping each to resolve their issues. Their time at Hawthorn was maximised because of the on and off field support offered to each.

“If the outcome of this 'imperfect resolution' appeases the complainants, then I wish them well. Unfortunately, this outcome has done little to diminish the anguish and hurt experienced by my family throughout this ordeal and most likely well into the future.

“Few people would appreciate the path Alastair, Chris and I have walked for the past eight months under the weight of these grave and false allegations. I am glad that the allegations have finally been dismissed by the AFL and the independent panel and look forward to the opportunity to reveal the truth in any further proceedings.”

Burt declined to comment further on Wednesday night.
Click to expand...
My goodness, he is not holding back.
 
giantroo said:

Former Hawthorn welfare manager drops bomb on racism saga

Sam Edmund has the latest.
www.sen.com.au





Former Hawthorn welfare manager Jason Burt has dropped a bombshell on the club’s racism saga, claiming one family at the centre of the case aren’t indigenous Australians.

Burt, along with former Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson and then-football boss Chris Fagan, were this week exonerated by an independent investigation and cleared of all charges under AFL rules.

But legal counsel acting for the families, Leon Zwier, has confirmed the group will pursue a claim through the human rights commission against the former Hawks trio.

However, in a post to his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts on Wednesday night, Burt said Hawthorn’s “so-called welfare check” was flawed.

“The Binmada “report” commissioned by Hawthorn and leaked to the media was a disgrace. Hawthorn’s appointment of Phil Egan to conduct it was the first example of poor governance by Hawthorn Football Club in this process,” Burt wrote.

“I also think it’s important to clarify that “Zac” and “Kylie”, who continue to make allegations to the media, are not indigenous Australians.”

Hawthorn has repeatedly claimed its findings stemmed from a welfare check on its past First Nations players and staff.

Hawks president Andy Gowers said on Wednesday: “We simply wanted to check in on the wellbeing of past First Nations players and staff to see if they needed any extra support. The club provided that report to AFL Integrity, not only because we are required to do so, but it was also the appropriate avenue to have the allegations tested and investigated.”

Burt said it “instead presented a selection of unproven and unreliable grievances and allegations which were not checked with me or many other indigenous and non-indigenous players.”

“The leaking of it to the media by whoever did it, was even worse. Yet within this process, it has been heartening to review the documents and interviews shared by all past players and officials (many indigenous) who speak a different truth about how the Hawthorn Football Club operated in the same time as these vile allegations. The AFL could not speak this truth yesterday.

“The Independent Panel had been provided with thousands of documents from Hawthorn for review. Moreover, I also provided the AFL with detailed information which I believed demonstrated our innocence, and is now supported by this finding, of the awful allegations that have been made by the complainants and leaked to the media without any opportunity to respond. Chris, Alastair and I were refused access to the Hawthorn documents until last week.
“This is a case of four men (former players) that spent time at Hawthorn who all needed substantial guidance, support and care. This is what they, and so many other players, received from many people over their time at Hawthorn, including from Alastair, Chris and myself. All four former players have spent time in my house, with my family as part of the club’s method of helping each to resolve their issues. Their time at Hawthorn was maximised because of the on and off field support offered to each.

“If the outcome of this 'imperfect resolution' appeases the complainants, then I wish them well. Unfortunately, this outcome has done little to diminish the anguish and hurt experienced by my family throughout this ordeal and most likely well into the future.

“Few people would appreciate the path Alastair, Chris and I have walked for the past eight months under the weight of these grave and false allegations. I am glad that the allegations have finally been dismissed by the AFL and the independent panel and look forward to the opportunity to reveal the truth in any further proceedings.”

Burt declined to comment further on Wednesday nig
Click to expand...
giantroo said:
Click to expand...

Post no longer available giantroo. I assume it was burts post?
Geez hawks are a mess, and thanks for your posts coming thick and fast for us mortals who dont have access to these stories. Much appreciated as always.
 
susurrar said:
savage post by burt, but no bombshell there for anyone who has been following this thread from very very early days. will be interesting to see how this goes down.
Click to expand...
I see what you did there.

Not that big of a bombshell though. IDK. Still First Nations, just not our nation.
 
Last edited:
One thing I forgot to post last night. AFL didn't/couldn't find them guilty of any breaches. If you read the full press release they list all the changes they want to introduce to prevent this from happening again. One of them stands out to me because I harped on about it when this all started.

h) Player family engagement – establish a rules of engagement document to guide this work to establish some basic standards and principles to be observed and committed to.
Click to expand...

They need to go further though, it shouldn't just be player family guidelines, but how far the coaches/staff can go in general with managing player's lives.

Dane Swan being told to move out and buy a house.
Forcing Dusty to move out from his best mate because it was dragging him down.

etc etc
 
What exactly id Robbo trying to say at the end of that clip about the Doc?

Is he trying to say that she shouldn't be privy to the documents etc? His current employer shouldn't be made aware of important information?
 
 
Devington said:
One thing I forgot to post last night. AFL didn't/couldn't find them guilty of any breaches. If you read the full press release they list all the changes they want to introduce to prevent this from happening again. One of them stands out to me because I harped on about it when this all started.



They need to go further though, it shouldn't just be player family guidelines, but how far the coaches/staff can go in general with managing player's lives.

Dane Swan being told to move out and buy a house.
Forcing Dusty to move out from his best mate because it was dragging him down.

etc etc
Click to expand...

Dusty is a First Nations person, isn't he? I wonder if he thought it was racist when they forced him to cut ties with his mate.

I'm being facetious, of course. Getting Connors out of his life was the best thing that happened to him. Completely turned his career around. I'm sure he's grateful for the strong guidance he received.
 
StrokerAce said:
Didn’t Russell Jackson say in his article the other day that Zac and Kylie were Indigenous?
Click to expand...
Original article said First Nations and ‘Zac’ is of First Nations origins, just not Australia First Nations. But it’s a bit of a cop out as it’s still implied ‘Zac’ is an Indigenous Australian.
 

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