News Cyril and Shannyn Rioli speak to Caro - link to club statement in page 8

[Hawthorn23]

Some further developments to the story in the video below:

Mod edit: it’s a must watch for anyone reading this thread.

 

[StCicatriz]

what a thread. after reading it there's still a very small minority of supporters who still don't get it.

but the heart warming thing is the overwhelming majority of hawthorn supporters on here (the ones that matter) get it, their first reaction wasn't to debate if what was said was right or wrong, the first priority/thought/concern was with how Rioli and his family felt.

that's all that matters here: Rioli.

to read Hawthorn supporters say they're upset because one of the players they've loved watching play for their club is hurt show's Hawthorn supporters really do care for their own. they get it! that's the culture you want in your supporter base. one that has a strong connection to it's players who have represented the jumper so much so they genuinely care about their well being. i'd be concerned if the majority of the posts were dismissive of Rioli because he's no longer playing or in the jumper.

the overwhelming response of concern for rioli and making it better, tells me that no matter what mistakes or incidents have occurred you will find a way to make this right. it will take time, but i'm confident it will get better.

last thing i'd say is all clubs tend to go through these periods of having to address misgivings in the past. that doesn't mean you're supporting a bad club and it certainly is not a reflection of hawthorn supporters. i think that only happens when you're supporter base isn't demanding change or improvement to fix the misgivings, which clearly isn't the case here. my club has gone through a number of these issues. for example the treatment of robbie muir, but more recently the attitudes towards the general public during the "saints bubble" that produced some pretty shitty behavior. it took us a while to really turn that around but i think the catalyst for change was an overwhelming demand from supporters that "Enough was enough" and we "had to do better". Matt Finnis really turned that around for us but it took time. we are not squeaky clean either, we still have many things we are working on to improve.

give it time and i'm confident you'll come out the otherside of this an even stronger and better run club.

 

[QuietB]

I hope you guys don't mind me coming onto the board but if what Caro said is right about how Rioli felt about Goodes being booed in our game against you guys in 2015 I think in hindsight it would have been a super powerful message if all the indigenous players from both clubs refused to take the field in the second half.

I think this is saddest part. There is a huge pile on on Hawthorn at the moment (deservedly) but no one stood up at the time and actually did something substantial to support Goodes.

Hawthorn failed to stand up. But so did the AFL. So did Carlton. So did Collingwood. So did West Coast.

The whole Goodes saga is a pretty big blight on the AFL. Two out and out superstars from that era, Goodes and Rioli are currently lost to the AFL only to appease a bunch of Anglo supporters who refuse to accept that racism played a part.

The way that the Collingwood incident with the child got washed over, Eddie's King Kong joke got washed over, the booing got washed over is a blight on the AFL.

And Goodes is a superstar who deserves a lot more respect than he gets.

And for those who think they booed him cause he was dirty, then start booing Sam Mitchell. Because he was dirtier.

 

[hk89]

Absolutely.

Don't treat it like a footnote, or just another event in Hawthorn's busy week, Jeff.

It needed to be addressed completely seperately.

Yup. I hope the club has learnt more out of this than Kennett has, because the "footnote" and the language undertones strongly suggest to me Kennett still hasn't got the slightest clue how we ended up here.

EDIT: And if the club doesn't want to get rid of Kennett this minute because they don't want to make it look like a knee-jerk reaction, they should at least make sure nothing official comes out from Kennett without being vetted by someone that does have a clue. IMO that kind of letter pushes Rioli further away from us.

 

[StCicatriz]

I think this is saddest part. There is a huge pile on on Hawthorn at the moment (deservedly) but no one stood up at the time and actually did something substantial to support Goodes.

Hawthorn failed to stand up. But so did the AFL. So did Carlton. So did Collingwood. So did West Coast.

The whole Goodes saga is a pretty big blight on the AFL. Two out and out superstars from that era, Goodes and Rioli are currently lost to the AFL only to appease a bunch of Anglo supporters who refuse to accept that racism played a part.

The way that the Collingwood incident with the child got washed over, Eddie's King Kong joke got washed over, the booing got washed over is a blight on the AFL.

And Goodes is a superstar who deserves a lot more respect than he gets.

And for those who think they booed him cause he was dirty, then start booing Sam Mitchell. Because he was dirtier.

you are 100% correct.

i think its very unfair for anyone to expect the indigenous players to stand up to tens of thousands of supporters acting the way they did. as eddie betts said he wasn't confident enough to address it. Goodes tried but was hounded out of the game. if the biggest indigenous star of the comp couldn't do it, how could anyone else?

i mean people really need to be honest with themselves here, what would they have done? I doubt they would do anything after copping that from packed stadiums. you're basically powerless to do anything. remembering you're already under enormous scrutiny as a player.

the people that had power and the ones who are tasked with confronting these issues are the heads of the various bodies. that's why they get paid the big $$$ because they're the public image of the game.

the AFL should have publicly supported Goodes. that's on the CEO and Chairman alongside the Presidents and CEO's of the football clubs.

a unified approach using all 18 club presidents/ceos/coaches and captains along side the AFL chairman and CEO would have stopped this in it's tracks and would have gone along way to help healing the hurt Goodes faced. instead they, like everyone else got complacent/scared/sheepish and just choose to ignore it and let it run its course. the outcome from that was hurt feelings, not only for Goodes but also to other indigenous stakeholders, be it past or present players/administrators or fans.

i think the AFL knows this now, hence the unified approach from all clubs now, using things like kneeling or meeting in the center circle. its a powerful image that works, it tells everyone no one in the AFL is tolerating this behavior. when you see your club, on board, offering support to a rival club, fans will fall inline on mass and therefore offer support to those at another club.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

This is a very sorry episode that is both shameful historically and embarrassing in its current handling. That the club’s spineless board continues to do nothing about it is further evidence of why the lot of them need to go. The club’s leadership is a joke and the ongoing brand damage in having Kennett at the helm in 2022 is terrible.

I am finding it very difficult to deal with the fact that so much of the response and handling of this is made a lot easier if Kennett simply stands aside 2 months before it’s been planned for him to do so anyway, yet seemingly no one is asking him to step aside…and of course he’s no chance of doing it himself.

It’s embarassing.

 

[Sixpence]

I am finding it very difficult to deal with the fact that so much of the response and ha doing of this is made a lot easier if Kennett simply stands aside 2 months before it’s been planned for him to do so, yet seemingly no one is asking him to do so…and of course yes no chance of doing it himself.

It’s embarassing.

That was the most disappointing thing about his email to members, it didn't include a comment on his resignation. The stubborn prick can't read the room, no-one wants him there. There's no quick fix to all of this, but giving him the boot is an obvious start!

 

[cryptor]

That was the most disappointing thing about his email to members, it didn't include a comment on his resignation. The stubborn prick can't read the room, no-one wants him there. There's no quick fix to all of this, but giving him the boot is an obvious start!

Change the locks over the weekend and have IT remove him from the system. #vivalarevolution

 

[Brishawk]

Change the locks over the weekend and have IT remove him from the system. #vivalarevolution

 

[MrPremiership]

So, in particular to the 2013 incident:

Lewis knew nothing
Hodge knew nothing
Mitchell knew nothing
Burgoyne knew nothing


Not sure how I feel about the "ignorance" of our leaders

 

[Mitchell Madness]

So, in particular to the 2013 incident:

Lewis knew nothing
Hodge knew nothing
Mitchell knew nothing
Burgoyne knew nothing


Not sure how I feel about the "ignorance" of our leaders

Burgoyne just said it happened out of season in Bali.
If the players don't bring it to the club, the club can't know

 

[MrPremiership]

Burgoyne just said it happened out of season in Bali.
If the players don't bring it to the club, the club can't know

That's a concern. That incidents like this happen and no one says anything to leaders.

What does that say about the culture you have in the organisation?

 

[Mitchell Madness]

That's a concern. That incidents like this happen and no one says anything to leaders.

What does that say about the culture you have in the organisation?

Or, it was sorted out like it should have been between adults, and noone thought anything else of it?
I'm sure you've had altercations outside of work with colleagues. Do you go to the boss, or do you sort it out, and maintain a professional relationship?

 

[Matilda05]

Didn't Burgers say that while he wasn't there, it was dealt with at the time (overseas in Bali) maybe that's why it wasn't investigated further?

 

[MrPremiership]

Or, it was sorted out like it should have been between adults, and noone thought anything else of it?
I'm sure you've had altercations outside of work with colleagues. Do you go to the boss, or do you sort it out, and maintain a professional relationship?

An incident like that should have at least been reported back to the leadership group, even for an FYI if it was settled in Bali.

 

[TylerDurden]

Knew nothing about it.

I find this all baffling.

Could Caro be adding Mayo to this??

 

[rjslcM]

So, in particular to the 2013 incident:

Lewis knew nothing
Hodge knew nothing
Mitchell knew nothing
Burgoyne knew nothing


Not sure how I feel about the "ignorance" of our leaders

Did I misinterpret Lewis on 360?

I thought he said that he was there with them in Bali at the time.

He was part of the leadership group in 2013.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

So a member of the leadership group sorted this out in that moment, yet so far no one in the leadership group knew about the incident.

Im a little confused.

 

[TylerDurden]

So a member of the leadership group sorted this out in that moment, yet so far no one in the leadership group knew about the incident.

Im a little confused.

Something doesn't add up here mate.
It gets more bizarre by the day.

 

[Nastyfish]

So a member of the leadership group sorted this out in that moment, yet so far no one in the leadership group knew about the incident.

Im a little confused.

He said it wasn’t brought to the leadership group, but that he (a member of the group) seems to have individually had a role in trying to sort it. On face value they saw that the issues were resolved at the time and didn’t need to be escalated or shared more widely. Seems like very good intentions, but we now see that it wasn’t good enough, as Burgoyne highlighted. In 2021 walker got a long ban … seems that we are looking at 2013 based on 2022 standards, which is fair enough, since higher standards are required.

 

[killerspud]

I am finding it very difficult to deal with the fact that so much of the response and handling of this is made a lot easier if Kennett simply stands aside 2 months before it’s been planned for him to do so anyway, yet seemingly no one is asking him to step aside…and of course he’s no chance of doing it himself.

It’s embarassing.

Word I am getting from both sides is that not only will he not go on June 30th BUT he will hang around at least until the end of the year and there's every chance that there isn't a clear successor which means that he will stay in place. This is going to drag on.

 

[mcnulty]

Wilson:

“In the days that followed the exchange between Shannyn and a man she barely knew, her husband Cyril missed training and a crisis developed with a number of top-level club meetings involving Kennett, football boss Graham Wright, coach Alastair Clarkson, Rioli’s manager Adam Ramanauskas

Adam Ramanauskas

Age

43

Ht

184cm

Wt

84kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

15.0

4star

K

9.6

4star

HB

5.3

4star

M

4.1

4star

T

1.8

4star

No current season stats available

D

8.4

3star

K

5.4

2star

HB

3.0

3star

M

2.4

3star

T

1.6

4star

and teammate Shaun Burgoyne among others”

Someone’s lying.

 

[Bugs1977]

That's a concern. That incidents like this happen and no one says anything to leaders.

What does that say about the culture you have in the organisation?

That would’ve been a pretty daunting thing to inform the leadership group about which tells you that it really should have been and handled correctly. Being on an end of season trip I’m not saying it happened this way but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was said on a belly full of alcohol and said without thinking with a racial slur let slip which would still be no excuse.

Anyways what really should’ve been happened is the leadership group should’ve been notified and then at the start of preseason once everyone returned the club the leadership group should’ve stood in front of the whole team, coaches and staff members and acknowledged that there was an incident on the end of season trip where a racist comment was said by one of players to another. Reiterate that mediation was done / witnessed by one of the senior players with both that were involved in the incident and then reinforce that kind of behaviour will not be tolerated at the Hawthorn Football Club and that the player that said it will be participating in an awareness program to educate him and that anyone else that would like to participate could do so as well.

Yes it sounds simple in hindsight but in my opinion this incident only occurred 9 years ago which really isn’t that long ago and to tell you the truth that’s really no an excuse.

 

[Fleabane]

Did I misinterpret Lewis on 360?

I thought he said that he was there with them in Bali at the time.

He was part of the leadership group in 2013.

My understanding from what Lewis said was that he was there in Bali and he along with another senior player handled the situation - there was a heartfelt apology from the offending player to the indigenous player who accepted it. They were concerned about the latter's welfare and took care for the rest of the trip to make sure he was okay, according to Lewis. Lewis was VC (along with Roughead) in 2013 I think. Given their friendship I can't see him not having told Roughy about it (if Roughy wasn't already the other senior player in Bali). It's interesting that he/they didn't think it was necessary to inform the leadership group as a whole and no one even privately told Hodge or a number of other respected senior players at the club e.g. Mitchell and Burgoyne. What happens in Bali stays in Bali? As others have said, it shows the inadequacy of the club policies that it wasn't an automatic decision to address it the leadership group and then amongst the broader playing group to try to prevent anything like that from happening again on their watch. As Burgoyne put it in his interview they are finding out now that it would have been better if they had realised that something that significant needed to be brought back to the club.

EDIT: I thought that's what Lewis said from memory - he and another senior player handled it - but Hodge's interview suggests it was just one senior player who handled it. Either way, Lewis was involved in handling it.

 

[BlueWaterHawk]

Wow if you think the conversation here can get a bit tilted, check out the facebook pages. Nausea inducing ignorance, politicising, nit picking, conspiracy theorising madness. Honestly, is there a worse online environment?

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

 

[chopflop]

My understanding from what Lewis said was that he was there in Bali and he along with another senior player handled the situation - there was a heartfelt apology from the offending player to the indigenous player who accepted it. They were concerned about the latter's welfare and took care for the rest of the trip to make sure he was okay, according to Lewis. Lewis was VC (along with Roughead) in 2013 I think. Given their friendship I can't see him not having told Roughy about it (if Roughy wasn't already the other senior player in Bali). It's interesting that he/they didn't think it was necessary to inform the leadership group as a whole and no one even privately told Hodge or a number of other respected senior players at the club e.g. Mitchell and Burgoyne. What happens in Bali stays in Bali? As others have said, it shows the inadequacy of the club policies that it wasn't an automatic decision to address it the leadership group and then amongst the broader playing group to try to prevent anything like that from happening again on their watch. As Burgoyne put it in his interview they are finding out now that it would have been better if they had realised that something that significant needed to be brought back to the club.

EDIT: I thought that's what Lewis said from memory - he and another senior player handled it - but Hodge's interview suggests it was just one senior player who handled it. Either way, Lewis was involved in handling it.

They sorted it by burying the hatchet and it was never spoken of again. Almost like it didn't happen.

JL and the senior player thought they were solving it but really they were effectively burying it.

Not trying to pile it on JL but it just shows how badly the players needed education in safe work environments and racism. Ironically, they might have all got the necessary education if it was reported.