AFL integrity unit looks at controversial Adelaide Crows preseason camp
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has put the Crows’ contentious pre-season camp under investigation by the league’s integrity unit, but says his briefings so far have revealed nothing of “huge concern”.
- Pyke on why Gov wants to fly nest
- ‘Stand up and face music’: Cornes slams Crows hierarchy
- Walker wants to speak to McGovern
- Crows to play hard-ball on camp, McGovern
- Collective Mind washes hands of camp
- Analysis: Mind game that keeps tormenting Crows
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has put the Crows’ contentious pre-season camp under investigation by the league’s integrity unit.
But McLachlan concedes that the reluctance of the Adelaide players to formally complain about the controversial three-day “mind camp” run by Collective Mind is thwarting the AFL understanding just what did happen on the Gold Coast in late January.
McLachlan told The Advertiser the league’s concern from the stories emanating from the camp - that were sharpened by the Collective Mind press conference at the MCG on Monday - was keeping open the file in the AFL integrity unit.
“I have asked questions of my integrity team,” McLachlan said. “They have had a look at it. They do not have any information for me at the moment that creates specific concern.”
McLachlan noted the need for sporting governing bodies to be just as concerned in how teams deal in preparing athletes in the mental space as in their physical training. There are strict guidelines on drug use in sport and could emerge for mind training of AFL players.
“The clubs are always trying to get the players in the best shape they can to compete,” McLachlan said.
“They always have a duty of care to their players.
“I will rely on my integrity team to provide advice if somehow there is an issue within a club.
“I don’t have any advice like that at the moment.”
As the AFL Players’ Association prepares a submission calling for “mind training” at AFL clubs to be run only by certified medical practitioners, a guarded McLachlan said: “We can’t run every aspect of the clubs.
“We provide a framework to work with - and in the clubs, players and others will make decisions that have to be within that framework.”
Asked if he was concerned by the events on the Gold Coast, McLachlan said: “I don’t have anything from the briefings that leaves me with a huge concern. But that is where we are today ...
“I have had the integrity department look into it.”
Crows chief executive Andrew Fagan told radio TripleM on Thursday his club felt the issue from the Gold Coast camp was closed when the Adelaide Football Club cut its ties with Collective Mind in late June.
Fagan added he had no early warning at the weekend that the Collective Minds leaders would bring the pre-season camp into the public forum again with their “clean the air” press conference at the MCG on Monday.
Collective Mind washed its hands of the camp by saying on Monday it had created a “bespoke” program to the Crows specification.
michelangelo.rucci@news.com.au