New Carlton chief executive officer Steven Trigg’s salary-cap baggage will haunt his move to Victoria
IF Steven Trigg thought he could ride into town, leaving all that baggage in South Australia, he was mistaken.
Mark Robinson
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IF Steven Trigg thought he could ride into town, leaving all that baggage in South Australia, he was mistaken.
He was appointed Carlton chief executive on Tuesday and the discussion since has been half-serious, half-joking.
The joke is the salary-cap cheating chief executive is joining the salary-cap cheating football club. Boom Boom.
Indeed, the jokes started at 6.30am when Eddie McGuire, with his media hat on, spoke on radio of Trigg and Carlton and brown paper bags. Boom Boom. Again.
The seriousness is that as much as Essendon will never — ever — escape the tag of being the “drug cheaters”, opposition fans have never let Carlton fans forget their club cheated the salary cap at the turn of the century. And now Trigg has joined Carlton.
Don’t have an issue as such, for people are entitled to second chances, but only wish there was a consistent message from the AFL and influential members of the media.
There are three pillars of disgrace in the AFL: Drug cheaters, salary cap rorters and match fixers.
Trigg was guilty of the second one and the AFL suspended him for six months.
Trigg, remember, sacked Matthew Rendell from the Crows for racist comments made by Rendell, which Rendell denied. One man cheated, the other (may have) said something wrong.
It doesn’t sit comfortably, or fairly.
The kerfuffle about Trigg returning to the AFL was a bridge already crossed by him and AFL officials last year.
Back then Jeff Kennett launched at the AFL when Trigg returned from suspension.
Kennett did it again on Tuesday, saying he believed forgiveness for salary cap cheating should not be forthcoming.
Trigg and the AFL disagree.
“I regret that it happened, that it created such hurt,” Trigg said.
“But in every other way it’s behind us ... I’m not going to trudge back over it.’’
The forgiveness for James Hird is not forthcoming despite no findings yet on whether Essendon players took banned drugs or not.
Originally published as New Carlton chief executive officer Steven Trigg’s salary-cap baggage will haunt his move to Victoria
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