Essendon great James Hird ‘bullied, hounded, verbally assaulted’
A CLOSE confidant of James Hird has accused the AFL of hounding the Essendon great as details emerge of a stinging verbal assault aimed at Hird last month by the wife of a prominent judge.
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TANIA Hird says her husband’s health is her “primary focus” as a close confidant on Friday night accused the AFL of hounding the Bombers great.
James Hird’s former lawyer, Steven Amendola, on Friday night said the ex-Essendon coach was the victim of years of bullying by league chiefs.
Details also emerged on Friday of a stinging verbal assault aimed at Hird by the wife of a prominent judge at a Christmas party last month.
Hird had also been told incorrectly — according to the AFL and SEN — the league had blocked a move by the radio station to recruit him for its 2017 football broadcasts.
HOW IT ALL WENT WRONG FOR JAMES HIRD
An AFL spokeswoman told the Herald Sun “that did not happen’’ and an SEN spokeswoman said “that’s categorically untrue”.
Hird, 43, remains under care in a specialist mental health centre after being treated for a drug overdose at the Cabrini Hospital on Wednesday.
“They (AFL) have relentlessly trashed his reputation and misrepresented the facts and the context,” Mr Amendola told the Herald Sun.
“I hope they are satisfied now but it should hardly be surprising — even for someone with mental health as strong as James’s — that this has happened.
“They have to bear some responsibility for it.”
Mr Amendola added: “From what I have observed over the past number of years, it seems that you can glass your partner, you can sleep with your best friend’s wife and the path to forgiveness will always be open in AFL land — but if your name is James Hird that path will be blocked.”
Tania Hird said on Friday in a statement: “We wish to express our appreciation for the public support that has been given to James and our family since news of his hospitalisation became known.
“At this time James and the Hird family are in need of privacy. We ask that this privacy be respected.”
Mr Amendola said the facts of the drugs saga presented to the AFL Anti-Doping Tribunal and the Court of Arbitration for Sport did not justify the targeting and scapegoating of Hird.
“Before any hearings or any determinations of anything had ever occurred, James Hird was the architect of the supplements program, he drove the program, he was responsible for the program — whereas in the formal submissions of the AFL, ASADA and WADA he barely rated a mention in terms of the prosecution of these anti-doping offences,” he said.
Mr Amendola said the only evidence relating to Hird lodged with the two tribunals was an email he had sent to club officials in January 2012 demanding that all supplements be approved by the AFL, WADA and club doctor Bruce Reid.
“What those submissions went on to say was that (Essendon sports scientist) Stephen Dank ignored that,” Mr Amendola said.
“So contrast what was put before a quasi-judicial tribunal compared to the way in which he was effectively tried, convicted and executed by the AFL and their crony mates in certain sections of the press.
“To the AFL and those certain sections of the media I say shame on you. Shame on all of you in terms of the way in which they still consider him to be public property.’’
Essendon chairman Lindsay Tanner said on Friday: “This is a personal and private matter and we ask the media to respect the privacy of James and his family.
“The club will continue to offer its support to James and the Hird family.”
CLAIMS DOOR SLAMMED SHUT ON SEN JOB
JAMES Hird was told several weeks ago the AFL had blocked his return to football as a special comments man for SEN radio.
It didn’t surprise the fallen Essendon champion, but it was a claim that made him suspect many of the Melbourne doors he once waltzed through were now slammed shut.
As Hird’s former lawyer Steven Amendola said on Friday, the football world has forgiven former AFL stars who glassed their partners or slept with their best mate’s wife, but seemingly not James Hird, the so-called architect of Australian sport’s greatest scandal.
At a recent private Christmas function, the ex-Essendon coach was savaged in front of stunned fellow guests by the wife of a prominent judge.
The woman was an Essendon supporter and berated Hird for his role in the supplements saga that brought a once mighty football club to its knees.
There have been several other unsavoury incidents involving members of the public approaching Hird and his young family.
While putting on a brave public face, the 1996 Brownlow medallist has in recent months felt the pressure of his four-year fight to clear his name.
The culmination of events resulted in Hird being rushed to the Cabrini Hospital on Wednesday night suffering from a drug overdose. The 43-year-old had turned his back on the game that made him a legend and is involved in a number of businesses, including a chocolate import venture.
Job offers have been made in London and other parts of Europe, but family ties and four young kids made he and wife Tania reluctant to leave.
His eldest daughter has just completed her VCE, while his three sons now play soccer instead of Australian rules.
Despite constant rumour and innuendo, the Hirds’ long-time marriage remains strong.
When SEN came knocking in November, he briefly flirted with the idea of dipping his toe back into football.
Discussions took place but the official line from SEN was that the station ultimately decided it was too soon for Hird to make a comeback. The AFL denied any interference.
The broken relationship between Hird and the AFL’s top brass will never heal.
Despite apologising and admitting to a level of responsibility for the supplements program, Hird maintains he was scapegoated by the AFL and forced to take the fall.
JAMES HIRD BREAKS SILENCE ON BOMBERS’ DRUGS SAGA
At a secret meeting at the home of then-AFL deputy chief executive Gillon McLachlan in August 2013, the Bombers coach was told why he had to be the frontman for the scandal.
Hird was told his 12-month ban was non-negotiable and all about the optics because the scandal required a face.
Two days earlier, Hird had been presented with a series of inducements if he agreed to accept the AFL penalties, including a lucrative overseas study opportunity.
The business course Hird began, while serving his suspension in 2014, has opened other doors of opportunity abroad, but the family had decided to stay in Melbourne.
Sleepless nights began long before the Essendon drugs saga turned Hird’s world upside down four years ago.
He suffered horrific facial injuries in an on-field collision with teammate Mark McVeigh in 2002 and, according to leaked Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority transcripts, has relied on medication ever since to help him sleep.
The sad events of this week suggest it will a long time before Hird’s mind will again be at peace in this sorry saga.
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