Essendon could be forced to pay the salaries of banned players at rival clubs

RIVAL clubs expect Essendon will be forced to pay most of the 2016 salaries of banned players who have now moved to other teams.

St Kilda first day of pre season training at Albert Park lake. Jake Carlisle talks with footy manager Jamie Cox . Pic: Michael Klein.

RIVAL clubs expect Essendon will be forced to pay most of the 2016 salaries of banned players who have now moved to other teams.

The Essendon 34 received another legal briefing from the AFL Players Association on Friday as a compensation claim looms.

The new clubs of players including Jake Carlisle, Jake Melksham and Patrick Ryder appear unwilling to pay their salaries while banned.

That will see the AFL and Essendon having to come to an arrangement that either sees the Bombers paying those salaries or a claim being launched for that money.

Carlisle has been paid since joining the Saints in November and will again be paid when he returns in September.

But the Saints will not pay him while he is banned and Carlisle has a watertight case against Essendon to see his salary paid in full.

The players banned by ASADA received more details on those compensation claims against Essendon on Friday.

Those 17 players still in the AFL are yet to receive clarity on their salaries and levels of contact with their clubs while banned.

Paddy Ryder gets away from Alex Pearce. Picture: Sarah Reed

Many players are expected to join a group led by legal firm Slater and Gordon, with six clients from Elite Sports Properties considering a separate claim.

Peter Jess, who manages former player Nathan Lovett Murray, revealed hopes of putting Essendon biochemist Stephen Dank on the stand.

He told the Herald Sun lawyers had advised him Dank could be sued under Section 31 of the Crimes Act after fraudulently obtaining consent for the peptide program.

“We are saying he fraudulently obtained consent. He didn’t tell them what was happening to them. We have been told we have a strong case,’’ Jess said.

Lovett-Murray is considering an individual claim but the remaining players will work through compensation schemes that could top $10 million of wages and compensation.

The AFL is yet to rule on how much of their salaries players will be paid despite being suspended.

The current WADA code states “some or all sport-related financial support or other sport-related benefits received by such Person will be withheld”.

But any player who receives anything less than his full salary would immediately include that amount in his compensation claim.

Jake Carlisle was St Kilda’s big off-season recruit. Picture: Michael Klein

Many AFL sources believe players will receive almost all of their salaries as a result, lessening Essendon’s compensation burden.

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch said the Power had been told they would find out next week about requests for an extra top-up player.

They can elevate two rookies in place for Patrick Ryder and Angus Monfries but cannot replace them with top-ups.

“That’s under consideration at the moment, they’ve assured us that we’ll get an announcement next week,” Koch said.

“They’re discussing it internally and also with some of the other clubs as well.

“The ideal response is that we’re not two players short of every other club going into the 2016 season.

“As the numbers turn out, we’re one player short of Essendon — we’ll have 42 players, Essendon will have 43, everyone else will have 44, including rookies, and we think that’s unfair.”