David Teague says Carlton players know the rules when it comes to drinking alcohol
David Teague insists there were no double standards in Carlton’s handling of Charlie Curnow and other players over their alcohol consumption, and he trusts them to make the right choices.
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Carlton coach David Teague said he trusted his players to do the right thing when it came to alcohol consumption and did not intend to become a dictator.
Teague was responding to Tuesday’s back page Herald Sun story that confirmed some Blues players were spoken to by club officials over their alcohol consumption at the Australia Day weekend wedding of co-captain Sam Docherty.
None were sanctioned.
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But questions were raised as to why injured forward Charlie Curnow was not disciplined for drinking alcohol at the function.
Curnow is expected to miss almost half the season following a November operation to repair a broken patella bone.
The Blues disciplined brothers Jack and Ben Silvagni last November for drinking at a music festival while injured.
But Teague said there were no double standards.
The Blues coach said players had a clear understanding of when they could and could not drink alcohol.
“The players are clear … if you have an acute (short-term) injury, you don’t drink, (but) if you have got a longer-term injury, then you need to be smart with it,” Teague said from the club’s Mooloolaba camp.
“If there is going to be a time when you can have a drink, it is when your mate is getting married.
“One of the things I love about the club right now is that the tightness of our playing group and the bonds that they have.
“We had a couple of guys go to that wedding and they didn’t drink because they had acute injuries, but the ones who could have a drink, I have no issues with that.”
Curnow was allowed to drink alcohol because he is out for an extended period.
He has not started running yet, with no clear guidelines on when he would make his return.
Initially the Blues expected he would be back closer to the season opener.
Teague confirmed a few players were spoken to by officials about their alcohol consumption at the wedding, but stressed no player was disciplined.
“Yeah, we had a look at that,” he said of what happened at the function.
“We thought there were some great things that happened that night, (and) we used a couple of examples of guys who enjoyed the wedding and didn’t drink because they had injuries.”
Teague said he had concerns about an AFL culture that called for players to abstain from alcohol for a long period because it could sometimes lead them to binge drink when they were allowed.
“I trust our players to make the right choices,” he said.
“There will be times when they don’t … it’s not a perfect world. We all make mistakes.
“(But) I don’t want a dictatorship … to a certain degree, the culture of football is nothing, nothing, nothing, (then) binge. I don’t like that.
“For certain players they will say, ‘I don’t drink’ and that is cool.
“I don’t love the idea of, ‘OK, (I’m) never, never drinking, OK, I have to make up for the last two months because I have not had a drink’.”
Teague said the leadership group had been playing a significant role in setting the standards and guidelines, but the club was “always learning” from the challenges that presented themselves.