Dean “The Weapon” Robinson settles wrongful dismissal claim with Essendon for about $1 million

FORMER Essendon fitness boss Dean Robinson has settled his wrongful dismissal case against the club for about $1 million.

Essendon training,The WEAPON,Dean Robinson,with James Hird,

ESSENDON has paid out a $1 million settlement to former fitness boss Dean “The Weapon” Robinson to end his wrongful dismissal claim.

On Thursday, lawyers for the Bombers and Robinson hammered out the deal as club powerbrokers dealt with the future of coach James Hird in yet another day of drama for the club.

The $1 million payout places greater strain on Essendon’s precarious financial state as chairman Paul Little was made the target of a potential boardroom challenge.

DAY OF DRAMA: HIRD SAFE AS BOMBERS COACH — FOR NOW

Robinson was stood down when Essendon “self-reported” to the AFL and ASADA on February 5 last year.

An explosive trial had been set for November 10 and was expected to include witness testimony embarrassing to the AFL and the club.

Grant Walker from Madgwicks Lawyers said that “the matter has been resolved”.

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan, his predecessor Andrew Demetriou and Essendon chairman Paul Little were among a long list who had been subpoenaed to produce evidence in the trial.

The $1 million outlay comes as another blow to Little, who is facing mounting legal bills and another $1.5 million payout should the club move on Hird in coming days.

The club is also concerned sacking Hird could expose it to civil litigation.

In pre-trial papers, Robinson claimed he had been made the victim of an Essendon strategy to paint he and former Bombers sports scientist Stephen Dank as “rogue operators” while the club was under investigation.

Dean Robinson has won a large payout from Essendon.

Little’s hold on the Essendon chairmanship has come under increased pressure as Hird defied club orders to end his legal stoush with ASADA.

A notice to requisition an extraordinary general meeting is being circulated among Bombers members.

The letter, penned by Melbourne lawyer Jackson Taylor, claims the club is being led by a board “that has never adequately stood up for the rights of the club, or for the values that the club stands for”.

A separate group of prominent of Essendon members is aiming to win seats on the board later this year without the need for an EGM.

Two or more board positions will become available ahead of this year’s annual general meeting in late November.

Since taking over from David Evans last July, Little has seen Essendon cop the biggest penalties in AFL history over the club’s governance failings, extended the contract of Hird by two years and authorised the club’s costly Federal Court action against ASADA in June.

Yesterday, he signed off on the payout to “The Weapon”.

Taylor’s letter calls for under-fire coach James Hird to be retained “until members can receive a full report on the events of the last two years and deliberate themselves on his future”.

It also seeks a “full and independent review of these events conducted by an outside expert in whom all members can have confidence”.

“In the greatest crisis in the club’s 144 year history, the board has to this day never provided its members and supporters with a single narrative explaining the club’s position.

“On all of the key points, the board has remained silent for almost two years, refusing to explain the club’s activities in 2012 and 2013.

“The club will never be able to move on until it finally confronts the truth of events that have only been the subject of speculation to outsiders.

“This has always been the source of the club’s weakness, and the board has no one to blame but itself for the problems that policy has caused.”