Joel Wilkinson was subject to racism, but proving it ended his career will be difficult

JOEL Wilkinson was subjected to sustained, disgraceful racism, but watching a tape of his final season at the Gold Coast Suns might explain why he’s no longer in the AFL.

IT IS possible to believe Joel Wilkinson was subjected to sustained, disgraceful racism in the AFL without agreeing it ended his career.

Former Gold Coast midfielder Wilkinson broke his silence on Thursday, adamant extreme racism was the reason his AFL career ran aground.

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Among his list of claims is a “continuous breach of human rights”, race-based sexual harassment in the club’s changerooms and attempts by the AFL to buy his silence.

It is just the kind of light that should periodically be shone on the AFL, which cannot claim it has won significant battles against racism.

Not when Wilkinson, Heritier Lumumba, Lance Franklin, Eddie Betts, Michael Long, Adam Goodes and so many indigenous players were, or continue to be, racially abused.

As it turns out Wilkinson and Lumumba have struck up a close friendship in recent years, which will make it easier for many to typecast Wilkinson.

Some of ex-Collingwood and Melbourne player Lumumba’s more outrageous claims made it easier for many to deny that he felt a victim of racism and prejudice throughout his career.

If it takes a court case or ruling at the Human Rights Commission to test Wilkinson’s claims and challenge clubs to ensure they are doing everything possible, then so be it.

What will be harder to prove is that Wilkinson’s Nigerian background led to racism that ended his AFL dream.

Because to follow the timeline of his career across the AFL, soccer, VFL and NFL is to see a bounty of chances to become a sports star.

Joel Wilkinson speaks out against ‘systematic’ racism in the AFL. Picture: Nicole Garmston

Wilkinson’s amazing athleticism and power led Gold Coast to list him as a zone selection and 26 games across three years, including 10 in his final season of 2013.

When he was delisted at the end of that year, Gold Coast had made up its mind about him as a player.

He didn’t kick the ball well enough, he made consistently poor decisions with the footy, he averaged only 11 possessions a game in that season, and Gold Coast was stacked with talent.

It is understood Suns recruiter Scott Clayton (now at West Coast) was summoned to AFL House last month to discuss Wilkinson.

They made it clear it was “offensive” to suggest race had played any part in his delisting, suggesting those investigators watch tape of his season.

His career at the Suns had simply run its race, a 2km time-trial record and bench press record of 160kg unable to compensate for his lack of footy nous.

Joel Wilkinson in action for the Gold Coast Suns’ NEAFL team.

From there, 17 other clubs overlooked Wilkinson and he made his way to the Northern Blues where he played a successful year of VFL football.

As then-general manager Garry O’Sullivan recalled in 2016, he then attempted to make his way as a soccer player, spending the 2014-15 pre-season in that pursuit.

He would return to the Northern Blues in 2015, before telling them he was off to live his dream in the NFL.

“After his best game for the club, he rang me the next day to say he wanted to give footy away and pursue a dream that he’d been harbouring of playing NFL,” O’Sullivan said then.

He achieved the extraordinary in America, signed as a cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals within five months of starting training there.

He was cut after three months and despite attended a New York Giants mini-camp in 2017, his NFL dream had run aground.

None of those facts are mutually exclusive to Wilkinson’s claims he suffered continual racism through his career.

Joel Wilkinson and Josh Toy at Suns training.

Yet proving they ended his career might prove more of a challenge in an industry known for subjective judgments to cut players with little official explanation.

“I have suffered extreme racism during my time in the AFL and post my career from the AFL until this very day,’’ he said.

“I am here to hold the AFL accountable and stand against injustice ... this is extremely systematic across the AFL.”

AFL football boss Steve Hocking said the AFL could only apologise to Wilkinson, even if he wants more than words.

“It’s certainly one we’re concerned about. We certainly apologise that he feels that way and that has potentially happened to him.

“We have a department that looks after that, that’s our integrity department, but we certainly don’t shy away from the fact that for Joel that’s clearly been a tough situation that he’s encountered.”

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