Dylan Grimes opens up on why he called out the trolls and whether he took a dive against Essendon
Dylan Grimes says he doesn’t want to be known as a stager and accepts players flopping is a bad look for the AFL. But the star Tiger admits he’s dived once before — in last year’s finals series.
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Dylan Grimes admits he took a dive.
“I do regret it,” Grimes told the Herald Sun on Sunday.
“I would like that moment back, for sure.
“I don’t like staging. I think it’s a good thing the AFL are trying to change that behaviour.”
Except Grimes was not talking about his Dreamtime brush with Essendon’s Jake Stringer.
The Richmond defender was referring to the flop he took in last year’s qualifying final, which saw a free kick paid to Charlie Cameron reversed.
“That’s the only time in my career I’ve been charged for staging, and I admit wholeheartedly I knew exactly what I was doing in that moment,” Grimes said.
“We got a free kick and it probably cost Charlie Cameron a goal.”
Dylan Grimes has revealed he's received death threats on social media after last night's win over Essendon, while he's been accused of a "borderline flop" to win a free kick: https://t.co/0YIDaOOoKg @LaurenHeraldSun pic.twitter.com/0LzA050pdv
— SuperFooty (AFL) (@superfooty) August 22, 2020
So, what happened with Stringer? Match review officer Michael Christian charged Grimes with staging, with Bombers fans furious that the incident cost their team a goal.
“I was convinced the way it was reflected in the MRP (MRO) wasn’t accurate,” Grimes said.
“I felt like what had actually happened, and what I felt in the moment whilst playing, was different to what was written in (Christian’s) report.
“So we decided to challenge it, and once they’d seen all the camera angles I think it was decided pretty quickly.”
Grimes, 29, helped the Tigers pen their written submission, and the tribunal cleared both him and Nick Vlastuin, who had also been fined $750 for staging in that match.
“They (tribunal) agreed wholeheartedly that the whole situation was realistic and that it wasn’t staging,” Grimes said.
“It is a shame that a situation where I wasn’t even guilty was blown into such an extreme circumstance.”
The lessons have flowed for Grimes ever since his four days in footy’s spotlight.
On the field, Grimes is now super-conscious at how his actions might appear on TV cameras.
“I don’t want to be known as someone who stages,” he said.
“The example would be if you get charged and found not guilty of doing a sling tackle, you’re still more mindful of doing sling tackles in the future.”
Off the field, he now has a plan in place to manage trolls on social media.
Encouragingly, Grimes hasn’t been abused since bravely deciding to go public with the death threats and vile messages he copped from Bombers fans.
“It wasn’t something I took lightly, and it was confronting at the time,” Grimes said.
“It’s a shame it is somewhat an accepted part of Aussie culture to give each other grief online.
“It had gone past the stage of just being jovial, tongue-in-cheek teasing and I felt like something needed to change and something needed to happen.”
Grimes’ action helped Victoria Police arrest a 39-year-old Frankston man, who is due to face the Magistrates Court in May next year.
But before speaking out Grimes spoke to his teammates and was surprised to learn how many had been targeted by keyboard cowards.
Then, he sought advice from Richmond risk and integrity officer Steve Wyatt.
“He’s ex-policeman, and he encouraged me to escalate things,” Grimes said.
“I’m thankful for the efforts of VicPol, they were amazing — so supportive of my wife and I and my family.
“That’s probably all I can say about that given the involvement with the courts.
“I’m lucky, I was in a good mental space and had a good support network around me.
“But players that might not be in that position you can see it taking a toll and you hope players that are getting those sorts of messages are managing it OK.
“It’s not a nice thing to go through.”
Grimes, the dual premiership star and All-Australian, said GWS midfielder Callan Ward “created momentum” for AFL players to speak out against trolls, and love has recently replaced hate for him online.
“It was the 1 per cent that were doing it, and the messages of support were just amazing after that point,” he said.
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