Eagles to check in with Willie Rioli after social media outburst
West Coast coach Adam Simpson has some words of advice for suspended Eagle Willie Rioli after he took aim at the ‘doubters’ in an Instagram outburst, proclaiming his innocence.
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West Coast will try to contact suspended forward Willie Rioli to check on his mental wellbeing after the premiership star’s unusual social media outburst.
Rioli, who was handed a provisional suspension last September for an alleged urine substitution following an Eagles training session a month prior, took aim at “doubters” in a passionate post on Instagram where he highlighted his hunger for a return to the AFL and maintained his innocence, saying he “never needed to cheat”.
“Call it how you want! I’m not complaining or hiding away from mistake!,” Rioli said on social media.
“We aren’t done yet, I’m coming for yous doubters ... I’ve never needed to cheat check my family footy resume!”
The post has since been deleted, but it caught the eye of Eagles coach Adam Simpson, who told Channel 7 on Monday night he had not spoken to the suspended star recently given his location on the Tiwi Islands and the limited staff they had working, but the Eagles would do their best to rectify this after his unusual outburst following western derby 51.
“We actually haven’t had a chance to get in contact, so I understand the frustrations, but we’ve got to keep everything in check,” Simpson said.
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“It’s been 11 months since his suspension took place so he looks like he’s frustrated, but probably no need for that, so we need to get in touch somehow and see how he’s going mentally as well as physically.”
Simpson said there were no further details on when a hearing would take place for Rioli for his charges, which also is likely to include his positive test for a metabolite of cannabis after the Eagles’ elimination final last year.
“I think with COVID-19 kicking in it’s just added another layer to it,” he said.
“Still no direction on where that’s at. I can understand the frustrations but he’s got to deal with it and we’ve got to be there to support him.”
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Originally published as Eagles to check in with Willie Rioli after social media outburst