Lyon forced to speak to players as Saints confirm awkward coach audio leak

Audio of the club’s coaches box during last week’s practice match against Essendon was mistakenly uploaded and accessible by rival clubs.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 03: Ross Lyon, Senior Coach of the Saints addresses his players during the 2023 AFL practice match between the St Kilda Saints and the Essendon Bombers at RSEA Park on March 3, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Audio of the St Kilda coaches box was mistakenly uploaded to a central server accessible by rival clubs, with senior coach Ross Lyon reportedly forced to address his players as a result.

Behind-the-goals vision of the club’s practice match against Essendon was uploaded to a Dropbox server, but the audio of the Saints’ coaches box was also included, meaning opposition clubs had full access to it in the several hours it was online.

Foxfooty.com.au does not know what was said in this audio, only that it was accessible to clubs and mistakenly uploaded.

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The club also confirmed key figures, including Lyon, fronted the playing group directly to address the mistake.

“This upload occurred through human error, which was corrected as soon as we were notified,” acting Saints football boss David Misson said in a statement.

Ross Lyon had to clear the air with players. Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

“There is no certainty that this file has been accessed and downloaded by anybody, however, regardless of the low risk, we wanted to be on the front foot and proactive in our response.

“Our focus is on creating a program with high integrity, open communication and care for our people.

“As a matter of course, we addressed this issue directly with our playing group.

“As part of our response, we also alerted the AFL and relevant key stakeholders.

“We feel that this matter has now been resolved and our focus remains on our preparations for the season ahead.

“The club has also taken the opportunity to review its broader processes to reduce the likelihood of this error occurring again.”

Long-time reporter Tony Jones said on Nine News: “That’s been a great source of embarrassment for the St Kilda footy club apparently, and Ross Lyon in particular.

“Let’s just say the fear is the language was quite fruity, and the assessment of some of the players was quite frank to the point that to preempt any shock and embarrassment that might come when this audio is leaked ... Ross has actually spoken to the players one-on-one today, (to) those who might be let’s say a bit put out by his views on them.”

Originally published as Lyon forced to speak to players as Saints confirm awkward coach audio leak