Suspended West Coast Eagles star Willie Rioli didn’t make a ‘lil mistake’

Willie Rioli can play his ASADA charge off as a “lil mistake” all he likes, but it’s actually large and nonsensicle beyond belief.

Willie Rioli during a training session on August 20.

COMMENT

Nothing about Willie Rioli and the allegations surrounding the West Coast star make any sense.

From the allegation that he was caught “red-handed” pouring a substance into his urine sample by an ASADA tester to West Coast’s subsequent rather meek response to even an attempt to explain it away by Brian Taylor that was more nonsensical than an hour of Roaming Brian would actually be.

Nothing makes sense — not a shred of it — even Rioli’s own social media post where he called the incident a “lil mistake”.

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That little mistake as he put it could cost him four years of his career, one he’s worked hard to gain, that’s already seen him win a flag and be a valued part of arguably the most potent forward line in the AFL.

“Just want to thank all my real family & friends for all the love and support through this tough time!” Rioli said in a post on Facebook on Friday.

“I’m so so sorry I had to put yous (sic) all through this! We will get through this!

“I’ve gone through tougher times life support, depression, bullying an we’ve gotten through!“Hopefully this lil mistake is a lesson to be learnt! This definitely doesn’t define me as a person! I love yous all.” You may be blase about some things Willie, but not a tampering allegation.

Willie Rioli is looking at a potential four year ban.

While it’s great to see Rioli attempting to stay positive in the face of severe pressure and damning allegations it’s hard to understand why such a talented player would allegedly do such a thing.

Rioli is generally understood to be a well-liked member of the AFL community and as West Coast coach Adam Simpson put it a “gentle soul” but so far the response or lack thereof from the Eagles and the player is beguiling.

They’ve engaged legal counsel but they have not come out swinging in Rioli’s defence, whether that’s because of them not wanting to distract the team in the build up to their final with Geelong or not we will likely find out in the next period of time.

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As for the charge, the problem with the allegations of tampering is that while the testing agent has evidently seen something which was later confirmed by ASADA, enough for them to bring a charge forward they have not publicly stated if there was anything else, anything illegal, substance wise in the test.

Which leaves the question why would Rioli risk it?

Media in this country and athletes alike recently lost their minds about Chinese swimmer Sun Yang having vials of blood smashed with a hammer ‘tampering’ with his own doping test — Sun of course came out and told his own truth about what those agents were doing and how they were not properly accredited resulting in him at least having an excuse.

Sun though is a convicted doper, Rioli is not and there is no suggestion he has been.

The question that only Rioli can answer is why? Why did he do it?

The Eagles missed the livewire forward on Friday night.

The potential reasons are not palatable — and the rumours and innuendo have even included one lame duck suggestion that it was a practical joke.

Surely that could not be the case and then the potential reasons for it get a whole lot darker and can only suggest that perhaps Rioli did have something in his system.

But if he did and that’s still an unproven if why would he tamper?

The AFL has an infamously loose illicit substance policy and as far as anyone knows he doesn’t have any strikes, maybe he could have one, if he did neither his club nor the AFL would know — as first strikes for illicit substances are not reported to anyone, second strikes result in a four-match ban and third strikes 12 matches — Rioli has had no bans of the sort.

If he was worried about registering a first strike and panicked as some have suggested then a potential four-year ban would be up there for the most stupefying decision for a player outside the playing field in the history of the league.

And as reported by The Age’s Chip Le Grand ASADA when it conducts out of competition tests, does not test for substances like cocaine, marijuana or ice. Its interest is only in substances prohibited at all times by the WADC.

When the AFL tests for illicit substances it uses a private testing company.

This again raises the troubling question of why would Rioli tamper? Did he believe there was something in his system that he perhaps ingested by accident?

Until he speaks out and meets with ASADA and the AFL we won’t know a whole lot more but athletes have been judged for less, even this year.

One thing is clear as far as Rioli goes this is not “lil mistake” and the incident may not “define him” but unless he is cleared of all potential wrongdoing it will cast a long shadow of what he has left in his footy career.