By Jake Niall and Andrew Wu
The AFL dropped a proposed two-match ban for Giant Connor Idun and teammate Lachie Whitfield after the league considered Idun’s strong submission – and the fact that he consulted teammates before the offending function – over the pair’s skit that enacted slavery.
Idun, who has Ghanaian heritage, had been offered a two-match ban for his portrayal of the Jamie Foxx character “Django” from the movie Django Unchained but he argued successfully against the ban and was fined $5000 instead.
The proposed two-match ban for Connor Idun (pictured) was dropped.Credit: AFL Photos
This was partly because the AFL accepted he had told four teammates of colour about the sketch beforehand, and that the movie’s depiction of slavery contained complexities.
According to an AFL source who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to speak freely, league executives had to familiarise themselves with elements of the Quentin Tarantino movie before reducing the penalty to a fine, which was levelled against Idun partly because he was in the leadership group, but also because the AFL still felt the portrayal of slavery could cause offence.
GWS had pushed for Idun to not be sanctioned alongside six other Giants, headed by Josh Fahey, who was suspended for four matches for dressing as NRL player Jarryd Hayne in a skit with a inflated sex doll that drew widespread condemnation – the GWS AFLW captain included – and the heftiest penalty. Jake Riccardi played a taxi driver but was not in the most offensive part of the skit and received a two-match ban.
Former NRL player Jarryd Hayne.Credit: Nikki Short
A source familiar with the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Whitfield had expressed reservations about participating in the Django Unchained skit.
Idun also relayed some of the skit’s set-up to a member of staff beforehand, according to two sources familiar with the ill-fated end of season party that led to the AFL penalising 13 players.
But the Giants also checked with those teammates Idun had consulted to ensure that they did not feel pressured into giving their approval to the Django skit, given Idun’s position as a leader.
Two players, Cooper Hamilton and Toby McMullin were suspended (two matches) for dressing as the twin towers that were levelled in the September 11 attacks, while Harvey Thomas, who dressed up as basketballer Josh Giddey, and Joe Fonti, as an accompanying girl, were suspended for two matches.
The AFLPA issued a statement on the scandal engulfing the Giants.Credit: AFL Photos
In other details to emerge, from club and AFL industry sources, since the penalties were handed down by the AFL:
- Veteran Lachie Keeffe, 34, was the organiser of the theme of “controversial couples” and was fined $5000, even though he did not participate in skits, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity. He was the only non–participant or non-leader to be fined.
- The function was paid for by the club, which did not receive any sanction from the AFL. The league took the view that the players, not the officials, bore responsibility for what unfolded, an AFL source explained.
- Coaches had been at the party early, from noon until about 1pm and while some had seen individual costumes, they were not aware of the context of the controversial couples theme. Senior players Josh Kelly (surgery) and Steven Coniglio (facial fractures) did not attend. A total of 42 players were present.
- Players told the Giants they could not recall exactly how they learned of the party’s theme.
- Players did not share outfit ideas, according to a club source, which meant a layer of checks and balances was lost. Some players dressed at the hotel, others turned up in their outfits.
- The club was informed of the complaint by the AFL on September 20, and launched their own investigation through their integrity committee chaired by Kathryn Toohey, who retired from the Australian Defence Force as a Major General after 36 years of service.
The AFL Players’ Association questioned the league’s commitment to cultural change and insisted the AFL’s process for determining the punishments for the players in the scandal lacked “procedural fairness”.
AFLPA chief executive Paul Marsh.Credit: Jason South
While the players’ union said the conduct of the Giants players was unacceptable, it said it was concerned by the AFL’s lack of a “sanctioning framework” and an inconsistent approach to how player leaders have been dealt with compared to club officials.
They were also damning of the broader AFL landscape, saying: “As an industry, we have had too many cultural issues and we have not worked hard enough to set and role model the standards expected.”
“This does not excuse individual choices and decisions but they are not made in a vacuum,” AFLPA chief executive Paul Marsh said in a statement.
“For many years, the industry has walked past this type of behaviour and accepted it as a part of footy culture, and this is the culture that we all are now responsible for. We include players, clubs, the AFL and the AFLPA in this.”
Marsh said the AFLPA had “serious concerns” with the AFL’s investigation process, including that players were interviewed without a support person present, and with “unreasonable timeframes” to “respond to their proposed sanctions”.
The full statement from AFL Players’ Association CEO Paul Marsh
The AFLPA acknowledges that the conduct of the sanctioned GWS Giants players is unacceptable and raises important matters of respect, inclusion and safety. These matters are critical to the AFLPA and the wider playing group. Our thoughts and support are with the Giants AFLW players and the broader AFLW community who we know are hurting, and any other people impacted by this issue.
This issue has raised various concerns from an AFLPA perspective, but also opportunities for the broader AFL industry.
The AFLPA provided a detailed submission to the AFL on this matter, and whilst we acknowledged the appropriateness of sanctions for these players, we raised concerns with the AFL’s commitment to cultural change within the industry, the process undertaken by the AFL, the proportionality and consistency of their sanctioning, the lack of a sanctioning framework despite repeatedly raising this with the AFL, and an inconsistent approach to how player leaders have been dealt with as compared to the broader club leaders.
As an industry, we have had too many cultural issues and we have not worked hard enough to set and role model the standards expected. This does not excuse individual choices and decisions but they are not made in a vacuum. For many years, the industry has walked past this type of behaviour and accepted it as a part of footy culture, and this is the culture that we all are now responsible for. We include players, clubs, the AFL and the AFLPA in this.
For more than 12 months, the AFLPA has been trying to work with the AFL to establish a joint committee, as agreed in last year’s CBA, inclusive of players, experts and industry people to address these issues proactively and improve our industry. This is yet to happen and until we get serious about changing our culture, the industry will continue to send mixed messages that will let our fans, our players and our community down. Individual accountability is important but so is leadership that prioritises prevention, understanding and role modelling.
A core element of the AFLPA’s role is to protect the rights of our players, and this includes upholding the agreements within the CBA and the various codes and policies. On this basis, we have serious concerns with the way the AFL has conducted their process around this issue. They sought to interview players without independent support, did not make relevant materials available to players as part of the interview process, and imposed unreasonable timeframes on players to respond to their proposed sanctions. This process lacked procedural fairness, and procedural fairness is critical to ensuring integrity and confidence in AFL processes.
With respect to the proposed sanctions, we believed these were disproportionate, and again made without reference to any sanctioning framework. We note the AFL revised some of the sanctions in response to ours and other submissions.
The opportunity remains to develop a consistent sanctioning framework through a revised Code of Conduct that was also agreed as part of last year’s CBA. This work is still to be finalised.
The AFL industry has an opportunity to learn and improve from this and the various other issues we have dealt with in recent years. It will, however, take strong leadership, genuine collaboration across the industry, accountability, and ongoing reflection on our progress.
“This process lacked procedural fairness, and procedural fairness is critical to ensuring integrity and confidence in AFL processes. With respect to the proposed sanctions, we believed these were disproportionate, and again made without reference to any sanctioning framework.
“We note the AFL revised some of the sanctions in response to ours and other submissions. The opportunity remains to develop a consistent sanctioning framework through a revised Code of Conduct that was also agreed as part of last year’s CBA. This work is still to be finalised.”
In response to the AFLPA statement, the AFL said: “Making light of any gender-based violence is not acceptable in any setting at any time. Both the club and the players have acknowledged that and own the accountability. Respect is not an option, it is a non-negotiable and we will continue to work until everyone in our game understands that.”
Earlier, the Giants’ AFLW captain Rebecca Beeson spoke on behalf of the playing group in a statement released on Thursday night.
“It is important that we make it known that we were deeply hurt and angered when learning of the behaviour that occurred,” she said.
“Playing the game we love gives us a platform to speak to the community, fans and young people. As the AFLW playing group, we feel it is of great importance to stress that the behaviour that included references to gender-based violence is completely unacceptable under any circumstances.
“The values of respect, diversity and inclusion are as important off the field as they are on it. We look forward to the AFL playing group learning from this incident and as a club, we are united in ensuring everyone feels safe within our game.”
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