By Andrew Wu
The woman sexually abused as a girl by Barry Cable has criticised the AFL for taking too long to expel the disgraced player from the league’s hall of fame and strip him of his “legend” status.
The governing body and Cable’s former club North Melbourne, who also removed him from their hall of fame, have also come under fire from the woman’s lawyer for the lack of support given to her.
The unanimous decision was made at an AFL Commission meeting on Tuesday before that night’s hall of fame dinner, and comes after a ruling made by Judge Mark Herron in the District Court of Western Australia earlier this month that Cable had repeatedly sexually assaulted a girl during his playing career. The judge also found there was compelling evidence Cable also abused other children.
Barry Cable has been removed from the hall of fame.
The woman, given the pseudonym ZYX by the court to protect her identity, released a statement on Tuesday saying the AFL’s move was overdue.
“Today’s decision by the AFL is nearly a quarter of a century late as far as I am concerned,” she said.
“If the WA Director of Public Prosecutions had charged Cable on the police evidence presented in 1999, he would not have enjoyed another 25 years of fame and respect.
“For decades I ... have had to deal with the damage and trauma he caused.
“Meanwhile he has been honoured and promoted throughout sport and the wider community.
“He was never a legend. He was a paedophile and a liar who bullied and abused children.”
Her lawyer, Michael Magazanik, a partner with Rightside Legal, hit out at the AFL and the Kangaroos for not earlier expressing compassion for the five women who had testified in court in February of Cable’s abuse.
“The AFL has now followed other organisations who have withdrawn Cable’s honours but neither the AFL nor the North Melbourne and Perth clubs have offered any support to these women,” Magazanik said. “The AFL has known for months that one of its coaches molested children while coaching.
“Despite the increasing role of women in the leadership of the AFL and its teams, they are sending a terrible message to the women who follow AFL football.”
Goyder and AFL chief Gillon McLachlan said the league had dealt with the matter “as expeditiously as we could” after the June 16 ruling.
“We’ve got to wait for a judgment to be handed down and then there needs to be natural legal process,” McLachlan said. “I think the commission has been decisive, strong, efficient.”
As reported earlier in June by this masthead, the AFL changed the rules of the Australian Football Hall of Fame to enable the league to suspend or revoke the membership of those who are convicted of indictable offences or who have engaged in serious misconduct that brought the game into disrepute.
In a statement, Goyder said the commission had considered the matter at the earliest opportunity on Tuesday, after he had asked the AFL executive to write to Cable last week for any response Cable was prepared to provide the hall of fame committee and the AFL Commission regarding the ruling.
Cable provided a written response, which was considered as part of the commission’s deliberations, but Goyder refused to comment on whether the disgraced player had issued a denial.
“The finding of Judge Herron was incredibly serious and distressing and the thoughts of the AFL Commission are entirely with the victim, who bravely told her story and the other women who courageously came forward during the course of the trial to tell their stories. We acknowledge the courage it has taken to reach an outcome through the courts in WA,” Goyder said.
“Once the court ruling was handed down it was incumbent on the commission and the game to immediately examine the facts of this matter and the horrific nature of these events required that Barry Cable can no longer be considered for any honours that the hall of fame or football can bestow.
“At our last commission meeting we moved to alter the charter for the Australian Football Hall of Fame, to include a new section that allows for the AFL Commission to remove any person for conduct which brings the AFL, the hall of fame inductee, any AFL club or Australian football into disrepute.
“Induction into the hall of fame and designation of legend status will immediately be removed,” he said.
North Melbourne have also removed Cable from their hall of fame.
“The decision to remove Cable ... was unanimous by the board,” club president Dr Sonja Hood said in a statement.
“The contents of Judge Herron’s findings were incredibly disturbing and we commend the women for their resilience and courage in coming forward to tell their stories. Our thoughts are with them and their families.”
Meanwhile, the 18 clubs and the commission remain firm that Tasmania’s bid for its own team hinges on approval of a stadium, with Goyder saying “no stadium, no team”.
“It’s more for the politicians of Tasmania to decide if they want to license or not, and ultimately, it’s as simple as that,” McLachlan said.
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