Opinion Commentary & Media VII

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giantroo said:
Click to expand...


**** me dead here it comes.

Let’s just draw 10 yard lines and call downs for every tackle until a 5th down and then reset while we’re at it. Let’s put a shot clock in for every possession to force a disposal, let’s put the players in ****ing body armour, let’s have PLAY IN AND PLAY OFF SEASON.

**** American sports, they’re shit.
 
****ing lol, Paul Roos.
 

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theage.com.au


Roos unable to ‘meaningfully change’ Tarryn Thomas’ behaviour: CEO’s email to rival clubs​


Sam McClure

6–7 minutes

An email sent by North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt to her 17 club counterparts about sacked player Tarryn Thomas has laid bare the club’s frustration over their repeated attempts to rehabilitate him.

In the email sent on May 1, and seen by this masthead, Watt said the Kangaroos had been unable to change Thomas’ behaviour. Thomas, who was banned for 18 matches by the AFL for inappropriate behaviour towards women, had completed four different behavioural programs before being sacked by the club once the league’s ban was announced.

Former North Melbourne midfielder [PLAYERCARD]Tarryn Thomas[/PLAYERCARD] at a training session at Arden Street last year.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.Credit: AFL Photos

The email was addressed to West Coast CEO Don Pyke, who wrote to the AFL last week to urge the league to take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence, amid growing community outrage about the killing of women in 2024; a woman has been killed violently on average every four days.

Watt wrote to Pyke and the other club chiefs to express her gratitude for Pyke’s leadership on the issue of violence against women.

“[North Melbourne president] Sonja [Hood] and I have been talking a lot about this, especially in light of the recent challenges we faced with Tarryn Thomas,” Watt wrote in the email.

“We were struck by just how hard it was to find programs to support behaviour change. And this was for someone with considerable resources and support around them.

“We eventually found a combination of programs for Tarryn. Even though Tarryn ended up completing four different programs which included an extensive combination of education, therapy and participation-style programs, we were not able to meaningfully change his behaviour.”

Watt said there was a “need for broad reform” and North Melbourne would “support an industry initiative”.

​

Watt and Thomas’ manager, Ben Williams, declined to comment when contacted on Wednesday.

Thomas, 24, has to complete another education course at his own expense before the league will consider allowing him to be registered to play again, but he cannot return to the AFL in 2024 due to the timing of his suspension.

Thomas was suspended by North Melbourne in 2023 and charged by police over his Instagram message to his then-girlfriend in 2022 during an argument, asserting he had distributed intimate videos of the two of them. Thomas was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image, which was later dropped and replaced with a charge of using a carriage service to harass. That charge was discontinued on the condition that Thomas make a $1000 donation to the court fund.

Related Article​

g

Police have not charged Thomas for any of the subsequent incidents from 2024 that led to his AFL suspension. An AFL integrity unit investigation had found that Thomas “engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

Pyke received immediate backing from large sections of the football industry for his suggestion that the AFL take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence.

“I’m not suggesting we’ve got all the answers,” Pyke said of the AFL and the clubs. “We’ve got to be part of the solution.

“The numbers are quite staggering when you look at them.”

Three club chief executives, who declined to speak publicly due to the sensitive nature of the issues, said they were surprised that Watt had referred to Thomas in her response after Pyke had written about violence against women in broad terms.


The AFL did not mention Thomas last week when it announced a league-wide stand on violence against women, in which players, coaches and umpires formed a circle for a minute’s silence before all nine games in round eight. Senior coaches also read a statement before their respective post-match media conferences.

Watt’s email came less than a month after comments by Geelong coach Chris Scott who, when asked about Thomas, said the club was “open-minded” about the recruitment of any player.

Chris’ brother, former North Melbourne and now Essendon coach Brad Scott, was criticised last week when he spoke about Thomas, having coached him at the Kangaroos.

“The reality is that there are people from privileged backgrounds who have had every opportunity in life, and there are others who haven’t,” Scott said.

“People will make mistakes and as a leader, as a coach and as a parent, the responsibility is to have people learn from those mistakes. And they will make mistakes at different stages, and we’ve got to lead by example.

“In Tarryn’s case, my view is one of support.”

Jimmy Bartel says he feels apprehensive with the prospect of former Kangaroo Tarryn Thomas re-entering the AFL next year.

Former Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, who has previously spoken of harrowing ordeals he witnessed as a child, spoke passionately about Thomas and violence more broadly when asked about it on Footy Classified last week.

“So I get your premise of, the AFL, we can lead the charge, we can rehabilitate, we can be a leader in this space,” Bartel said.

“But this whole, forgiveness, try again, try again, is not working. So at some stage, what happened in the past ... we’ve actually got to go a bit more of a different direction. I lean a bit towards more zero tolerance than others because that’s personal to me.

“I’m open to all discussions, but I feel incredibly uncomfortable that we’re gonna have players arm-in-arm, another woman dies ... I just find it very hard.”

If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
 
Last edited:
giantroo said:



theage.com.au


Roos unable to ‘meaningfully change’ Tarryn Thomas’ behaviour: CEO’s email to rival clubs​


Sam McClure

6–7 minutes

An email sent by North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt to her 17 club counterparts about sacked player Tarryn Thomas has laid bare the club’s frustration over their repeated attempts to rehabilitate him.

In the email sent on May 1, and seen by this masthead, Watt said the Kangaroos had been unable to change Thomas’ behaviour. Thomas, who was banned for 18 matches by the AFL for inappropriate behaviour towards women, had completed four different behavioural programs before being sacked by the club once the league’s ban was announced.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.Credit: AFL Photos

The email was addressed to West Coast CEO Don Pyke, who wrote to the AFL last week to urge the league to take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence, amid growing community outrage about the killing of women in 2024; a woman has been killed violently on average every four days.

Watt wrote to Pyke and the other club chiefs to express her gratitude for Pyke’s leadership on the issue of violence against women.
“[North Melbourne president] Sonja [Hood] and I have been talking a lot about this, especially in light of the recent challenges we faced with Tarryn Thomas,” Watt wrote in the email.
“We were struck by just how hard it was to find programs to support behaviour change. And this was for someone with considerable resources and support around them.
“We eventually found a combination of programs for Tarryn. Even though Tarryn ended up completing four different programs which included an extensive combination of education, therapy and participation-style programs, we were not able to meaningfully change his behaviour.”
Watt said there was a “need for broad reform” and North Melbourne would “support an industry initiative”.

​


Watt and Thomas’ manager, Ben Williams, declined to comment when contacted on Wednesday.
Thomas, 24, has to complete another education course at his own expense before the league will consider allowing him to be registered to play again, but he cannot return to the AFL in 2024 due to the timing of his suspension.
Thomas was suspended by North Melbourne in 2023 and charged by police over his Instagram message to his then-girlfriend in 2022 during an argument, asserting he had distributed intimate videos of the two of them. Thomas was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image, which was later dropped and replaced with a charge of using a carriage service to harass. That charge was discontinued on the condition that Thomas make a $1000 donation to the court fund.

Related Article​

g
Police have not charged Thomas for any of the subsequent incidents from 2024 that led to his AFL suspension. An AFL integrity unit investigation had found that Thomas “engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

Pyke received immediate backing from large sections of the football industry for his suggestion that the AFL take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence.

“I’m not suggesting we’ve got all the answers,” Pyke said of the AFL and the clubs. “We’ve got to be part of the solution.

“The numbers are quite staggering when you look at them.”

Three club chief executives, who declined to speak publicly due to the sensitive nature of the issues, said they were surprised that Watt had referred to Thomas in her response after Pyke had written about violence against women in broad terms.

Brad Scott addresses his players during Essendon’s Anzac Day clash with Collingwood.

Brad Scott addresses his players during Essendon’s Anzac Day clash with Collingwood.Credit: AFL Photos

The AFL did not mention Thomas last week when it announced a league-wide stand on violence against women, in which players, coaches and umpires formed a circle for a minute’s silence before all nine games in round eight. Senior coaches also read a statement before their respective post-match media conferences.

Watt’s email came less than a month after comments by Geelong coach Chris Scott who, when asked about Thomas, said the club was “open-minded” about the recruitment of any player.

Chris’ brother, former North Melbourne and now Essendon coach Brad Scott, was criticised last week when he spoke about Thomas, having coached him at the Kangaroos.

“The reality is that there are people from privileged backgrounds who have had every opportunity in life, and there are others who haven’t,” Scott said.

“People will make mistakes and as a leader, as a coach and as a parent, the responsibility is to have people learn from those mistakes. And they will make mistakes at different stages, and we’ve got to lead by example.

“In Tarryn’s case, my view is one of support.”

Jimmy Bartel says he feels apprehensive with the prospect of former Kangaroo Tarryn Thomas re-entering the AFL next year.

Former Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, who has previously spoken of harrowing ordeals he witnessed as a child, spoke passionately about Thomas and violence more broadly when asked about it on Footy Classified last week.

“So I get your premise of, the AFL, we can lead the charge, we can rehabilitate, we can be a leader in this space,” Bartel said.

“But this whole, forgiveness, try again, try again, is not working. So at some stage, what happened in the past ... we’ve actually got to go a bit more of a different direction. I lean a bit towards more zero tolerance than others because that’s personal to me.

“I’m open to all discussions, but I feel incredibly uncomfortable that we’re gonna have players arm-in-arm, another woman dies ... I just find it very hard.”

If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT
Click to expand...

Good…..they now know what we did as a club……if their serious as a comp shouldn’t go near him…ever..
As for the 3 unnamed chief executives…. Grow a backbone and put your name to your views….cowards
 
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giantroo said:



theage.com.au


Roos unable to ‘meaningfully change’ Tarryn Thomas’ behaviour: CEO’s email to rival clubs​


Sam McClure

6–7 minutes

An email sent by North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt to her 17 club counterparts about sacked player Tarryn Thomas has laid bare the club’s frustration over their repeated attempts to rehabilitate him.

In the email sent on May 1, and seen by this masthead, Watt said the Kangaroos had been unable to change Thomas’ behaviour. Thomas, who was banned for 18 matches by the AFL for inappropriate behaviour towards women, had completed four different behavioural programs before being sacked by the club once the league’s ban was announced.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.Credit: AFL Photos

The email was addressed to West Coast CEO Don Pyke, who wrote to the AFL last week to urge the league to take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence, amid growing community outrage about the killing of women in 2024; a woman has been killed violently on average every four days.

Watt wrote to Pyke and the other club chiefs to express her gratitude for Pyke’s leadership on the issue of violence against women.

“[North Melbourne president] Sonja [Hood] and I have been talking a lot about this, especially in light of the recent challenges we faced with Tarryn Thomas,” Watt wrote in the email.

“We were struck by just how hard it was to find programs to support behaviour change. And this was for someone with considerable resources and support around them.

“We eventually found a combination of programs for Tarryn. Even though Tarryn ended up completing four different programs which included an extensive combination of education, therapy and participation-style programs, we were not able to meaningfully change his behaviour.”

Watt said there was a “need for broad reform” and North Melbourne would “support an industry initiative”.

​

Watt and Thomas’ manager, Ben Williams, declined to comment when contacted on Wednesday.

Thomas, 24, has to complete another education course at his own expense before the league will consider allowing him to be registered to play again, but he cannot return to the AFL in 2024 due to the timing of his suspension.

Thomas was suspended by North Melbourne in 2023 and charged by police over his Instagram message to his then-girlfriend in 2022 during an argument, asserting he had distributed intimate videos of the two of them. Thomas was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image, which was later dropped and replaced with a charge of using a carriage service to harass. That charge was discontinued on the condition that Thomas make a $1000 donation to the court fund.

Related Article​

g

Police have not charged Thomas for any of the subsequent incidents from 2024 that led to his AFL suspension. An AFL integrity unit investigation had found that Thomas “engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

Pyke received immediate backing from large sections of the football industry for his suggestion that the AFL take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence.

“I’m not suggesting we’ve got all the answers,” Pyke said of the AFL and the clubs. “We’ve got to be part of the solution.

“The numbers are quite staggering when you look at them.”

Three club chief executives, who declined to speak publicly due to the sensitive nature of the issues, said they were surprised that Watt had referred to Thomas in her response after Pyke had written about violence against women in broad terms.


The AFL did not mention Thomas last week when it announced a league-wide stand on violence against women, in which players, coaches and umpires formed a circle for a minute’s silence before all nine games in round eight. Senior coaches also read a statement before their respective post-match media conferences.

Watt’s email came less than a month after comments by Geelong coach Chris Scott who, when asked about Thomas, said the club was “open-minded” about the recruitment of any player.

Chris’ brother, former North Melbourne and now Essendon coach Brad Scott, was criticised last week when he spoke about Thomas, having coached him at the Kangaroos.

“The reality is that there are people from privileged backgrounds who have had every opportunity in life, and there are others who haven’t,” Scott said.

“People will make mistakes and as a leader, as a coach and as a parent, the responsibility is to have people learn from those mistakes. And they will make mistakes at different stages, and we’ve got to lead by example.

“In Tarryn’s case, my view is one of support.”

Jimmy Bartel says he feels apprehensive with the prospect of former Kangaroo Tarryn Thomas re-entering the AFL next year.

Former Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, who has previously spoken of harrowing ordeals he witnessed as a child, spoke passionately about Thomas and violence more broadly when asked about it on Footy Classified last week.

“So I get your premise of, the AFL, we can lead the charge, we can rehabilitate, we can be a leader in this space,” Bartel said.

“But this whole, forgiveness, try again, try again, is not working. So at some stage, what happened in the past ... we’ve actually got to go a bit more of a different direction. I lean a bit towards more zero tolerance than others because that’s personal to me.

“I’m open to all discussions, but I feel incredibly uncomfortable that we’re gonna have players arm-in-arm, another woman dies ... I just find it very hard.”

If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
Click to expand...

I like the message being sent to the other CEOs, and outlining just how far we went to fix the issues.

Find it kind of gross that one of them immediately then forwarded it to a newspaper.
 
giantroo said:



theage.com.au


Roos unable to ‘meaningfully change’ Tarryn Thomas’ behaviour: CEO’s email to rival clubs​


Sam McClure

6–7 minutes

An email sent by North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt to her 17 club counterparts about sacked player Tarryn Thomas has laid bare the club’s frustration over their repeated attempts to rehabilitate him.

In the email sent on May 1, and seen by this masthead, Watt said the Kangaroos had been unable to change Thomas’ behaviour. Thomas, who was banned for 18 matches by the AFL for inappropriate behaviour towards women, had completed four different behavioural programs before being sacked by the club once the league’s ban was announced.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.Credit: AFL Photos

The email was addressed to West Coast CEO Don Pyke, who wrote to the AFL last week to urge the league to take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence, amid growing community outrage about the killing of women in 2024; a woman has been killed violently on average every four days.

Watt wrote to Pyke and the other club chiefs to express her gratitude for Pyke’s leadership on the issue of violence against women.

“[North Melbourne president] Sonja [Hood] and I have been talking a lot about this, especially in light of the recent challenges we faced with Tarryn Thomas,” Watt wrote in the email.

“We were struck by just how hard it was to find programs to support behaviour change. And this was for someone with considerable resources and support around them.

“We eventually found a combination of programs for Tarryn. Even though Tarryn ended up completing four different programs which included an extensive combination of education, therapy and participation-style programs, we were not able to meaningfully change his behaviour.”

Watt said there was a “need for broad reform” and North Melbourne would “support an industry initiative”.

​

Watt and Thomas’ manager, Ben Williams, declined to comment when contacted on Wednesday.

Thomas, 24, has to complete another education course at his own expense before the league will consider allowing him to be registered to play again, but he cannot return to the AFL in 2024 due to the timing of his suspension.

Thomas was suspended by North Melbourne in 2023 and charged by police over his Instagram message to his then-girlfriend in 2022 during an argument, asserting he had distributed intimate videos of the two of them. Thomas was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image, which was later dropped and replaced with a charge of using a carriage service to harass. That charge was discontinued on the condition that Thomas make a $1000 donation to the court fund.

Related Article​

g

Police have not charged Thomas for any of the subsequent incidents from 2024 that led to his AFL suspension. An AFL integrity unit investigation had found that Thomas “engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

Pyke received immediate backing from large sections of the football industry for his suggestion that the AFL take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence.

“I’m not suggesting we’ve got all the answers,” Pyke said of the AFL and the clubs. “We’ve got to be part of the solution.

“The numbers are quite staggering when you look at them.”

Three club chief executives, who declined to speak publicly due to the sensitive nature of the issues, said they were surprised that Watt had referred to Thomas in her response after Pyke had written about violence against women in broad terms.


The AFL did not mention Thomas last week when it announced a league-wide stand on violence against women, in which players, coaches and umpires formed a circle for a minute’s silence before all nine games in round eight. Senior coaches also read a statement before their respective post-match media conferences.

Watt’s email came less than a month after comments by Geelong coach Chris Scott who, when asked about Thomas, said the club was “open-minded” about the recruitment of any player.

Chris’ brother, former North Melbourne and now Essendon coach Brad Scott, was criticised last week when he spoke about Thomas, having coached him at the Kangaroos.

“The reality is that there are people from privileged backgrounds who have had every opportunity in life, and there are others who haven’t,” Scott said.

“People will make mistakes and as a leader, as a coach and as a parent, the responsibility is to have people learn from those mistakes. And they will make mistakes at different stages, and we’ve got to lead by example.

“In Tarryn’s case, my view is one of support.”

Jimmy Bartel says he feels apprehensive with the prospect of former Kangaroo Tarryn Thomas re-entering the AFL next year.

Former Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, who has previously spoken of harrowing ordeals he witnessed as a child, spoke passionately about Thomas and violence more broadly when asked about it on Footy Classified last week.

“So I get your premise of, the AFL, we can lead the charge, we can rehabilitate, we can be a leader in this space,” Bartel said.

“But this whole, forgiveness, try again, try again, is not working. So at some stage, what happened in the past ... we’ve actually got to go a bit more of a different direction. I lean a bit towards more zero tolerance than others because that’s personal to me.

“I’m open to all discussions, but I feel incredibly uncomfortable that we’re gonna have players arm-in-arm, another woman dies ... I just find it very hard.”

If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
Click to expand...


The last week or so's reactions by the wider community as well as this has given me a little more hope that he won't play again at AFL level.

Any club that looks to get him will face bigger backlash than even I first thought.

1 week ago I was probably about 80% certain he would play again...now it's probably down to about 55%. If the attention and negative spotlight keeps up like this, we won't see him again, clubs will be far too scared to touch him
 
Cyber_punk said:
The last week or so's reactions by the wider community as well as this has given me a little more hope that he won't play again at AFL level.

Any club that looks to get him will face bigger backlash than even I first thought.

1 week ago I was probably about 80% certain he would play again...now it's probably down to about 55%. If the attention and negative spotlight keeps up like this, we won't see him again, clubs will be far too scared to touch him
Click to expand...
Geelong: "Well if he's already done 4 courses, 1 more should really reinforce things and fix everything."
 
Hearts to hearts said:
An adult man wearing a ring from winning a college sport to work. Don’t want to say he deserved the pain, exactly, but sheesh.
Click to expand...
He was American.

We had a myriad of them where I worked at the time. It was often funny n meetings as half the time they couldn't understand a thing we were saying.
 
shintemaster said:
I'm gonna go with Americans are stupid instead.
Click to expand...
Dumb as...

I got complained about by one when I said "she'll be right" about something.

My boss called me in to his office. Had a laugh and told me to just tell them to GAGF and that he wanted at least one complaint from them per day.
 
My Left Foote said:
I was listening to this on the way home from work. Hodge called him out saying he didn't apply the same level of scrutiny for *** as he would if it were say a North Melbourne player. But rather than argue his point or even in the highly unlikely event acknowledge that Hodge was right, the fact that Hodge mentioned us Kane took this as an opportunity for a non-sequitur and have a go at Phillips saying he was playing in the reserves and he doesn't even get many kicks it's more handballs. If it were anyone else it would be odd but because it's Cornes he's learnt from the very best in Caro that there is no leap too far to wedge North Melbourne into a negative conversation.
Click to expand...
So, equal parts weird and dumb.
 
Billy Not Really said:
* me dead here it comes.

Let’s just draw 10 yard lines and call downs for every tackle until a 5th down and then reset while we’re at it. Let’s put a shot clock in for every possession to force a disposal, let’s put the players in ******* body armour, let’s have PLAY IN AND PLAY OFF SEASON.

* American sports, they’re s**t.
Click to expand...
I can't wait until they introduce the chain to measure if a kick went 15 metres or if a player ran more than that without taking a bounce. It would add an exciting element to the game if the chain was brought out whenever the opposition captain issued a disputed call with the match referee.
 

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giantroo said:



theage.com.au


Roos unable to ‘meaningfully change’ Tarryn Thomas’ behaviour: CEO’s email to rival clubs​


Sam McClure

6–7 minutes

An email sent by North Melbourne chief executive Jennifer Watt to her 17 club counterparts about sacked player Tarryn Thomas has laid bare the club’s frustration over their repeated attempts to rehabilitate him.

In the email sent on May 1, and seen by this masthead, Watt said the Kangaroos had been unable to change Thomas’ behaviour. Thomas, who was banned for 18 matches by the AFL for inappropriate behaviour towards women, had completed four different behavioural programs before being sacked by the club once the league’s ban was announced.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.

Former North Melbourne midfielder Tarryn Thomas at a training session at Arden Street last year.Credit: AFL Photos

The email was addressed to West Coast CEO Don Pyke, who wrote to the AFL last week to urge the league to take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence, amid growing community outrage about the killing of women in 2024; a woman has been killed violently on average every four days.

Watt wrote to Pyke and the other club chiefs to express her gratitude for Pyke’s leadership on the issue of violence against women.

“[North Melbourne president] Sonja [Hood] and I have been talking a lot about this, especially in light of the recent challenges we faced with Tarryn Thomas,” Watt wrote in the email.

“We were struck by just how hard it was to find programs to support behaviour change. And this was for someone with considerable resources and support around them.

“We eventually found a combination of programs for Tarryn. Even though Tarryn ended up completing four different programs which included an extensive combination of education, therapy and participation-style programs, we were not able to meaningfully change his behaviour.”

Watt said there was a “need for broad reform” and North Melbourne would “support an industry initiative”.

​

Watt and Thomas’ manager, Ben Williams, declined to comment when contacted on Wednesday.

Thomas, 24, has to complete another education course at his own expense before the league will consider allowing him to be registered to play again, but he cannot return to the AFL in 2024 due to the timing of his suspension.

Thomas was suspended by North Melbourne in 2023 and charged by police over his Instagram message to his then-girlfriend in 2022 during an argument, asserting he had distributed intimate videos of the two of them. Thomas was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image, which was later dropped and replaced with a charge of using a carriage service to harass. That charge was discontinued on the condition that Thomas make a $1000 donation to the court fund.

Related Article​

g

Police have not charged Thomas for any of the subsequent incidents from 2024 that led to his AFL suspension. An AFL integrity unit investigation had found that Thomas “engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

Pyke received immediate backing from large sections of the football industry for his suggestion that the AFL take a united stand against the prevalence of gender-based violence.

“I’m not suggesting we’ve got all the answers,” Pyke said of the AFL and the clubs. “We’ve got to be part of the solution.

“The numbers are quite staggering when you look at them.”

Three club chief executives, who declined to speak publicly due to the sensitive nature of the issues, said they were surprised that Watt had referred to Thomas in her response after Pyke had written about violence against women in broad terms.


The AFL did not mention Thomas last week when it announced a league-wide stand on violence against women, in which players, coaches and umpires formed a circle for a minute’s silence before all nine games in round eight. Senior coaches also read a statement before their respective post-match media conferences.

Watt’s email came less than a month after comments by Geelong coach Chris Scott who, when asked about Thomas, said the club was “open-minded” about the recruitment of any player.

Chris’ brother, former North Melbourne and now Essendon coach Brad Scott, was criticised last week when he spoke about Thomas, having coached him at the Kangaroos.

“The reality is that there are people from privileged backgrounds who have had every opportunity in life, and there are others who haven’t,” Scott said.

“People will make mistakes and as a leader, as a coach and as a parent, the responsibility is to have people learn from those mistakes. And they will make mistakes at different stages, and we’ve got to lead by example.

“In Tarryn’s case, my view is one of support.”

Jimmy Bartel says he feels apprehensive with the prospect of former Kangaroo Tarryn Thomas re-entering the AFL next year.

Former Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, who has previously spoken of harrowing ordeals he witnessed as a child, spoke passionately about Thomas and violence more broadly when asked about it on Footy Classified last week.

“So I get your premise of, the AFL, we can lead the charge, we can rehabilitate, we can be a leader in this space,” Bartel said.

“But this whole, forgiveness, try again, try again, is not working. So at some stage, what happened in the past ... we’ve actually got to go a bit more of a different direction. I lean a bit towards more zero tolerance than others because that’s personal to me.

“I’m open to all discussions, but I feel incredibly uncomfortable that we’re gonna have players arm-in-arm, another woman dies ... I just find it very hard.”

If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
Click to expand...

It is an interesting game of chicken being played. I have a feeling that pragmatic (and mostly reviled) coaches like Ross that care little for their own reputations will be the last to blink…
 
Cyber_punk said:
The last week or so's reactions by the wider community as well as this has given me a little more hope that he won't play again at AFL level.

Any club that looks to get him will face bigger backlash than even I first thought.

1 week ago I was probably about 80% certain he would play again...now it's probably down to about 55%. If the attention and negative spotlight keeps up like this, we won't see him again, clubs will be far too scared to touch him
Click to expand...

He's going to need to spend 2025 playing at an unaffiliated state league club. If he manages to stay out of trouble for another 18 months, and if he's playing really good football, some list manager is going to ask the question.
 
SonofSamsquanch said:
I can't wait until they introduce the chain to measure if a kick went 15 metres or if a player ran more than that without taking a bounce. It would add an exciting element to the game if the chain was brought out whenever the opposition captain issued a disputed call with the match referee.
Click to expand...
Perhaps they should, it does my head in how regularly I see 10m kicks paid as marks and players running 20m without bouncing it with impunity.
 
FootySmartSimpson said:
It is an interesting game of chicken being played. I have a feeling that pragmatic (and mostly reviled) coaches like Ross that care little for their own reputations will be the last to blink…
Click to expand...
Yeah good point. Sounds like C Scott’s is trying to soften up the general public for his bro B Scott’s who put his full support behind Tarryn the Terrible so he can draft him at the end of the year.

Maybe at the last family bbq, B Scott’s had a bit of banter with C Scott’s and told him..

B Scott’s: “cone on bro you won a flag in your first year and I kept playing Jamie McMillian so you would beat us back then, it’s finally time to repay the favour and soften the footy world, just so I can get the last piece of my premiership jigsaw puzzle - TT, then we’ll go down in history as the only identical twins to both coach an AFL side to a flag..

Imagine the book deals, the shoe deals and the Movie deal that Village Roadshow will throw at us (Ryan Gosling will play me btw), so how about it bro?..”

C. Scott’s: “yeah ok B Scott’s but you owe me big time!.. Merrett, Draper, Martin and first rounder will be ours for a salary dump after you win the flag.”

B Scott’s: “sold!!”
 
Cyber_punk said:
The last week or so's reactions by the wider community as well as this has given me a little more hope that he won't play again at AFL level.

Any club that looks to get him will face bigger backlash than even I first thought.

1 week ago I was probably about 80% certain he would play again...now it's probably down to about 55%. If the attention and negative spotlight keeps up like this, we won't see him again, clubs will be far too scared to touch him
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You forget how quickly the public forget things. He’ll 100% be on an afl list, he will also dominate. All he did was send text messages. Remember that.
 


 
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Val Keating said:
They’re focusing on Thomas, which is fair enough, but to me it sounds like she’s making a point about the lack of options they had to try and change his behaviour.
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When you read the letter it’s not what the headlines say it is.
 
Hearts to hearts said:
When you read the letter it’s not what the headlines say it is.
Click to expand...
I wonder why a club CEO would have leaked this? If their purpose was to use the media to emphasise the difficulties involved with teaching respect in circumstances like this I believe the better option would have been to pick up the phone, speak with Jen and set up a zoom call amongst their peers to formulate a unified approach to better understand and manage future situations. I'm certain that every club has young blokes who are a bit full of themselves and who would be at risk of crossing the line so everyone could benefit from some leadership being enacted.

But it appears that at least one recipient of the email has decided to flip it on to a mate in the media - who knows why? Maybe they offer up a scoop in order to get some future positive reporting for their club for all I know.

But I can't accept that the email was leaked by someone with a social conscience who thought that having scoops maclures read it out on TV would change the tide of public opinion or improve the availability of suitable education for players or for the broader community in general.
 
SonofSamsquanch said:
I wonder why a club CEO would have leaked this? If their purpose was to use the media to emphasise the difficulties involved with teaching respect in circumstances like this I believe the better option would have been to pick up the phone, speak with Jen and set up a zoom call amongst their peers to formulate a unified approach to better understand and manage future situations. I'm certain that every club has young blokes who are a bit full of themselves and who would be at risk of crossing the line so everyone could benefit from some leadership being enacted.

But it appears that at least one recipient of the email has decided to flip it on to a mate in the media - who knows why? Maybe they offer up a scoop in order to get some future positive reporting for their club for all I know.

But I can't accept that the email was leaked by someone with a social conscience who thought that having scoops maclures read it out on TV would change the tide of public opinion or improve the availability of suitable education for players or for the broader community in general.
Click to expand...

We could have possibly leaked it….
 
 
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