News Vale John McCarthy

[The Smaller Warrior]

Not actually my picture btw,

Deck was put on top to make sure it didn't blow away and get caught on fire.

But I agree, its a beautiful picture of them both.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

I'm a bit confused about the time discrepancy between McCarthy's death (5:37am Sun US, probably about 9:00pm ACST) and the club getting notified and speaking with the players 12 hours later. One news report on yahoo.com.au intimates that Dani tried to contact the players after John's phone call to her and that they didn't know where he was (maybe the reporter embellishing the facts here). Wonder if the players had realised he was missing prior to the club's phone-call and if they were interviewed by police to try to put together the missing hours prior to his death.

If you go thru it logically it makes sense. No one in the media knows exactly how distressing the phonecall was. Wouldn't be the first time that the media has exageratted how bad it was.

The latest media report on ch 7 news a few minutes ago was that the call was an hour before John's death. That would be approx 4.30am Vegas time. It sounds like most of the guys were in bed. They probably turned their phones off. Also given the jet lag situation most of them were probably in a deep sleep with their body clock adjusting. The other report I have read was that she couldn't get thru to any of the players.

So if Danni rang around and didn't get anyone then it might have dawned on her what the local time was and that people were asleep, so she stopped ringing around and as it was late Sunday night Adelaide time she might have gone to bed hoping that things would be ok in the morning.

On the main board spark12 said
Been reported now in the herald sun he was with PA players earlier in the night etc , they then went to a club where there were also bulldogs players there and John couldn't get in

some idiot replyed If he couldn't get in... he must have been smashed. I responded and said that's not necessarily the case as the drinking age in California and just about everywhere else was 21. McCarthy was 22. If McCarthy didn't have a licence or passport he wouldn't have gotten in.

23 years ago when I was travelling thru California, I was in my mid 20's and looked a little older than my age but I was asked for ID in every pub/bar I went to. I asked one bouncer why they check everyone, including people who were a lot older than me, and he said that if they get caught the owner gets a $250,000 for every individual caught - so they didn't take any chances. After a year living in Canada and travelling in eastern USA, I found this bizzare as the Canadian drinking age was 19 and I assumed every state I visted in the eastern US states it was 21, but was never asked for ID.

Then Plugger 35 made the following post in response to my ID to get a drink in the USA post
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threa...in-las-vegas-rip.971939/page-37#post-25609358

Warren Tredrea was interviewed on the Today show this morning and mentioned that another Port player was refused entry to a nightclub for not having ID so went back to his hotel to get some but then decided not to go back and just went to bed instead. The same thing may well have happened to McCarthy but he got lost trying to find his hotel which is easy enough to do if you're drunk and in an unfamiliar place.

When I was in the States I always got asked for ID entering bars and clubs too which I found amusing as I was in my mid 20s and hadn't been asked for ID since I was 18 or 19. They asked people a lot older than me for ID too, pretty much everyone gets asked for ID there no matter how old you look. They also tend to be stricter when it comes to refusing people entry for being too drunk which also happened to me a couple of times there.

Now if John didn't have any ID on him how where they going to identify him at the hospital??

PJ my understanding is you are a doctor/cardioligist and your profile says you are in Minnesota. If I'm right then you probably understand how emergency section of the hospital works in USA.

It's early Sunday morning, he is dead on arrival, either there aren't many cops around or if they are they are probably having to deal with the usual Saturday night/ Sunday morning drunks. The hospital has a deceased individual, which may or may not have ID on him. The cops aren't necessarily going to rush to find out who the deceased is. A few hours might pass until the day shift guys start. So if John had his licence on him the cops may have made an identification by say 10am Sunday LV time, did the calculation that it was 3am Melbourne time so they decided to wait a few hours until the working day started in Australia.

If he didn't have ID on him I'm not sure how they identified him. If he did he may well have had a Victorian licence ( if slack like me, John may not have flicked it over to SA until it runs out) or some form of ID with a Victorian address. I suspect that's why the LV police contacted the Victoria police first and then the Vic police contacted the club at 9.30am.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/...e-football-world/story-e6frea83-1226471390946

Sunday 5.40am
(10.40pm Sunday, Melbourne time) McCarthy found unresponsive on the south driveway of the Flamingo Hotel & Casino, near the hotel’s south entrance. He is believed to have fallen from the hotel building.

He was not staying at the Flamingo and was not with treatmates at the time. He is taken to University Medical Centre of Las Vegas, where he is pronounced dead.

Monday
9.30am: Police contact the Port Adelaide club, which then tells the players in Las Vegas.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/...e-football-world/story-e6frea83-1226471390946

 

[spookism]

Still not quiet sure what to make of it all.
Just proves that you must make the most of all your chances, especially any second chances you can get.

 

[PJ Power]

I think your explanations all make logical sense, REH and you're definitely right about the ID issue over here. The player Tredders referred to in his interview was Brett Ebert btw. I'm 36 and look every bit my age, and still get asked for ID when in liquor stores over here.

I guess my remarks in the earlier post were to wonder whether the players realised in that 12 hour period that McCarthy was missing or not. It could be that they were heavily sleeping off their jet-lag, especially if they had arrived over here late on Sat night and then had hit the town straight away.

I'm not suggesting any mischief, just that the missing pieces make the scenario so baffling and hard to process. What has struck the strongest chord with me today is the suggestion that he was panicked and/or delirious at the time of his phone-call.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

The other thing is if most of the players went to bed around 3am or later, it wouldn't be unusual that they sleep for 10 to 12 hours given their jet lag and only had an hour or two being awake and wondering where John was before the club got hold of them.

 

[manureid]

Just played a tribute on 360... ffs....

 

[Burningleviathan]

The thing that bothers me is that he was alone when it happened. Not at a party or with anyone. According to an article on News.com the police said he was on the roof by himself. I'm not going to draw any conclusions, but it is sad if that was how it happened. At least drunken shenanigans means he was happy when it happened. It seems this was not the case.

 

[finbarr]

It has crossed my mind that, upon becoming lost, disorientated, distressed and anxious, possibly running on a severe lack of sleep and whatever else, that he found himself miles from his hotel and went to the nearest tall structure to get his bearings and perhaps sight his hotel from the rooftop. Perhaps a little far fetched, but possible nonetheless.

 

[catman 71]

I don't know how you guys feel about posters from other clubs posting here.

Just wanted to say:- R.I.P. John McCarthy

Condolences to family, friends, Port Adelaide and Collingwood football clubs!

 

[Del80659]

America is a stupid dangerous playground. I hate how our (AFL) players go over there to wind down. I wish our players were interested in going to museums and gardening in their off time.

sits uncomfortably how he was alone away from his team mates at that hotel, I wonder if we'll ever learn what happened.

 

[Macca19]

It has crossed my mind that, upon becoming lost, disorientated, distressed and anxious, possibly running on a severe lack of sleep and whatever else, that he found himself miles from his hotel and went to the nearest tall structure to get his bearings and perhaps sight his hotel from the rooftop. Perhaps a little far fetched, but possible nonetheless.

This is pretty much exactly what ive been thinking.

 

[Portmanteau]

Still can't believe it. It's been a rough year.

 

[Macca19]

Certainly has. Still hasnt sunk in yet.

 

[Jabsy]

May get a #35 guernsey made and lay it out with some flowers at the club as a tribute to John.

Hopefully the club retires the number as a show of respect.

And puts his name on his locker.

 

[Premiers04]

The whole story (of what we know ATM) is just so heartbreaking and tragic. The fact he was all alone and had contacted his GF just prior is gut wrenching to think about, cant begin to imagine how she is feeling.

I fear for what this will do to psyche of the players that were with him in Vegas, a lot of what ifs will be running through their minds. Their account of the events leading up to JMac becoming separated from the rest of the group is vital to understanding this tragedy.

Hope the pies can get up for him on the weekend.

 

[Janey]

And puts his name on his locker.

I think number 35 should be retired for a while, but it is also Chad's number and there will probably be a time when it's appropriate to hand it on.

As you say, John definitely has to have his name on his locker.

Still struggling so much to come to terms with this and it breaks my heart to think how his family, Dani, and his team mates are feeling.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

The thing that bothers me is that he was alone when it happened. Not at a party or with anyone. According to an article on News.com the police said he was on the roof by himself. I'm not going to draw any conclusions, but it is sad if that was how it happened. At least drunken shenanigans means he was happy when it happened. It seems this was not the case.

Depends how drunk. alcohol initially picks you up, you feel good and confident, but then as you drink more its a depressent.

 

[PJ Power]

The whole story (of what we know ATM) is just so heartbreaking and tragic. The fact he was all alone and had contacted his GF just prior is gut wrenching to think about, cant begin to imagine how she is feeling.

I fear for what this will do to psyche of the players that were with him in Vegas, a lot of what ifs will be running through their minds. Their account of the events leading up to JMac becoming separated from the rest of the group is vital to understanding this tragedy.

Hope the pies can get up for him on the weekend.

This pretty much sums up the way I've been feeling over the past 24 hours. I'm very concerned about the impact it will have on those ten players. Firstly, I hope that in no way are they held accountable for being separated from John. It would be very natural for them to feel responsible for letting a mate down - just so crucial that they stay tight now and that the rest of the players and the club and broader footy community support them. The guys in the travelling party have always come across to me as a pretty sensible, conservative group as far as young footballers go. It goes without saying that they include a handful of our most important players and future leaders. How they come out of this will be critical to us moving forward on and off-field.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

America is a stupid dangerous playground. I hate how our (AFL) players go over there to wind down. I wish our players were interested in going to museums and gardening in their off time.

sits uncomfortably how he was alone away from his team mates at that hotel, I wonder if we'll ever learn what happened.

You could argue the same about Australia. Seems like the majority of the world's most dangerous reptiles live on the land and the sharks, sting rays, blue ringed octopus etc in the ocean. Then there are the powerful surf beaches.

Visiting backpackers get killed by serial killers and psycopaths, or punched up outside pubs and clubs and the odd one who might be suffering mental issues get shot by cops.

 

[MrMeaner]

I see someone mentioned John's name going up on his locker. I think it's a good idea. Does anyone know if the club did that for Anthony Williams?

 

[Natman]

I see someone mentioned John's name going up on his locker. I think it's a good idea. Does anyone know if the club did that for Anthony Williams?

I'm pretty sure that Anthony played a 100 games which is the qualification for a name on a locker.

 

[Comettski_1]

I also hope the other players don't blame themselves. Vegas is a crazy place, easy to lose your mates. Doubt he was looking for his hotel as Vegas is pretty well just one road, I think we'll just have to wait and see.

So sad, still can't believe it...

 

[n4nirvana]

I think number 35 should be retired for a while, but it is also Chad's number and there will probably be a time when it's appropriate to hand it on.

As you say, John definitely has to have his name on his locker.

Still struggling so much to come to terms with this and it breaks my heart to think how his family, Dani, and his team mates are feeling.

I agree with retiring the number 35 for a while ...

My only addition to that/idea is that when the number 35 does resurface again (and tell me if Im out of line here/bad idea etc) would it then be appropriate for a member of John's family to present the jumper to the new player instead of a past player? Kind of continuing the legacy of number 35

 

[Janey]

This pretty much sums up the way I've been feeling over the past 24 hours. I'm very concerned about the impact it will have on those ten players. Firstly, I hope that in no way are they held accountable for being separated from John. It would be very natural for them to feel responsible for letting a mate down - just so crucial that they stay tight now and that the rest of the players and the club and broader footy community support them. The guys in the travelling party have always come across to me as a pretty sensible, conservative group as far as young footballers go. It goes without saying that they include a handful of our most important players and future leaders. How they come out of this will be critical to us moving forward on and off-field.

I guess they will be trying to avoid the media at the moment, but does anyone know whether the players are back in Adelaide yet or are they still in transit?

 

[MrMeaner]

I'm pretty sure that Anthony played a 100 games which is the qualification for a name on a locker.

Yeah, I was wondering whether he had. There are other exceptions to the 100 games rule though - team of the century is one that comes to mind.