Who Gets Punished - Sydney or WCE?

[YALLS]

Theres an article below regarding punishing current team because of the indiscretions of another team. It is my belief in sport if you don't play by the rules you get punished not someone else. Now it seems WCE are now finally playing by the rules yet the current team is going to be punished. This is not right.
For example olympic gold medals can be stripped so the Silver medallist gets the gold retrospectively, the silver goes to 3rd and the bronze to 4th. This means the team who the athlete actually competed for cops the punishment not the current team.
So if these WCE players are found to have been using performance enhancing drugs and banned substances I think the AFL should award the 2006 premiership to Sydney. There is no one that has been punished in this as much as them.

WEST Coast relaunched themselves as a reformed club but Eagles boss Trevor Nisbett is still worried previous bad behaviour could return to haunt them at next month's AFL Commission meeting.
The tarnished Eagles brand was given a makeover with past stars such as Ross Glendinning and Dean Kemp introducing a "New Breed of Eagles" - epitomised by new poster boys Darren Glass and Tyson Stenglein.

But while there was no mention of discarded bad boys Ben Cousins and Daniel Chick amongst talk of numerous community good deeds, the spectre of past misdemeanours - and what it could mean at the AFL Commission meeting on March 14 - still loomed large.

"There is no doubt the penny has dropped, but it is still ongoing and we have still got a lot of work to do," Nisbett said.

"We are trying to get our message out to the public that the guys are doing a lot of work in the community, thousands of hours of unpaid work, which is quite outstanding - and we have not been able to sell that message.

"Because some players have messed up in the past, all of our players should not be labelled with that."

At next month's AFL Commission, league bosses will discuss the Eagles response to issues arising out of retired Victorian High Court Justice Bill Gillard's extensive report into the club, and possible penalties which should include premiership points.

And the Eagles chief executive said they were now nervously awaiting the league's reply.

"We have responded and that is extremely confidential. They wanted some questions answered from the Gillard report, and I think they were fair questions and I think we have tried to answer them as best we can," Nisbett said.

"I am nervous as anyone would be, the whole thing about our football club is we cannot be complacent about what we are trying to achieve.

"We don't expect a group of players between 18 and 32 in this environment to be absolutely perfect.

"There are going to be indiscretions along the way.

"But we can't have repetitive indiscretions and that is what we have had from a select few.

Meanwhile, young key position player Mitch Brown has spoken of his shock at learning an apparently innocuous clash during a practice match against Collingwood last weekend, had in fact wrecked his knee and ended his season.

Brown will undergo a knee reconstruction.

"I know exactly when I did it ... and my honest feelings about it was that it didn't really hurt," Brown said.

"I kept on playing, and after the game I was more concerned about my hip. But on Sunday morning I could not walk, and after the MRI I was just shocked."

The Eagles have ruled out using the controversial synthetic graft technique which Sydney hope will have Nick Malceski back from a similar injury by round eight.

"I am just a young pup, and a year setback is nothing really," Brown said.

 

[sumavich]

Can't agree !! As much as I hate the Toast, they deserved the cup then, only just, but they deserved it. Cousins, Chick, Kerr, Fletcher aside they still deserved it.
However, the current admin should be in trouble for letting it get to where it did i.e. Nisbett, Gepp and Worsfold let some players get away with blue murder and as they are still there the club will still be punished IMO.

 

[Reveler]

can't agree either. Whilst I think that punishing the current playing group is poor idea. I think that if a punishment is deemed necessary the Admin and Club in general should wear the punishment.

Not sure what this has to do with Fremantle though? Unless we can punish all clubs including Sydney, West Coast and Adelaide... then Freo could be awareded the premiership

 

[newlander77]

Freo has been punished by the AFL in the past. Why should other sides be immune to this punishment? Granted the situations are completely different.

If Freo was to go down the same path as WC then I would expect Freo to be punished severely.

 

[Belnakor]

in this time of "role models" and PC coming to the fore in general i would expect the next club to get done for a simliar thing to get butchered next time.

Its ironic that if WCE hadn't spoken up we wouldn't have known.

 

[InCase]

They didn't take any performance enhancing drugs. Anyone who has taken the drugs cousins has taken knows that it does not enhance your performance, infact quite the opposite. If you remember that video of Cousins stumbling out of a car - how that looks like a man enhancing his sporting performance via drugs is mind boggling.

And to go on top of that, how many eagles have tested positive to drugs? You don't know how many players and what teams took drugs for fact unless they admit it - like cousins or test positive.

The Eagles won the premiership because they where the best team of the year, 1 player does not make the team, and should not be punished because of this one man. On what I would call performance dehancing drugs, which I highly doubt he took anywhere near game time.

The Eagles that need to be punished have been, they have been let go, but the people we have to focus on are the management that let this behaviour slide.

 

[WCE57]

Theres an article below regarding punishing current team because of the indiscretions of another team. It is my belief in sport if you don't play by the rules you get punished not someone else. Now it seems WCE are now finally playing by the rules yet the current team is going to be punished. This is not right.
For example olympic gold medals can be stripped so the Silver medallist gets the gold retrospectively, the silver goes to 3rd and the bronze to 4th. This means the team who the athlete actually competed for cops the punishment not the current team.
So if these WCE players are found to have been using performance enhancing drugs and banned substances I think the AFL should award the 2006 premiership to Sydney. There is no one that has been punished in this as much as them.

What are the rules? Through the AFL's 'three strikes' drug policy, the first time you can be tested positive (not on game day) and while you have to go through counseling but you are still allow to play. Its only on game day, you face a 2 year suspension.

Secondly, if you start removing trophies because of illicit substance ( and by the way there is still no clear evidence (drug tests) that the majority of Eagles players were found to be using), then you would have to look at punishing everyone that have tested positive to illicit drugs (e..g 20 or so positive tests.

Also I would point out that while AFL policy focuses on rehabilitation for illicit drug use (out of competition) e.g three strikes policy, I would argue that there is a 'mixed message' in regards to illicit drug abuse. You can't say its banned substance on game day but every other day say that 'we will educate and rehabilitate you' and not think it would lead to problems like this.

Look I am not going to pretend that there has not been a significant problem at my club but I would argue that there this is not a clear cut situation that you make it out to be. When the AFL sends out a mixed message that is the three strike policy.

 

[DockerNJL]

They didn't take any performance enhancing drugs. Anyone who has taken the drugs cousins has taken knows that it does not enhance your performance, infact quite the opposite. If you remember that video of Cousins stumbling out of a car - how that looks like a man enhancing his sporting performance via drugs is mind boggling.

And to go on top of that, how many eagles have tested positive to drugs? You don't know how many players and what teams took drugs for fact unless they admit it - like cousins or test positive.

The Eagles won the premiership because they where the best team of the year, 1 player does not make the team, and should not be punished because of this one man. On what I would call performance dehancing drugs, which I highly doubt he took anywhere near game time.

The Eagles that need to be punished have been, they have been let go, but the people we have to focus on are the management that let this behaviour slide.

wow, touchy touchy,
firstly i would not agree at all on you guys been stripped of the cup, its yours, its tarnished you can have it.
secondly its quite funny how you think there is only one player with indiscretions + that you somehow think that if you trained while on the gear it wouldn't help, speed was used in the early 1900's as a perfomence enhancing drug its funny how now its called recriational.

 

[InCase]

wow, touchy touchy,
firstly i would not agree at all on you guys been stripped of the cup, its yours, its tarnished you can have it.
secondly its quite funny how you think there is only one player with indiscretions + that you somehow think that if you trained while on the gear it wouldn't help, speed was used in the early 1900's as a perfomence enhancing drug its funny how now its called recriational.

One admit to it, how many have tested positive?
There's as much chance of any Fremantle or any other teams player being on it as the rest of the Eagles.
Who in the Eagles has tested positive to speed?

 

[88mph]

Sydney was given Barry Hall by the AFL in 2005 when the guy should have been rubbed out for stiking. Just think, wouldnt ot be great for the game to give Sydney another premiership, then perhaps AFL might become a blip on the radar in NSW.

 

[Bluto]

How about this crap be saved for bay 13. Or at least have the balls to post it on the Eagles board.

 

[DockerNJL]

One admit to it, how many have tested positive?
There's as much chance of any Fremantle or any other teams player being on it as the rest of the Eagles.
Who in the Eagles has tested positive to speed?

Just InCase you didnt read my other post,
I dont care you can have your stinkin cup.
With the speed issue i was relating that to your post how you said its not performance enhancing bla bla bla.
So now Kerr has got a nice article in the west last week saying how he is the next Jesus Christ or some shit, do you actually beleive he ain't still on the horse chaff or anything else for that manner.
Im not going to say that we have no players that havnt done it or still on it for that matter there just smart enough so far to not get cought like these other players.

 

[ssfc0203]

Even if they did take performance enhancing drugs - which i believe they didn't - i don't think may Swans supporters would want a premiership handed to us.
We lost that day, drugs or no drugs, and it would be wrong to accept something that another team had worked so hard to win, bar a couple of players "maybe" taking drugs.

Seriously, I'd rather that cup stays in WA.

 

[Belnakor]

Sydney was given Barry Hall by the AFL in 2005 when the guy should have been rubbed out for stiking. Just think, wouldnt ot be great for the game to give Sydney another premiership, then perhaps AFL might become a blip on the radar in NSW.

It amazing the way Sydney players carry onto the umps during the season. Biggest whingers in the comp by MILES. And yet you just need to think back to the Barry Hall let off to realize that whatever happens from now on Sydney got helped to their premiership by more than just a salary cap advantage.

 

[bigkev bleeds purple]

The only solution to this mess is deregistering their sorry little corporation, striking them from the history books and burning every single blue and yellow artefact ever made. We should probably go after their sponsors for links to organised crime as well. Last but not least, that lizard Nisbett needs to banished back to whatever stinking, miserable planet he came from.

That'll learn 'em.

 

[Dr Ralph Dagg]

There is a difference in punishing a club and punishing the team.

And if you read the spin that is still expectorating from Trevor Nisbett about a select few tarnishing the many you can see they have learnt nothing. He staggers about like a drunken sailor missing the point by the country mile.

The AFL isn't concerned about Ben Cousins and Daniel Chick any longer. What gets up Demetriou's substantial probiscus is that WCE were so p*ss weak to let the whole thing go on and on even after they were warned. When Michael Braun stung the ears of 2000 mothers with small kids at Subi the club fined him a paltry sum, and the AFL forced them into a substantial re-think. The club executive and coaches stood by and did nothing all in the quest for glory.

Well they got their glory, and for being so weak willed, naive, gullible and just downright thick they deserve a good smack around the ears with a substantial and meaningful fine that goes to a reputable drug rehabilitation clinic. A million bucks should just about set it right and send the right message.

 

[ImperialPurple]

I would go along with everything the good Dr Dagg has suggested, but I would also ping them their first round draft pick this year, their second round draft pick next year and their 3rd round draft pick the following year... Lessen the penalty each year, but keep it right in front of their noses for the next few years so they can't conveniently "forget" it.

 

[Ripper]

I would go along with everything the good Dr Dagg has suggested, but I would also ping them their first round draft pick this year, their second round draft pick next year and their 3rd round draft pick the following year... Lessen the penalty each year, but keep it right in front of their noses for the next few years so they can't conveniently "forget" it.

Yep.

 

[surfsup]

What I found strange about their new 'campaign' to show a clean image was that they used past players from their glory years.

Hmmm, why would you do that? Didn't one of those guys team mate pass away last year in very mysterious circumstances?

 

[Keys]

I would go along with everything the good Dr Dagg has suggested, but I would also ping them their first round draft pick this year, their second round draft pick next year and their 3rd round draft pick the following year... Lessen the penalty each year, but keep it right in front of their noses for the next few years so they can't conveniently "forget" it.

Looks like the Freo Doctor is trying to whip up a bit of controversy.

Just getting some practice in IP?

 

[estibador]

The only solution to this mess is deregistering their sorry little corporation, striking them from the history books and burning every single blue and yellow artefact ever made. We should probably go after their sponsors for links to organised crime as well. Last but not least, that lizard Nisbett needs to banished back to whatever stinking, miserable planet he came from.

That'll learn 'em.

Nah putting them out of their misery like that would be too quick and kind. Besides, we wouldn't want our bitches gone - we'd miss out on our two guaranteed derby wins every season.

I say expand on IP's idea. Strip them of their 1st, 2nd and 3rd round draft picks for the next 10 years. They're always bragging how good their recruiting department is so they should have no trouble stocking their team full of quality 4th and 5th round picks.

On top of that slug them with a yearly fine for the next ten years. The amount will be determined each year after the eagles announce their profits. For example this year's fine would have been in the region of 5 million dollars.

The whole comp can then enjoy watching them sink to the bottom of the ladder for the next decade. Then we'll see if their soft, glory hunting fans have the intestinal fortitude to stick with them.

 

[SupersonicDocker]

At the end of the day whats done is done. The AFL will never punish the eagles and in turn they will never admit that for years they have covered up so much garbage purely for the sake of winning football games. Ironically they never stopped cousins from playing football games when he misbehaved...until they won a premiership, then they could toss him aside and act like they are the high and mighty punishing a fool. Where's the duty of care? They knew years ago he was on the slide.

What annoys me the most is that the public will still see the club as the victims when they could have stepped in and stopped the development of this arrogant bad ass wannabee culture. Also, after all this nonsense and the AFL's rediculous and pointless "inquiry" the Eagles have come out of the national draft with 3 of the best young footballers in the land... Thats when they should have been punished... What makes the Eagles covering up or failing to punish indiscretions any different to Carltons salary cap breaches? (which were dealt with by stripping draft picks)

Oh and can the eagles fans spare us the... "prove cousins was on the gear he has never tested positive" because you seem to forget he was initially banished from the team last year for missing training sessions, training sessions which had eagles in house drug tests being conducted