DETERMINED to make sure this season is not another write-off, Essendon chairman Paul Little says the club's players were relieved by the Bombers' decision to head to the Federal Court.
The club will challenge the legality of ASADA and the AFL's joint investigation into its supplements program of 2012, a bold action provoked by the issuing of show-cause notices to 34 Essendon players this week.
Little addressed the current playing group on Friday morning and informed them of the club's next move.
"The players felt they could take some relief out of knowing the club was finally becoming more proactive with its approach. I think the players now understand that the club will carry the burden of this legal action and they can focus on their football," Little said.
While each is handling the situation differently as they prepare to face Melbourne on Sunday, Little said the latest development could help sharpen their focus as the club takes on the legal move.
"They're all different. Some of them are carrying this better than others. I have to say, however, to some extent with the show-cause notices being issued, there is now a clearer way forward for them and for us," he said.
"We now have an opportunity to get the players back into a focus of thinking about their football.
"Clearly they wont be able to totally discard what's going on around them, but they have now serious support from both the club and AFLPA. Speaking to the playing group this morning, I think they've taken a lot of comfort from knowing that."
The AFL Players' Association released a statement on Friday, confirming representatives of the legal team, which will represent all Essendon past and current players met with ASADA on Friday.
Its legal team consists of Tony Hargraves, AFL Players' Association lawyers, Bernie Shinners and Brett Murphy, and David Grace QC and Ben Ihle of counsel.
They will advise the players on what the next step is and what response they will make to the show-cause notices, but Essendon was fuming with the lack of communication with ASADA chief executive Ben McDevitt.
The new chief executive of the anti-doping body said earlier on Friday morning if players demonstrated no significant fault, or provided "substantial assistance" to ASADA, their potential penalties for could be reduced.
Little questioned whether it was McDevitt's role to offer advice to the players, while suggesting he could not speak to him despite a number of media appearances throughout the day.
"I have personally tried to contact him and ASADA on two to three occasions [today], and haven't been able to. Yet he's freely available to the press to do his media roadshow today. He's found time to speak on radio, to talk to the media generally, yet still doesn’t have time to speak to us," Little said.
Essendon champion Tim Watson, the father of captain Jobe, said McDevitt's comments were "breathtakingly naïve" and "offensive".
"To think that by offering a deal today the players might all of a sudden come forward and tell the truth…this whole thing from day one was about the players telling the truth. They had nothing to hide. They were very frank in the evidence that they gave," Watson told Channel Seven.
"And for ASADA to believe they'll get some sort of a discount on their penalty by coming forward today, I just don’t think that's somebody who really has his head across what's taken place."
Jobe Watson, who won the Brownlow Medal in 2012, is one of 29 current Essendon players who remain on the list from that season. Three have moved to other clubs, while 14 are no longer in the AFL system.
Although saddened by the events of the past 24 hours, Tim Watson remained optimistic the players would be cleared in time.
"I've believed Jobe from day one and I still maintain that he and the other Essendon players have not taken banned substances, and they're not drug cheats," Watson said.
"And no matter how long this takes, no matter how much money it takes, their names will be cleared and that will be a just result."
