DEMONS BOLD PLAN TO WIPE DEBT
Melbourne will today launch an ambitious bid to wipe off more than half of its $5 million debt, reports The Herald Sun. President Jim Stynes and his entire board are poised to challenge Demons fans to help raise as much as $3 million in August. The cornerstone of the club's fightback campaign, dubbed "Debt Demolition", will be an MCG function on August 5. In a letter seen by the Herald Sun, influential supporters have been urged to dig deep at a "150 Foundation Heroes" dinner. The dinner will cost $1000 a ticket, but that will not be the end of the commitment. Guests will be expected to at least contribute a further $5000 to become a "150 Foundation Hero". Past and present Melbourne players will be involved, with organisers also promising a "virtual MCG experience".
SHANNON GRANT SUSPENDED
North Melbourne veteran Shannon Grant has been suspended by the club after unacceptable behaviour at a sponsors' golf day, reports The Herald Sun. Grant was last night banned for one match by the Kangaroos. He will miss Saturday night's clash against Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium. The 31-year-old was part of a group of players to attend the North Melbourne Golf Classic at the Sandhurst Club during the split round. But it is understood his behaviour during the event angered club officials. North Melbourne last night released a statement saying Grant had broken team rules.
Melbourne will today launch an ambitious bid to wipe off more than half of its $5 million debt, reports The Herald Sun. President Jim Stynes and his entire board are poised to challenge Demons fans to help raise as much as $3 million in August. The cornerstone of the club's fightback campaign, dubbed "Debt Demolition", will be an MCG function on August 5. In a letter seen by the Herald Sun, influential supporters have been urged to dig deep at a "150 Foundation Heroes" dinner. The dinner will cost $1000 a ticket, but that will not be the end of the commitment. Guests will be expected to at least contribute a further $5000 to become a "150 Foundation Hero". Past and present Melbourne players will be involved, with organisers also promising a "virtual MCG experience".
SHANNON GRANT SUSPENDED
North Melbourne veteran Shannon Grant has been suspended by the club after unacceptable behaviour at a sponsors' golf day, reports The Herald Sun. Grant was last night banned for one match by the Kangaroos. He will miss Saturday night's clash against Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium. The 31-year-old was part of a group of players to attend the North Melbourne Golf Classic at the Sandhurst Club during the split round. But it is understood his behaviour during the event angered club officials. North Melbourne last night released a statement saying Grant had broken team rules.
FLETCHER TO PLAY
Essendon stalwart Dustin Fletcher will play against the Brisbane Lions at Telstra Dome on Saturday night, reports The Herald Sun. Club officials had feared the veteran defender broke his hand again Fremantle at Subiaco Oval 11 days ago, but he will line up for his 290th AFL game. "Dustin will play, there's no problems there," Essendon coach Matthew Knights said yesterday. "We had thought during the Fremantle game that Dustin did break his hand, but that wasn't the case once we took X-rays and scans. He's clear. He's trained pretty well for the last week. It's good to have him available with the two big boys for Brisbane up there in (Daniel) Bradshaw and (Jonathan) Brown." Fletcher's availability became vital after former Brisbane Lions defender Mal Michael could not be considered after he bruised his ribs in the VFL last weekend.
DRAFT TALENT RUNS DEEP
The raw talent of this year's draft is "in the ballpark" of the 1997 and 2001 drafts, AFL talent manager Kevin Sheehan told the Herald Sun yesterday. The 1997 draft produced dual Brownlow medallist Adam Goodes, Trent Croad, Luke Power and Shane O'Bree, while awesome foursome Luke Hodge, Luke Ball, Chris Judd and Jimmy Bartel were products of the 2001 super draft. Sheehan said the talent on offer yesterday at the NAB under-18 championships was exciting, but it was hard to pick the order of who would go in the top 20. "Right at the minute we're really excited about the first 25 and the depth of the draft overall," Sheehan said. "It will take a fair bit of sorting, even if you just put all the ruckmen or tall forwards into a group to separate all of (them). I'd say you'd have a debate about at least 25 as to whether they'd be.”
KIRK SAYS HALL ACTIONS ‘REFLEX’
Sydney co-captain Brett Kirk has provided an insight into Barry Hall's latest brain snap, reports The Telegraph. Kirk yesterday said the menacing forward's latest poor on-field behaviour was a "reflex action" beyond his control. The co-captain acknowledged that Hall needed to take responsibility for his actions before he could play again and said the team supported the club's decision to stand down its spearhead indefinitely. Hall, who has resigned from the Swans' leadership group, was suspended for one match after taking an early guilty plea for attempting to strike Collingwood's Shane Wakelin in Saturday night's 29-point loss to the Magpies at ANZ Stadium. The fact the 31-year-old tried to excuse his action as a push in his third game back after a seven-match suspension for striking West Coast's Brent Staker is a strong indication that Hall is deeply troubled and needs to resolve those issues if he wants to play again, according to Kirk.
AFL APPOINTS INTEGRITY OFFICER
The AFL is to ramp up policing of all matters pertaining to the game's integrity, reports The Herald Sun. The league yesterday appointed Brett Clothier, a legal eagle from the horse racing industry, to the new position of integrity services manager. Clothier's initial brief will be to develop improved processes to manage information received from bookmaking and betting agencies, assist with the finalisation and implementation of the AFL's personal conduct policy, and review and manage all integrity services at the AFL. Clothier, a solicitor, has spent the past three years as a senior manager of the integrity services department at Racing Victoria Ltd.
THOMPSON SUSPENDED JAIL SENTENCE
Adelaide Crows midfielder Scott Thompson has received a suspended sentence for injuring a friend in a car crash, reports The Adelaide Advertiser. Thompson – one of the club's most outstanding players in the past two seasons – was today ordered to serve a 12-month licence disqualification and sign a $50 good behaviour bond. Magistrate Paul Foley said the penalty would have been more severe had the one-time candidate for captaincy not owned up to his behaviour. The Crows have come in for some criticism for suspending a $5000 fine for the incident.
Sydney co-captain Brett Kirk has provided an insight into Barry Hall's latest brain snap, reports The Telegraph. Kirk yesterday said the menacing forward's latest poor on-field behaviour was a "reflex action" beyond his control. The co-captain acknowledged that Hall needed to take responsibility for his actions before he could play again and said the team supported the club's decision to stand down its spearhead indefinitely. Hall, who has resigned from the Swans' leadership group, was suspended for one match after taking an early guilty plea for attempting to strike Collingwood's Shane Wakelin in Saturday night's 29-point loss to the Magpies at ANZ Stadium. The fact the 31-year-old tried to excuse his action as a push in his third game back after a seven-match suspension for striking West Coast's Brent Staker is a strong indication that Hall is deeply troubled and needs to resolve those issues if he wants to play again, according to Kirk.
AFL APPOINTS INTEGRITY OFFICER
The AFL is to ramp up policing of all matters pertaining to the game's integrity, reports The Herald Sun. The league yesterday appointed Brett Clothier, a legal eagle from the horse racing industry, to the new position of integrity services manager. Clothier's initial brief will be to develop improved processes to manage information received from bookmaking and betting agencies, assist with the finalisation and implementation of the AFL's personal conduct policy, and review and manage all integrity services at the AFL. Clothier, a solicitor, has spent the past three years as a senior manager of the integrity services department at Racing Victoria Ltd.
THOMPSON SUSPENDED JAIL SENTENCE
Adelaide Crows midfielder Scott Thompson has received a suspended sentence for injuring a friend in a car crash, reports The Adelaide Advertiser. Thompson – one of the club's most outstanding players in the past two seasons – was today ordered to serve a 12-month licence disqualification and sign a $50 good behaviour bond. Magistrate Paul Foley said the penalty would have been more severe had the one-time candidate for captaincy not owned up to his behaviour. The Crows have come in for some criticism for suspending a $5000 fine for the incident.
SELWOOD HAS GET-OUT CLAUSE
West Coast midfielder Adam Selwood has put his club on notice by demanding that he be released from his new contract and traded to a club of his choice if the Eagles are punished again by the AFL for bringing the game into disrepute, reports The West Australian. Selwood, a respected senior player within the team and considered a possible future captain, had taken the extraordinary step of having the get-out clause inserted in the three-year contract he signed recently. It demanded the right to be traded to a club of his choice if the club or a teammate was found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute for a material breach of the code of conduct. It is a strong personal statement to the club and his teammates of where he stands in righting the club's culture and what he will tolerate as a senior figure within the group. The club, perhaps as a sign of the earnestness with which it is now prepared to tackle the drugs issue, readily agreed to the unusual behaviour clause.
West Coast midfielder Adam Selwood has put his club on notice by demanding that he be released from his new contract and traded to a club of his choice if the Eagles are punished again by the AFL for bringing the game into disrepute, reports The West Australian. Selwood, a respected senior player within the team and considered a possible future captain, had taken the extraordinary step of having the get-out clause inserted in the three-year contract he signed recently. It demanded the right to be traded to a club of his choice if the club or a teammate was found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute for a material breach of the code of conduct. It is a strong personal statement to the club and his teammates of where he stands in righting the club's culture and what he will tolerate as a senior figure within the group. The club, perhaps as a sign of the earnestness with which it is now prepared to tackle the drugs issue, readily agreed to the unusual behaviour clause.
