VICTORIA Police has made contact with Collingwood in relation to Harry O'Brien's comments on Tuesday regarding a murder he witnessed while in Brazil in 2011.
Collingwood CEO Gary Pert said an approach had been made on "a very respectful basis" to determine how O'Brien was dealing with the issue and what was behind the comments.
"We saw him articulate how emotional it was and Harry needs to be in a mindset to deal with everything that is going on. This would be another layer so we will be taking expert advice on that," Pert said.
Pert said AFL clubs were much better equipped to deal with such issues than they had been in the past and he was proud of the way everyone at Collingwood had managed the past week.
"Harry will be back playing when it is deemed by his support team and Nathan Buckley that is appropriate that he back," Pert said.
Luke Ball, who will play his 200th game against Adelaide on Friday night, said the week had not been disruptive for him personally.
He said O'Brien's honesty had given everyone a chance to reflect on their own circumstances.
O'Brien was right to go public, says Schwass
"When these sorts of things happen, it's important for all of us who haven't been through things like Harry has been through to reflect on how lucky we are.
"I can't possibly imagine what he is feeling and I am not going to try to judge him or think that he should be feeling a certain way," Ball said.
Ball said O'Brien was a vital part of the team and when he was ready he would slot straight into the line-up.
"It's all about supporting him as a person and as a mate and also letting him know that hopefully the way out is to hopefully play footy and do what he does best," Ball said.
