by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago
Former Essendon high-performance manager Dean Robinson was interviewed on television just days after Mark Evans resigned as club chairman. In the interview, Robinson said that James Hird had inferred that Collingwood was taking supplements and that he wanted his players to be bigger and stronger like Collingwood. To this end, Hird asked Robinson if he knew someone who could help. Robinson recommended Stephen Dank, having known Dank since 2004 when both worked at rugby club Manly. Robinson said he trusted Dank. During Dank's job interview with James Hird and Danny Corcoran, the pair put a scenario before Dank and he referred to the boundary pushing program as "black ops".
Robinson said Hird had a "whatever it takes" attitude and that Hird always got what he wanted. He also claimed no one could challenge Hird although he himself had tried several times. He also claimed that Dank gave Hird injections of a number of substances numerous times. Robinson claims to have told Dank to check the legality of the supplements. A text message in October 2011 confirms this. Robinson said he told Dank to check the WADA's S0 category to ensure the club would not run afoul of the rules. According to Robinson, Dank told him the category was a "grey area" and that he could "navigate the rules to stay within them".
Robinson also said that he had been told that Hird's home was raided by federal police several years ago due to his relationship with biochemist, bodybuilder and convicted drug trafficker Shane Charter. Charter once served as a personal trainer to Hird. Charter and Dank also have ties. Robinson also asserted that Hird had asked him to investigate a testosterone cream after speaking with a doctor he met in New York.
When the club eventually did pull back from the program last September, it was Robinson who was blamed for the raft of soft tissue injuries which hit the team. Robinson claimed he was threatened by Danny Corcoran, who told him to resign or "be destroyed". Robinson said the team fell away late last year due to pulling back from the supplements and training, at the request of Hird. According to Robinson, the move cost the players' their fitness to run out games. He said he tried to rectify things for the 2013 season by getting the basics right. He said he felt remorse for the younger players who could not make up their minds and said they could perhaps have been more protective. However, he said it came down to the leadership group who did not have any issues. Several players did not take part in the injection program because of their dislike of needles. Robinson named one of those players as David Zaharakis.
As for Hird, Robinson said he no longer had any respect for him. He also said the players were good people but the club management was a "disaster".
Both Essendon and Collingwood have labeled Robinson's claims as rubbish and slander. Essendon officials said Robinson was a bitter and disgruntled ex-employee. Interim chairman Paul Little said inaccuracies in Robinson's interview were too many to go through one by one and that the club would seek legal advice. Hird says his home was never raided and that he never spoke to any doctor from New York. Collingwood labeled Robinson's claims as "totally" false.
Charter has said that Dank asked him to verify Collngwood's use of human growth hormones and used that information to convince Hird to proceed with the program. According to Charter, Dank had ordered the peptides some months prior and was determined to see his program be used. Charter denies any knowledge of Collingwood. Charter confirmed that Hird had told Dank any program had to remain within the rules. He has also backed previous statements that Hird told Dank that anything given to the players had to be cleared by the club doctor and pose no risk to players' health.
The end may be in sight with ASADA presenting an interim report to the AFL's legal counsel Andrew Dillon. Dillon issued a statement saying he would oversee the AFL's response. The day after the report was presented to the AFL, a copy was passed on to Essendon. Essendon is also reviewing the report to prepare a response. Although both the AFL and Essendon were hoping to have everything resolved before the finals, that is looking unlikely. It has also been reported that ASADA, due to being granted broader powers, is continuing their investigation.
Source: theage.com.au, heraldsun.com.au, sen.com.au, AFL Media Release
Article last changed on Friday, August 09, 2013 - 7:57 PM EDT
