Cleared Fagan slams "farce" process after AFL's decision

1 year ago 81

By Chris De Silva and Lachlan Harper

UPDATED: Chris Fagan has released a connection claiming his innocence aft the AFL reached an statement with the families progressive successful allegations of humanities racism astatine Hawthorn with nary adverse findings against Alastair Clarkson, Fagan and Jason Burt.

The AFL said connected Tuesday nighttime that a woody had been reached and the eight-month autarkic probe being headed by Bernard Quinn KC would wrapper up.

The AFL said it launched its probe aft details from a study examining allegations of racism astatine Hawthorn were leaked to the media.

The allegations took spot betwixt 2008 and 2015, a play during which Hawthorn won 4 AFL premierships.

Clarkson, Fagan and Burt were accused of mistreating First Nations players astatine the club, but each categorically denied the allegations.

Fagan referred to the process arsenic a "farce" successful his connection tonight.

"I person ever respected the tremendous publication that First Nations radical person made to our crippled and I respect them greatly," helium wrote. "I ever have. I ever will."

"And I americium conscious that this farce of a process cannot person been casual connected those First Nations radical who were complainants. Those whom I knew, I clasp nary grudges against and clasp lone a privation that immoderate symptom they are suffering tin beryllium healed implicit time."

Fagan further went connected to authorities "the leaks that person occurred to the press, person amounted to a travesty of justice".

Then Hawthorn elder manager Alastair Clarkson with past General Manager Football Operations Chris Fagan successful 2015. (Getty)

The erstwhile Hawthorn adjunct manager and wide manager of shot added helium precocious received entree to the documents held by Hawthorn successful narration to the reappraisal and would beryllium blessed to instrumentality the substance further.

"I would beryllium wholly blessed for each of these documents to beryllium made public," helium stated.

"I americium blessed for immoderate behaviour and immoderate documents to beryllium aired publically successful a nationalist tribunal oregon due nationalist process and fto idiosyncratic impartial determine what is existent and what is false."

While an statement had been reached with the families involved, the AFL said it could inactive complaint Hawthorn "with respect to the commissioning and oversight" of the study into the club's culture.

At a property league announcing the decision, AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan didn't specify what regularisation Hawthorn could beryllium charged under.

"That volition beryllium a determination for the wide counsel and/or the commission, evidently there's a wide scope of rules (like) behaviour unbecoming oregon bringing the crippled successful to disrepute," helium said.

"I'm not pre-empting it but I'm surely not ruling that out."

AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan (Nine)

McLachlan added the decision-making down whether Hawthorn would beryllium charged oregon not volition commencement "in a reasonably expeditious manner".

The CEO was besides asked if the AFL would enactment complainants taking their matters to the national court.

"We enactment each parties doing immoderate they privation to bash from here," McLachlan said.

McLachlan further added it's been "one of the astir challenging things" he's seen successful the AFL, stating "it was ever going to beryllium a hard period" aft the study was leaked to media.

McLachlan said determination was nary fiscal constituent to the agreement.

The AFL said it "acknowledges each 1 of the complainants feels hurt, symptom and anguish pursuing their clip astatine the Hawthorn FC" and "the parties admit that the mode successful which their allegations were leaked to the media was not successful immoderate party's champion interests".

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