I think the players have been given bad advice from the beginning. They were told the substances they were taking were safe and approved. They should have checked. That is part of the ASADA/WADA code. Each sportsperson is responsible for what they put into their body. Why at no stage did players not question this and therefore report the Essendon program to the Players Association. Then the club gave them poor advice in telling them to fight the charges. If they had taken an early plea they would still be playing. Mind you the AFLPA has a lot to answer for here too as they should have advised players to take the plea. The AFL only made matters worse with their Kangaroo Court. That judgement was never and still won't pass muster in any court in the land. It was a joke.
The legal team for the players must have been supplied by the club they were so irrelevant. The players have been given suspect advice at every turn. They have been hoodwinked, pressured and maybe lied to by the Essendon football club, their coach, fitness advisers, the AFL, the AFLPA and possibly their legal representatives. These young men let themselves down by not following the ASADA/WADA rules to the letter by not getting clarification of the substances they were taking and their legality. But in saying that the Essendon Football Club was lying to them in telling them they were not taking anything illegal. This is a sorry saga and will go down as the most infamous incident in AFL history. The club should be banned for two years from earning points as a result. Heads should roll at the AFL including McLachlan and Anderson.
Bookmarks