Dear M/s Wilson

Sorry for the delay, the transcript of your 5AA interview only arrived this afternoon.
Item (Wilson) 1: We are still going, well there has been some misreporting thats been
followed up by some correct reporting. From what I can ascertain now that I am back in
town Stephen is that it was not true that the players or any small group of players were
offered a two week deal from ASADA or form the AFLs lawyers. What is true is that they
were offered looked at an eight week situation and that just wasnt the players who are at
Port Adelaide or those involved at the Western Bulldogs, but it was all the players.
My Comment:

You have no idea what you are talking about. What does From what I can ascertain
mean? If you havent spoken to either Peter Gordon, David Koch, Andrew Dillon,
Xavier Campbell, Paul Little, Paul Marsh, the players or the lawyers you should just
shut up;

The Essendon camp was told, Dillon, under extreme pressure, offered the Western
Bulldogs and Port Adelaide players suspensions from the NAB Cup and two
competition games. The current Essendon players were not offered the deal because
their lawyers were not involved in the negotiations. However, the lawyers were told
about the deal offered to the Bulldogs and Port. As the lawyers believe the players
will be cleared, they had no interest in seeking the same offer for the Essendon
players as those offered to the Bulldogs and Port;

Irrespective of Port Adelaides attitude to the deal, it wasnt in a position to consider it

because it would have exposed David Koch as being one of the worlds biggest
hypocrites. As media people are want to, Koch shot his mouth off in 2013 in a
vitriolic outburst from the pulpit about Hird and the Essendon players. Basically, he
opined that anyone involved with banned substances should be banned for life.
Although Koch is known for putting both feet in his mouth who could ever forget
his disgusting comment about Mrs Howard, or his crass comment about the
Christchurch earthquake victims he thinks a smug apology gets him off the hook. If
Monfries and Ryder were to admit to taking Thymosin Beta-4, there is no way Koch
could allow them to stay at Port.

Item (Wilson) 2: Now that would tell me that there is genuine belief from all parties that
these players could well face suspensions
My Comment:

Leaving aside for a second your unacceptable habit of pursuing agendas and vendettas
against people, your observation encapsulates other traits that prove you are way
passed your used by date. You have extrapolated this comment from something that
is factually incorrect. Current Essendon players were not offered the same deal.

It is absolute nonsense to suggest the current Essendon players are considering a deal
for the following reasons:
They dont believe they were administered banned substances;
Dank testified under oath in May and November 2012 to the ACC that he didnt
administer Thymosin Beta-4 to the players. It is reasonable to assume that if the
ACC had evidence to the contrary it would have charged him with perjury by
now;
There is no proof Thymosin Beta-4 was supplied to Essendon;
Even if we assume Dank wanted to use Thymosin Beta4, if there is no proof
Thymosin Beta-4 was supplied, Dank wouldnt know what was in the syringes.

Although I am sure this is not a consideration for the Essendon players because they
believe they are innocent, but there is a compelling reason why the tribunal cant
convict any player:
To get you excited lets assume there is proof Thymosin Beta-4 was supplied to
Essendon;
Lets assume the tribunal members have an off day, week, or months, and are
confident one of the amino acids was Thymosin Beta-4;
Lets assume the tribunal members are sufficiently confident some players were
administered Thymosin Beta-4;
In case you have forgotten, 34 players were charged as individuals with being
administered Thymosin Beta-4;
How does the tribunal decide who was administered Thymosin Beta-4?

You have scrapped the bottom of the barrel over the last two years but I cant
believe that you would support finding innocent players guilty just to ensure you
catch the guilty players. Your hatred for Essendon and Hird surely doesnt extend
that far!
I suspect the majority of football followers dislike you, but if you are advocating
we change the core of our legal system, then I believe every football follower
would advise you to get on your bike and go to a country with that type of legal
system.
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Item (Wilson) 3: We learned today via Mick Warner in the Herald Sun that the Essendon
players, as has been suggested before, but verified today, apparently, are considering
boycotting the NAB Cup.
My Comment:
Mark Robinson originally floated the story and got smashed. Presumably, he sent a hospital
pass to Warner and he was forced to run with it. To my knowledge, neither Robinson nor
Warner quoted a single source. I can understand you relying on the Herald Sun for a story
because your paper is hopeless, but surely as a reader, you require the author to be able to
substantiate his claim!
Item (Wilson) 4: I must say I find that absolutely outrageous. I mean I just think at some
point you have to accept the judges decision. If this is still a live case which it clearly will be
when the NAB Cup starts
My Comment:

Here we go again. Without any proof, the Warner story is true. Once again, you have
used an unsubstantiated article as an excuse to bash Essendon;

Who is the judge you refer to? Lets assume ASADA is the judge in this instance and
it has issued infraction notices, which means the players are suspended until
exonerated. That means about 20 current Essendon players are suspended and
shouldnt play in the NAB Cup. There have been hundreds of incredibly bad decisions
during this saga but arguably the worst is to hold the tribunal hearing in camera.
Apparently, this was done to protect the identity of the players who have been
suspended. The three men you will worship for the rest of your life if they find the
players guilty made the decision to protect the players identity. Are you suggesting
they made a mistake and you dont support their decision? Even your beloved AFL
supported the decision of confidentiality;

As I said in criticising Robinson, if only the 20 suspended players are left out of the
Essendon NAB Cup team, their identity would become known. Therefore, Essendon
would be entitled to leave perhaps a dozen other players out of the NAB to protect the
identity of the 20. Even the AFL couldnt object to that because the AFL has
supported protecting the players identities;

Losing 30 plus players would mean Essendon would be forced to pick a team of kids
to play in the NAB Cup. I not sure Essendon wouldnt be breaching their OH&S
responsibilities to allow the kids to be belted up physically and mentally by Carlton
and the like. The AFL would also have OH&S responsibilities to protect the kids, but
as we learnt on 19 October 2011, the AFL doesnt give a stuff about its OH&S
responsibilities

Item (Wilson) 5: I dont see how it is in anyway supporting the AFLs competition for an
entire club to boycott the NAB Cup. I dont know I think that is a ridiculous idea.
My Comment:
Where is your evidence the club intends boycotting the competition? Which person has used
the word boycott? Tell us. We want the truth. Boycotting suggests that Essendon would be
taking action to spite the AFL, or to correct a wrong-doing. As usual, your comments dont
contain balance. You havent canvassed in detail the reasons for protecting the players
identities, and you havent considered the OH&S aspects of playing kids
Item (Wilson) 6: No the entire will in defence of their team and in an attempt to preserve
their anonymity, which is sort of I think a bit silly because generally I think people know now
who most of the players are now, or all the players are
My Comment:
This comment suggests that you are refusing to accept the judges decision. You dont agree
with the players names being suppressed. What a hypocrite. Give Hird a ring and ask him
how to appeal a decision.
Item (Wilson) 7: There is no doubt that if the players are found to have taken, knowing or
not, banned substances.
My Comment:
I know your articles suggest you have been on holidays for two years, but for your edification
the players have been charged with being administered one substance, Thymosin Beta-4. That
is singular substance. Your repeated use of the word substances (plural) is factually wrong.
Item (Wilson) 8: I just think, and I know I am a broken record on this boys.
My Comment:
Why use the word record? Why qualify broken? We know you are broken. Why not give
everyone relief and retire and try and fix yourself?
Item (Wilson) 9: I know youre probably thinking that when I say this, at what point are they
going to accept the judges decision. Or at least play ball, I mean they agreed to do these
interviews with the AFL and ASADA, they agreed to the entire process.
My Comment:

When the players signed their AFL / Essendon / Player Agreement they knew the
AFL could screw them. However, I am sure that none of them believed the AFL (and
their mates in the media); law and accounting firms; and ASADA would get access to
their private emails and texts;

The players were assured all evidence would be confidential. Brett Clothier, who had
access to everyones evidence, was given a second lick of the lolly, and sent an email
4

to ASADA at 12.33pm on 17 July 2013, which was unconscionably accepted as

evidence. You regurgitated Clothiers evidence in the on-line edition of
THE(garb)AGE just after 6pm the same day. I cant imagine that the players ever
considered that your relationship with AFL staff was so close that you would be
leaked evidence that quickly;

It appears you and the four Federal Court judges are the only ones who believe that
the players could have refused to participate. I believe every AFL player, except
perhaps those at Sarahs radio friends club, would believe the players had no choice;

You are talking absolute kak when you say the players and staff agreed to the entire
process. The players believed they would receive procedural fairness. They werent.
The players and staff didnt agree to participate in a process that allowed ASADA to
change evidence; fabricate evidence; and omit evidence. The players and staff
definitely didnt agree to participate in a process in which ASADA was allowed to
testify. The players and staff didnt agree to a process where Demetriou, McLachlan
and Clothier would tell ASADA what could go in the Report and what had to be left
out. The players were guaranteed confidentiality, and yet Andrew Dillon published
slabs of verbatim text from the Interim Report in his first charge-sheet.

Item (Wilson) 10: For James Hird to continue, to say you know, that he is doing this in the
name of all international sports men and women, how these players have got less rights than
anyone else on the planet, it is just laughable,
My Comment:

Everyone in Australia is entitled to appeal a decision. You obviously believe Hird is

the exception. If you had any sense of responsibility as a journalist, you would explain
why;

Its hard to imagine any group of people being screwed the way Essendon and Hird
have been by ASADA and the AFL;

The onus of proof of wrong-doing for sportsmen and women is significantly weaker
than on anyone else in society, which is wrong;

Sportsmen arent protected by the Trade Practices Act the way everyone else is. It is
unconscionable that players are forced to play under a salary cap and be told where to
play. Although the Age and its readers would benefit significantly by employing
journalists from other newspapers, those journalists wouldnt tolerate being forced to
work at the Age. Why should footballers be forced to play interstate or at clubs such
as Carlton and the Western Bulldogs?

Item (Wilson) 11: He [Hird] is doing it to suppress the truth, he doesnt want the truth to
come out.
My Comment:

Stuart Littlemore where are you? Please volunteer to run Hirds defamation cases
against Wilson and the Age. If Hird and Littlemore tackled you and the Age every
time you defamed Hird, they would own Fairfax. Hopefully, they would close the rags
down and flog the building.

Would you please substantiate your claim Hird is trying to suppress the truth?

To my knowledge, you and your two mates, who appear incapable of writing their
own articles, were leaked information from the investigation. After I identified 51
leaks in your respective columns, I gave up looking for more. I assumed 51 leaks
were sufficient to prove the ACC was as capable as the Keystone Cops, and your idols
at the AFL and ASADA, were naughty boys;

What more do you need to know about the truth?

The Age obviously has a copy of the Interim Report;
Shortly after the start of the investigation in February 2013, you pronounced Hird
and Essendon guilty, what else do you want to know?
You were the beneficiary of continuous leaks. Are you suggesting you werent
given all the salacious leaks?
Dillon published slabs of the evidence in his first 34-page charge sheet;
Hird testified in public for over a day before Justice Middleton;
The tribunal will only find for or against the players so their judgment wont
enlighten you;
My understanding is ASADA said it would start the investigation again. How then
is Hird trying to suppress the truth?
If you tell me why you have had a change of heart, and why you suddenly want to
know the truth, as a gesture of goodwill, tell me what you want to know and I will
tell you.
I cant understand why you havent made similar demands on the AFL for the
truth. Every time the AFL looks like it has to appear in court and talk under oath

Dr Reid and Dean Robinson for example - it runs away. And lets not forget the
bullying of Essendon and Hird for Hird to stop his Supreme Court case.

One of the most crucial pieces of truth concerns Hirds legal responsibilities for the
supplement program. You have repeatedly said he was in charge. I have repeatedly explained
to you that the Victorian OH&S Act, the Essendon matrix organisation structure and Hirds
job description, meant he had no legal responsibility. But you werent interested in the truth.
You dont want the truth because you cant handle the truth.
M/s Wilson, its time. I suggest you ask Andy, I didnt inject anyone but metaphorically
speaking I sat back and didnt try and stop the players receiving 10,000+ injections, to write
you a reference.

Bruce Francis
8 February 2015
Cc The Media
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