Hird, Dons charged, players in clear

Essendon coach James Hird with assistant Mark Thompson. Picture: Wayne Ludbey Source: HeraldSun

Essendon coach James Hird arrives at Windy Hill. Picture: Michael Klein Source: HeraldSun

Essendon coach James Hird leaves his Toorak home this morning. Source: Getty Images

Essendon coach James Hird remains defiant amid speculation the AFL could hand down its findings in the coming hours.

ESSENDON and James Hird have two weeks to mount a defence to charges of bringing the game into disrepute.

The AFL announced tonight that Hird, assistant Mark Thompson, football manager Danny Corcoran and club doctor Bruce Reid had been charged over the club's 2011-12 supplements program.

The club itself is also charged with conduct likely to prejudice the reputation of the AFL.

But Essendon players have been cleared of taking performance-enhancing drugs.

After a day of marathon talks, AFL general counsel Andrew Dillon read a short statement at AFL House tonight, announcing charges against Hird, Thompson, Corcoran and Reid.

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News+ subscribers can see the Essendon drugs story unfold LIVE here on Fox Sports News

"The club and each person are all charged with engaging in conduct that is unbecoming or likely to prejudice the interests or reputation of the Australian Football League or to bring the game of football into disrepute, contrary to rule 1.6.

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"I have reviewed the information collected during the course of the joint AFL-ASADA investigation, considered the matter carefully and have come to the view the parties charged have a case to answer," Dillon said.

The hearing of the charges is scheduled for Monday, August 26 at AFL House.

AFL general counsel Andrew Dillon announces charges against Essendon and James Hird. Source: Getty Images

"The AFL has also advised that in relation to Essendon players, although WADA has declared AOD-9604 a banned substance, on the information before the AFL there is no specific anti-doping violation attributed to any individual player for use of AOD-9604 or any other prohibited substance," Dillon said.

Bombers will fight charges

"As such, at the present time no infraction notices will be issued under the AFL anti-doping code."

Dillon said the ASADA investigation remained open, leaving open the possibility of anti-doping infractions in future if new evidence supports them.

Essendon immediately issued a statement in response, acknowledging it had made mistakes but declaring its intention to fight the charges.

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It also revealed Hird, Thompson, Corcoran and Reid will continue to work in their jobs until the charges are heard at what will be an extraordinary commission meeting in the final week of the home-and-away season.

"Essendon takes these matters very seriously. They are based on assertions contained in an interim report from ASADA and will be vigorously defended," chairman Paul Little said.

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"Essendon welcomes the news that no infraction notices have been issued against any of its players and the AFL's statement that, on current evidence, no notices will be issued.

"Throughout this process, our prime consideration has been the welfare of our players. We have maintained that no player has taken a performance enhancing substance and that there was no breach of the AFL's anti-doping code. We stand by this and thank our players and their families for the way they have conducted themselves during what have been emotionally taxing times."

The AFL has formally charged Essendon for bringing the game into disrepute in relation to the club's 2011/12 supplements program.

Arriving at Windy Hill early this afternoon, Hird said nothing had changed since he left his Toorak home this morning, despite reports the club and the league are locked away in secret talks regarding potential charges and sanctions for the Bombers and key figures including Hird.

"All I can say is what I said this morning. We're waiting to be charged, if we are charged, and don't know anything more than that," Hird said.

Asked if he was involved in talks today, Hird answered: "I was reading children's stories to my kids, now I better go and train."

Hird said he didn't know his legal options if he is charged and his side of the story would be heard "soon".

Essendon players including Dustin Fletcher during a closed training session at Windy Hill this morning. Picture: Nicole Garmston Source: HeraldSun

Earlier, Hird remained defiant over the club's supplements scandal, saying he still found the possibility of charges "hard to believe".

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Hird again denied Bombers players have taken performance enhancing drugs or have been harmed by any substances.

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"I think we all find it hard to believe that charges can be laid on individuals or the club when none of our players have shown to take performance enhancing drugs, none of our players have been shown that they've been harmed by anything that's been given and that we're dealing with an interim report," Hird told Channel 7.

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"The report's not finalised so we're all probably sitting back staggered and shocked that any charges could possibly be laid on those points."

I don't want this on my tombstone

Hird also indicated that Essendon would strongly fight the charges.

"Our football club is the greatest football club in Australia and we're going to protect its name," he said.

It comes as senior assistant coach Mark Thompson told Fox Footy he feared he would be targeted in the penalties,  that his reputation was on the line.

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"I don't think anyone can really understand the pressure. I don't want my reputation tarnished by this," he said.

"It's your whole life. And not just your life, it's your kids, your family, it's going to be remembered forever."

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Meanwhile,  Dank said it would be "ludicrous" if Hird, Dr Reid and Corcoran were charged today.

Dank claims the coach, the club doctor and the head of football did everything to ensure the health and safety of the players throughout a supplements program Dank admitted was "cutting edge".

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"They've done nothing disreputable, they've done nothing contrary to the WADA prohibited list, they only endeavoured to take Essendon on a cutting-edge program, a program I might add that wasn't pharmacologically experimental, might I add was far from exotic and might I say at all times had the players' welfare and wellbeing as its first and foremost consideration."

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He described as "bullcrap" any suggestion Hird, Reid or Corcoran failed in their duty of care.

"The care of Reid and Hird on the players was paramount and always at the foremost of their consideration ," Dank said.

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Asked if they should be charged, he said: "No. It's ludicrous."

Dank stressed, despite his sudden departure from the club last year and the ensuing scandal, that he loved working with the Bombers.

Last night he offered to help any individual charged by the AFL.

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The man central to the drugs scandal is yet to speak to anti-doping authorities, and likely won't as he prepares promised legal action against ASADA and the AFL.

Dank's stance flies in the face of Ziggy Switkowski's Essendon-commissioned report into the management and governance of the supplements program.

Hird admits pressure taking a toll

Switkowski wrote of: " ... the rapid diversification into exotic supplements, sharp increase in frequency of injections, the shift to treatment off-site in alternative medicine clinics, emergence of unfamiliar suppliers, marginalisation of traditional medical staff ... combine(d) to create a disturbing picture of a pharmacologically experimental environment never adequately controlled or challenged or documented within the club in the period under review."

The drugs at the centre of the saga

Dank, who was spoken to by the Australian Crime Commission in November as part of its investigation into drugs in sport, has not spoken to Hird since being moved on at the end of last season.

He claimed yesterday he had left the club with an inventory of supplements given to players during his time at Essendon.

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