Karmichael Hunt Stuff

[TOCC]

I don’t think it’s a smart move, devoted rugby fans want him to stay so he can help the Reds and potentially the Wallabies, but you speak to a large majority of the casual fan base and the memory of his last indescretion along with this one means most want him gone. Sponsors won’t want anything to do with him, his commercial value has being eroded.

I think they’re probably counting their pennies and don’t want to pay him out

 

[Strewthcobber]

I don’t think it’s a smart move, devoted rugby fans want him to stay so he can help the Reds and potentially the Wallabies, but you speak to a large majority of the casual fan base and the memory of his last indescretion along with this one means most want him gone. Sponsors won’t want anything to do with him, his commercial value has being eroded.

I think they’re probably counting their pennies and don’t want to pay him out

Isn't the smart decision not to go through with an integrity commission hearing which they will likely not win?

 

[fatprop]

Without evidence of actual wrongdoing he can't be sacked, so then it comes down to a payout to get rid of him

So then the question comes down to his employers, can he add value to the team?

 

[Braveheart81]

I don’t think it’s a smart move, devoted rugby fans want him to stay so he can help the Reds and potentially the Wallabies, but you speak to a large majority of the casual fan base and the memory of his last indescretion along with this one means most want him gone. Sponsors won’t want anything to do with him, his commercial value has being eroded.

I think they’re probably counting their pennies and don’t want to pay him out

What's the point of proceeding with a hearing when they have made the assessment that there is little prospect of an adverse result against Hunt?

The best thing RA could do right now is work behind the scenes to convince Hunt to go overseas and look for a contract in Europe for the next season so they can say they've agreed to release him.

If they launch a disciplinary hearing against Hunt that is unsuccessful it just makes it harder for them to take action and probably gives Hunt more leverage looking for a bigger payout.

 

[TOCC]

What's the point of proceeding with a hearing when they have made the assessment that there is little prospect of an adverse result against Hunt?

The best thing RA could do right now is work behind the scenes to convince Hunt to go overseas and look for a contract in Europe for the next season so they can say they've agreed to release him.

If they launch a disciplinary hearing against Hunt that is unsuccessful it just makes it harder for them to take action and probably gives Hunt more leverage looking for a bigger payout.

Isn’t the whole purpose of the integrity hearing to make that assessment?

the blokes just been fined and had some pretty serious charges held against him, whether he was found guilty of those other charges isn’t the point, you can’t bloody pretend that it’s not his first offence and that he has again brought the game into disrepute due to his own selfish and obnoxious actions... again

RA isn the courts yes, but the purpose of an integrity unit is to protect the interests of the game from people who are giving the game a bad image through actions like these. That’s why RA should at investigate it, otherwise they’re sending a message to the fans and players that RA as an organisation think this kind of thing is acceptable.

He was fined for having prescription drugs, it’s as though he was completely innocent either, that by itself is a pretty serious issue especially for a professional athlete. There should at least be a fine for those actions alone.

It would be a weak move by RA to do nothing.

 

[Braveheart81]

Presumably they have investigated it and the majority of the material they have would be from the police. The media comments sound like Rugby Australia has seen the police body camera material and it doesn't provide them with anything (and is presumably why the cocaine charge was dropped).

It would appear that the Integrity Unit has been investigating and the outcome of that investigation will be not to take it further to a disciplinary hearing. If their assessment is that a disciplinary hearing either won't result in adverse findings against Hunt or any adverse findings wouldn't be severe enough to result in his termination or anything substantive then why wouldn't they recommend not taking further action?

I just don't see any positive outcome for RA to invest the time, resources and scarce media attention into a Karmichael Hunt disciplinary hearing if the result isn't likely to be a serious negative finding against Hunt.

RA hasn't done nothing. He has been stood down indefinitely by Rugby Australia and the Reds. I don't know what the Reds next move will be but presumably he will have no further involvement with the Wallabies.

I think the weakest that RA could be possibly made to look over the issue is to have a disciplinary hearing to try and terminate him over having a couple of Xanax tablets he didn't have a prescription for and the hearing result coming back in Hunt's favour to remain under contract. All the while that would continue to be a huge distraction from the actual rugby.

 

[TOCC]

Well, he wasn’t even stood down by RA, he ‘voluntarily stood down’ from training...

And he plead guilty to possession of a dsngerous drug.. there is absolutely reason for the RA integrity unit to consider this further. And we can’t pretend this isn’t the first time he has fucked up. Doing nothing would be a joke.

 

[Braveheart81]

"Rugby Australia released a statement on Sunday afternoon, confirming the 31-year-old would be stood down from any involvement with the Reds preseason until 'further information' was known about the incident.
Hunt has cooperated with the process to this point.
"Queensland Rugby Union, Rugby Australia and Karmichael Hunt have today agreed that it is in the best interests of all parties that Karmichael is stood down immediately from any team-related Rugby activities, including training and playing commitments."

 

[TOCC]

It was voluntary...

1/30/2018


With today's decision by the Brisbane Magistrate's Court to adjourn Karmichael Hunt's case for three-weeks, Rugby Australia and the Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) have confirmed Hunt's voluntary stand-down will continue through to the next scheduled Court hearing on February 19.

Rugby Australia and the QRU will provide further comment at the appropriate time.

http://www.rugbyaustralia.com.au/Me...ALIA-STATEMENT-REGARDING-KARMICHAEL-HUNT.aspx

 

[TOCC]

At least Karmichael should be able to recycle his statements form the last time he was charged for drugs

“the Queensland Rugby Union have shown for supporting me through this," Hunt told a media gathering.

"They could easily have wiped their hands clean and said they didn't want to have anything to do with it and I appreciate that.

"It's been a difficult couple of weeks, not only for myself and my family but all of rugby union. I just want to apologise for my decision that landed me and the club in this position

"Hopefully I'll repay the faith on the field and off the field. Obviousy I want to put that behind me now, get back on the field and play some footy. That's what I've been brought here for."

Hunt said he believed that coming forward and admitting to his mistake was the best approach.

"I've stressed that honesty is the best policy and I was honest and upfront and owned my mistake from the start, so I had comfort knowing that if I told the truth from the onset, that I would take anything that came my way," he said.

"Thankfully the family and Queensland Rugby Union has stuck by me."

http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-06/karmichael-hunt-queensland-reds/6285532[\QUOTE]

 

[Braveheart81]

Yes it was voluntary. That doesn't mean that the Reds and RA weren't part of that process and/or told him he needs to stand down through the process.

If in the unlikely situation situation that Hunt refused to stand down voluntarily I'm sure they would have acted to stand him down pending the outcome.

 

[Ignoto]

It was voluntary.

It's a saving face tactic that the ARU/QRU did. Similar Baraby's voluntary leave of absence from Parliament. It's commonly used in the work place for senior exec's to 'Quit/Leave the firm' but they were pushed out the door.

You're just arguing semantics when in actual fact Hunt didn't really have an option.

 

[TOCC]

Yes it was voluntary. That doesn't mean that the Reds and RA weren't part of that process and/or told him he needs to stand down through the process.

If in the unlikely situation situation that Hunt refused to stand down voluntarily I'm sure they would have acted to stand him down pending the outcome.

But that’s my point, it was voluntary, it wasn’t a punishment imposed by them...

Rugby Australia have technically done nothing over the issue so far, he has received no punishment except that imposed by himself. It’s in the interest of the game that they set an example which send a message not just to the players, that his actions were unacceptable. There is a large portion of the rugby community in qld annoyed with him damaging the game. To simply welcome him back into the fold with no investigation or punishment of their own would be a mistake for those frustrated at Hunts actions.

 

[Braveheart81]

I just don't understand why RA, if the report from the Integrity Unit investigation is that they don't think there a disciplinary hearing against Hunt would be successful would be to decide to run the disciplinary hearing anyway.

I also don't think he is about to be welcomed back into the fold. I don't think he'll ever be selected in a Wallaby squad again.

I don't see how running an unsuccessful disciplinary hearing against Hunt does anything except create more negativity for RA.

 

[TOCC]

I disagree, see above for reasons why

 

[Scrubber2050]

Hunt should go.

Drugs, any drugs are a blight on the game and sends a terrible message to our younger kids (and Mums), particularly if the powers that be don't rub the bloke out of the sport - particularly second offenders.

Blokes that drink drive cop a huge amount of stick - but at least it is dealt with quickly thereby limiting further damage.

The Hunt thing just keeps going and going !

 

[liquor box]

My biggest concern to come out of this is how good is the drug testing? Why are players not caught?

I realise that Cocaine is out of the system very quickly but this should just indicate that testing may need to be more often and closer to periods of time that players may want to unwind.

This needs to be fixed up

 

[Braveheart81]

My biggest concern to come out of this is how good is the drug testing? Why are players not caught?

I realise that Cocaine is out of the system very quickly but this should just indicate that testing may need to be more often and closer to periods of time that players may want to unwind.

This needs to be fixed up

It's a compromise between catching people cheating on PEDs, catching illicit drug use and cost.

Catching PED cheats is very important in my view and should be the overarching aim of any drug testing program.

Illicit drug use is more of a social issue and in my opinion is something sports want as little involvement with as possible. Illicit drug use is profilic, especially amongst people with high disposable income. It's a can of worms no sport really wants to open too far.

Cost is a huge factor. If you wanted to really try and stop sportspeople from using illicit drugs such that you wanted to make it very likely that you would catch someone you'd probably need to randomly test 25% or more of a team every week so that players knew they were going to be drug tested at least once a month. Even that figure might not be high enough. You'd be looking at a cost per team of close to half a million dollars a season to do that and it probably still wouldn't be enough testing to stamp out the behaviour.

If you really wanted to implement a testing regime that was likely to capture the vast majority of illicit drug use you'd probably be looking at well over $1m per team in annual costs.

 

[Strewthcobber]

My biggest concern to come out of this is how good is the drug testing? Why are players not caught?

I realise that Cocaine is out of the system very quickly but this should just indicate that testing may need to be more often and closer to periods of time that players may want to unwind.

This needs to be fixed up

I know people think I'm hopelessly naive here - but there's always the chance that it wasn't his coke and he's kept his nose clean since the last time

 

[TOCC]

Plenty of organisations and companies have drug testing programs these days, and they can be introduced for far less then $1million/annum, quite a few i'm aware of with lesser budgets then Super Rugby teams. Internal club testing focussing on recreational drugs are seperate from ASADA/WADA requirements, they aren't testing to the same depth of performance enhancers.

Methamphetamines, marijuana, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, methadone, cocaine can all be screened through simple urine tests these days, with any positive samples subsequently sent away for confirmation, thats where the costs can blow out if there are positives.