Adelaide Crows chief executive officer Steven Trigg could be forced out of his job. Picture: Sarah Reed. Source: adelaidenow
ADELAIDE Football Club will plead guilty to all charges at the AFL Commission tomorrow.
The Advertiser understands the Crows will plead guilty to nine charges relating to alleged salary cap rorting and draft tampering involving Kurt Tippett.
The AFL is considering banning Adelaide chief executive Steven Trigg and football manager Phil Harper from any involvement in football for five months, The Advertiser understands.
A club fine of $400,000 and ban from the first two rounds of the next two national drafts is expected.
Crows chairman Rob Chapman said long bans for its CEO and football manager could cost their jobs.
It is understood the board has already decided it could cope with suspensions lasting only four or five months. But anything longer and it is likely both officials will fall on their swords.
"That would probably be our toughest decision as a board," Chapman said.
"First we will have to see how the commission hearing pans out. Then our fans can be rest assured we will make decisions which will be in the best interests of the club."
Chapman - who faces a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario over Trigg and Harper - said last night he was in the "final stages" of preparing his submission to save the club from "punishment which might not fit the crime".
Earlier this month, Tippett's lawyer, leading Melbourne QC David Galbally, told the Herald Sun that Tippett was innocent of any wrongdoing in the deal.
The Crows do not expect a lengthy hearing tomorrow and sources say they view the handling of the crisis more as a series of negotiations than a trial.
It is regarded as too risky to plead not guilty to any of the charges - even if the club feels it could make a case for a not-guilty plea.
It is expected the hearing will listen to reasons for how each breach came about and what the mitigating circumstances were, if any.
The key for Adelaide will be to limit risk, having seen how Carlton took almost a decade to recover from its sanctions for salary cap breaches in 2002 and being restricted in two drafts.
The maximum penalty, to miss out on four drafts, would hit the Crows like a wrecking ball.
AFL chief Andrew Demetriou said he would not excuse himself from the hearing. There had been speculation Demetriou would be forced to withdraw himself, given conversations he had with Chapman on the issue.
"A lot of people will be relieved when we hopefully conclude the matter on Friday," Demetriou said.
"We've set aside the date to hear the matter. It could take longer and if it does we'll have to extend that."
WHAT THEY FACE
THE CLUB: Two charges of engaging in conduct in breach of the total player payments. One charge of engaging in conduct prejudicial to the draft.
STEVEN TRIGG: Two charges of engaging in conduct in breach of the total player payments. One charge of engaging in conduct prejudicial to the draft.
PHIL HARPER: One charge of engaging in conduct in breach of the total player payments.
JOHN REID: One charge of engaging in conduct prejudicial to the draft. One charge of engaging in conduct in breach of the total player payments.
KURT TIPPETT: One charge of engaging in conduct prejudicial to the draft. One charge of engaging in conduct in breach of the total player payments.
with Matt Windley
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