Documents lodged with the Federal Court have implicated four-time Hawthorn premiership player Grant Birchall as part of the Hawks’ racism scandal.
Nearly two years since the claims were first made against senior Hawks figures, including current AFL coaches Alastair Clarkson and Chris Fagan, via ABC journalist Russell Jackson, the 89-page statement of claim from five former players, led by Cyril Rioli and partner Shannyn Ah Sam-Rioli, alleges Birchall made a racist comment referencing the partner of Indigenous former Hawk Bradley Hill.
The other applicants in the court action are former players Carl Peterson and Jermaine Miller-Lewis, the latter’s partner Montanah-Rae Lewis, and former Hawthorn Indigenous liaison officer Leon Egan.
The group are seeking damages and apologies from the Hawks, who will be given one month to lodge a defence.
The Herald Sun reports that during an end-of-season trip to Bali at the end of the 2013 season, months after the Hawks had won the grand final, Birchall is alleged to have asked Hill ‘whether Mr Hill’s partner was also a b—g’, according to the documents.
Former Hawk Grant Birchall has been implicated in the club’s racism scandal. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
Birchall played 248 games for the Hawks between 2006 and 2019, including all four of the club’s grand final wins in 2008 and 2013-15, before finishing his career with two years at Brisbane alongside former Hawks assistant coach and general manager of football and current Lions coach Fagan.
The statement of claim reiterates the infamous allegation against Clarkson that he urged an Indigenous player to break up with his partner and have her terminate her pregnancy, during a conversation at the Hawks’ Waverley headquarters in 2009, and was given only an hour to decide or risk jeopardising his career.
The identity of the player was kept anonymous when the story broke in September 2022, but is now confirmed to have been Peterson, who was selected by the Hawks in the 2006 national draft and played 17 AFL games, all in 2010, before being delisted at the end of that season.
“Mr Clarkson, Mr Fagan and Mr Burt [then-Hawthorn welfare officer Jason Burt] were present in the room before Mr Peterson arrived,” the document states.
“There was initially some friendly and positive discussion about how impressed the coaches were with Mr Peterson’s development and skills as a player.
“Mr Burt then informed Mr Peterson that he had shared Mr Peterson’s news with Mr Clarkson and Mr Fagan.
“Mr Burt said words to the effect: ‘Carl, being a father is a huge responsibility and we don’t think you’re ready to be a father.’
“Mr Clarkson said words to the effect: ‘Carl, you need to break up with Nikita and focus only on your football.’
“Mr Clarkson said words to the effect: ‘Unless you break up with her and tell her to terminate the pregnancy, your football career will be in jeopardy.’
“Mr Fagan nodded his head during the meeting”.
Cyril Rioli (Photo by Adam Trafford/AFL Media/Getty Images)
The documents also assert that Clarkson ‘derailed’ a 2015 meeting between Hawks Indigenous players discussing a potential boycott of the AFL over what was deemed an inadequate response by the league to the booing of Adam Goodes.
Clarkson, the statement claims, ‘invited himself to the meeting’, and then ‘derailed the meeting by bringing his guitar and singing a song about Mr Rioli’, then ‘discouraged the players from going through with the boycott’.
Confusingly, the players involved are stated to be Cyril Rioli, Shaun Burgoyne, Jed Anderson and Derick Wanganeen, though Wanganeen had been delisted at the end of 2014.
Clarkson, Fagan and Burt have repeatedly denied the allegations against them, with Clarkson taking a leave of absence from coaching North Melbourne midway through last season amid the fallout.
An independent AFL investigation launched in September 2022 ended last year, with reports of a ‘startling lack of evidence’ against the trio.