Supplements saga
‘We weren’t doing it as a charity case’: The key footy figure behind James Hird’s redemption push
James Hird has achieved great success in business and is more empathetic man now after the tumult of the past, giving him the chance to return to Essendon as coach, and live out, according to one prominent supporter, a Shakespearean tale.
- Jon Pierik
Latest
- Opinion
- AFL 2026
James Hird coaching Essendon again sounds bonkers. Which is why it might just happen
It is worth holding an image of Hird hacking his way through the Colombian jungle as you read over coming days and weeks about his chances of coaching Essendon.
- Chip Le Grand
- Updated
- AFL 2026
‘I would love to do that job’: James Hird puts his hand up to coach Essendon again
The Bombers champion, who also oversaw the infamous drugs saga, wants to return as senior coach, adding he wants the club to be “the best club in the AFL again”.
- Scott Spits
‘I didn’t really want to participate’: Watson explains why he agreed to injecting program
After more than a dozen years, a reflective Jobe Watson is now relaxed enough to discuss why he took part in the club’s controversial supplements program and why he feels the 34 suspended players were hard done by.
- Jon Pierik
Could James Hird end up coaching his son Tom at Port Melbourne? The club is asking
The former Essendon champion has become a constant figure at the VFL club watching his son Tom play, and powerbrokers are keen to put the question to him.
- Peter Ryan
- Opinion
- AFL 2023
Traumatic toll: Why St Kilda’s Seaford folly is akin to Dons, Blues sagas
One could argue that the relocation to an unloved and soulless venue inflicted just as much damage on the Saints as Carlton’s draft penalties or the Essendon drug saga did to those more powerful clubs.
- Jake Niall
- Opinion
- NRL
Why there’s a silver lining a decade on from ‘blackest day in Australian sport’
The investigator responsible for the report that sparked the supplements saga says the long-term effects have justified the initial controversy.
- Roy Masters
Sheedy takes aim at AFL, supplements saga ‘mismanaged at every level’
The Bombers will celebrate their 150th anniversary this week, but Kevin Sheedy and Danny Corcoran have opened up on the supplements scandal that continues to haunt the club.
- Jon Pierik
- Exclusive
- AFL 2022
‘We exist to win premierships’: Bombers unveil their five-year blueprint
Ahead of their 150th year celebrations, Essendon have released a five-year plan that calls for success on and off the field.
- Jon Pierik
- Updated
- Vale
Bombers mourn long-time club doctor Bruce Reid
Essendon are mourning the death of long-serving club doctor Bruce Reid.
- Daniel Cherny