Collingwood’s football boss has denied the club has a drug problem following the ban of Jack Ginnivan and a string of incidents involving players taking illegal substances over the years.
Graham Wright, a club legend turned football boss who until recently was the club’s interim chief executive, spoke to reporters on Sunday morning following news of Ginivan’s indiscretion the night before.
The polarizing forward, who is seemingly a fan favorite and villain at the same time, has been banned for two matches after a video showed him and another man in a toilet cubicle on Australia Day with a white illegal substance on a key.
The incident happened while Ginnivan was in Torquay with friends and team-mates in January, following the Magpies’ pre-season training camp, when a member of the public filmed him in a pub toilet.
Wright believes Ginivan’s drug use is an “isolated incident” and denies the AFL club has a significant problem with illegal substances.
Collingwood star Jack Ginivan has been banned for two games after being shot with an illegal white substance – but the club’s football boss insists he has no drug problem, despite Ginivan being the fourth Kakaya player to banned for drug use in the last few. years
Ginivan has rarely been out of the headlines over the past 12 months for incidents off and on the field, including dressing down serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer (left) and rating women with teammate Isaac Quinor
That’s despite fellow Magpies Sam Murray, Lachie Keeffe and Josh Thomas serving lengthy drug bans, along with a string of other off-field incidents in recent seasons, many involving either Ginnivan or the other villain Jordan boy. de Goey.
Former CEO Gary Pert once said he felt drugs and the “volcanic” off-season behavior of some players was the club and league’s biggest problem and was part of a big push for clubs and the league to address the issue.
For his part, Wright would not confirm media reports that the substance was ketamine, but said he believed the Magpies were in a good position in terms of drug use and said the club didn’t think it was “a big deal”.
“We absolutely feel like we’re (in) a good place,” Wright told reporters Sunday.
“I think this is an isolated incident and that’s the way we’re dealing with it. It is not at all a pattern of behavior for him or anyone else at the club.’
Jack Ginnivan, pictured trying to show off his biceps at Magpies training last year, said he was “really sorry” for making the mistake
Asked if drug use was a problem for the AFL as a whole, Wright deflected, preferring to insist it was not a problem at Collingwood.
“I hope it wasn’t a major issue, but players are part of society and drugs are part of society,” he said.
“We certainly hope our players are not involved in illegal drugs, but I don’t think it’s a big issue in the competition and we certainly don’t think it is here.”
Ginnivan’s video of the illegal drug – taken in a Torquay hotel on a players day off after a training camp on Victoria’s Surf Coast – emerged when it was offered to a media outlet.
Wright said Collingwood was made aware of the incident on Thursday night and informed the AFL’s Integrity Unit, which interviewed Ginivan and found the player guilty of conduct inappropriate.
Ginnivan was hit with a strike under the league’s illegal drugs policy and has also been suspended for two games.
It will cost the 20-year-old his fight payouts and he also has a suspended $5,000 fine hanging over his head. Wright said Ginivan’s contract is heavily based on match payments, so it’s a bigger hit for him than it would be for other players.
Jack Ginnivan tries to silence the crowd after scoring a goal in the ANZAC side’s blockbuster against Essendon, for which he won the man of the match award.
Ginnivan has been photographed hanging out with friends and posting on social media throughout the off-season, including traveling to Europe with teammates
“Obviously he’s losing his place in the early rounds and we’re not sure when he’s going to come in, so it’s a significant cost for him,” he said.
“Jack’s money is not guaranteed, he actually has to play, so it’s a big fine (believed to be around $15,000) for him in total. We will miss him, but obviously someone else will have to step up.”
He is not eligible to play in Collingwood pre-season training matches or at VFL level during his suspension.
Ginnivan admitted to drug use when he confronted Collingwood leaders and the AFL and later apologized for his “poor decision-making” through a club statement. and tag the videographer.
“I went into the cabin and apparently took an illegal substance… I’m really sorry,” he said.
“Obviously a few drinks, lack of judgment at the time. I can’t really talk about why I did it. When I went into the bathroom, I didn’t think someone would take a video of me.”
The incident sees Ginnivan make his first strike under the AFL’s illegal drugs policy. That means he will undergo a target test this year, receive a $5,000 suspension and a two-game ban.
A second strike results in a four-game suspension ($5000 fine) and the player’s name is released, with a third resulting in a lengthy 12-game suspension and a $10,000 fine.
Interestingly, a player can self-report drug use and avoid a strike by submitting to a medical program. Club management and coaches are also not informed of a first strike, with only the player’s club doctor and AFL medical directors being aware.
After Bulldog Bailey Smith’s high-profile white powder incident last year, coach Luke Beveridge said the controversial policy should “go away” because “none of us really feel it’s working”.
On Sunday, former Victorian premier and Hawks insider Jeff Kennett echoed those sentiments in the wake of Ginnivan’s ban.
“I’ve always thought the AFL drug policy is inappropriate and inadequate,” he told 7News.
“The club should be properly informed – not just the doctor – and the chairman, so the club and the doctor can look after him and hopefully it won’t happen again.
“There’s no point waiting until the player is named at the club as strike three … the club has the responsibility from the first strike,” Kennett said.
Former Victorian premier and Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett said the union’s drugs policy was “inadequate” after the Ginnivan incident
Ginnivan has often been in the spotlight since his debut in 2021 and won the Anzac Day Medal for a stunning five-goal performance against Essendon last year.
Kicked 40 goals in a second season in 2022, playing a key role in Collingwood’s surge to a qualifying final.
But the livewire forward is also under fire for ducking his head to take free-kicks and admitted last year’s harsh scrutiny of his approach to the game had affected his mental health.
“It’s Jack’s private issues regarding his mental health … but in this case he said it had nothing to do with any of his actions in that matter,” Wright said when asked about the reasoning behind the incident.
“He’s owned it in that regard, but that’s ongoing, he’s dealing with our psychologist and our other doctors. But in this case it was out of the question.’
Ginivan will miss at least the opening two games of the season – tough fixtures against Geelong and Port Adelaide – and will face a battle for his place in the team alongside the likes of rookie Bobby Hill.