A schism has emerged at the top of the AFL over whether clubs can avoid future liability for head injuries, despite the league fining Geelong $140,000 for failing to lodge the concussion waiver signed by defender Jake Kolodjashnij.
The Cats sanction was made of two parts, including $100,000 for failing to inform the AFL of a change to Kolodjashnij’s contract, previously described as a “waiver” by AFL Commission chair and former Cats president Craig Drummond.
That also activated a $40,000 suspended fine applied to Geelong for salary cap-related breaches last year, leaving the club with a $140,000 penalty to be paid into the AFL’s injury and support fund. The Cats recorded a profit of $1.7m last year.
Geelong accepted the findings of the independent review and acknowledged the sanction in a statement on Thursday.
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon was unequivocal when saying a concussion waiver like Kolodjashnij’s would not be approved, were it to be lodged with the AFL and AFL Players’ Association (AFLPA) as required. “It can’t happen and it won’t happen,” he said. “What would have happened is there would have been a line of inquiry and the AFLPA would have been involved.”
Barely an hour later Drummond was more ambiguous, initially saying he was not aware of Dillon’s comment, and then adding that the question over whether such a waiver would be approved was “hypothetical”.
When asked to explain the discrepancy between his view and Dillon’s, Drummond said there will be a “significant set of discussions” between the AFLPA, the AFL and clubs over the “protocols and the process for these types of situations”.
“I certainly, as chair of the AFL, I don’t want any of our clubs or any of our players being put in this situation,” he said. “We need some clarity around where there’s been a bit more grey, we need a bit more clarity.”
Drummond appeared to be referring to a review of the safety nets around concussion that the AFL and AFLPA also announced today, covering issues like the challenges of commercial insurance protection for players and officials, and an increase to the scope of the injury and support fund.
Dillon said earlier the AFL had work to do to better manage risk to players, board members, clubs and doctors. “The challenge that’s facing the industry as a whole is how risk is looked at, how the insurance is looked at, and how the safety net for the players and officials is looked at, so, that’s where we’re at now.”
The clause in Kolodjashnij’s contract was drafted and signed after the defender was not fully cleared by the AFL’s concussion panel in 2024, and followed consultation about potential risks of returning to senior football with the player, his family, doctors and insurers. The waiver was set aside by Geelong in the days after its existence first became public.
The AFL Commission found the Cats did not intend to conceal the agreement, however, in accepting the recommendations from an investigation by Kings Counsel James Peters.
Commission member Paul Bassat said despite the sanction for the “unauthorised variation”, Geelong had acted with the health and safety of its players in mind. “It is clear this incident goes beyond the breach of lodgement rules, and has raised broader issues to do with informed consent in playing contact sport and the paramount responsibilities for players’ health and safety.”
The sanction exceeds recent fines issued by the AFL, including the $77,500 penalty to the Cats for salary cap breaches, of which $40,000 was suspended, and the $75,000 fine handed to Carlton for their mismanagement of Elijah Hollands’ mental health episode.
The amount, however, is minimal compared to the compensation likely to be sought by past players as they pursue the football industry in a head injury-related class action, with former Cat Max Rooke as lead plaintiff, which includes more than 100 former AFL players and is expected to go to trial next year.
There has been widespread criticism directed at Geelong for developing the waiver which has also enveloped the AFL given Drummond, the former Cats president, became chair of the AFL Commission in March.
Drummond has already apologised for “the mistakes made in this very complex situation”, but said on Thursday it was “administrative failure” in failing to lodge the document. “It’s not the board’s role to lodge documents or arrange where the documents end up going,” he said.
“Management clearly made a decision not to lodge the document, but it was clearly a conscious decision because they didn’t feel that they needed to lodge the documents,” he said.
“The mistake made was the documentation was not lodged, and with that lodgment there may have come up conversations, presumably with either the PA (AFLPA) or the AFL.”
Drummond recused himself from the AFL’s deliberation on the matter.
