‘Casual racism?’ Mis-aimed St Kilda Saints coach Ross Lyon comment at training prompts apology
Updated ,first published
In today’s AFL briefing:
- Ross Lyon regrets a comment he made in training, including the term ‘brother’, that upset local players.
- Essendon was dealt another injury blow, with forward Isaac Kako out of the game with a back stress injury.
- Zak Butters, the most sought-after player in the AFL, is adamant he will decide on his future.
Ross Lyon has offered to reconsider his role as St Kilda coach following a comment he made during training that upset domestic players at the club, according to a TV report on Monday night.
The veteran AFL coach said on his second stint at St Kilda: Age columnist and Channel Seven’s Agenda Setters panelist Caroline Wilson said her comment earlier this month “didn’t get where it needed to go” and could be interpreted as “casual racism”.
Wilson reports on the program that multiple grand finals coach Lyon said after a training exercise that brought together three Indigenous players: “I love the Brotherboy connection, but we’ve all got to remember we’re all part of a bigger team here.”
According to Wilson, the comment did not go down well with some St Kilda players, including senior Indigenous player Bradley Hill and the club’s superstar Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera.
“I’m not here to justify or try to rationalize what I said. We’re all only as good as the next moment and it was a moment when I realized I misjudged it. Was I being flippant? Could it be described as casual racism? It didn’t land where it needed to land and I need to wear it and I take full responsibility for what I said.”
St Kilda Manager Ross Lyon
Lyon, who has coached nearly 400 AFL games at St Kilda and Fremantle, told Wilson he had “learned a lot from what happened”.
“I’m not here to justify or try to rationalize what I said. We’re all only as good as the next moment, and there was a moment when I realized I misjudged it,” Lyon said.
“Did I act impertinent? Can it be described as casual racism?”
“It didn’t land where it should have landed and I have to wear that and I take full responsibility for what I said.
“I was very emotional at the meeting and offered to consider my position.”
The ill-intended comment led to a meeting between Lyon and some of the club’s Indigenous players just days later.
“That comment certainly didn’t sit well with Brad Hill, Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera or any of the other Indigenous players,” Wilson said.
“It was Friday. On Saturday night Brad Hill – arguably the leader of St Kilda’s Indigenous cohort (and it must be said that it is the second largest Indigenous cohort of any AFL club) rang Ross and conveyed his displeasure.”
Wilson said the players were satisfied and “absolutely accept” that Lyon said the wrong thing, but “in no way did they intend to be racist”.
“[Ross]”The players, who realized that something had not gone right since the previous day and were disturbed, asked the players to take a day off to say goodbye and gathered them all at the club on Monday,” he said.
“He became very emotional. He offered to consider the position of senior coach.”
“There is no doubt that he has a very good track record with Indigenous footballers, dating back to his time at Fremantle.
“I’m not just saying this because Ross chose to come clean and talk to us.
“He’s almost relieved that we’re going to report this because he believes that the truth will set him free in some strange way.
“He doesn’t think he’s racist and was absolutely appalled that he had caused so much harm to these players.
“After the first meeting he offered to address the entire playing group. But the players at that meeting said that would not be necessary. And they absolutely insist they go ahead.”
Wilson said Lyon told him he “didn’t want to speak on behalf of his players”.
“My understanding is that Bradley Hill and all of his teammates who weren’t happy, including Nasiah, were happy and certainly acknowledged that Ross said the wrong thing, but they didn’t mean to be racist in any way,” he said.
“I think Brad Hill said to Ross on Saturday night: ‘Look, you wouldn’t have said that if there were three white players, so you shouldn’t have said that to us.'”
St Kilda has been contacted for comment.
Exciting Dons forward goes down with ‘medium-term’ injury
Peter Ryan
Essendon was dealt another injury blow, with forward Isaac Kako out of the game with a back stress injury.
The 20-year-old smartly scored a goal on Anzac Day but was robbed of the opportunity as he collected 10 touches.
He has scored seven goals in six games but is showing signs of improvement as he makes his 29th appearance for the Bombers in his second season.
Essendon football manager Dan MacPherson said the problem emerged during scans of Kako on Monday morning.
“It’s a really disappointing setback for Isaac, who has been playing some exciting football for us in the early stages of this season,” MacPherson said.
“He will now need a period of rest to recover from his injury before recovering to return to play later in the season.”
The club described his absence as medium-term; That could mean six to eight weeks, but he wasn’t ready to give a definitive result. Sullivan Robey, who played his third game on Saturday, had his preseason training interrupted by a hot spot in his back.
Kako, a new generation academy graduate, was selected with the 13th pick in the 2024 national draft. On Saturday, Robey was part of an inexperienced forward line along with Nate Caddy, Archer Day-Wicks and Archer May.
Butters, the sought-after star of Port, opens up to the future
Zak Butters, the AFL’s most sought-after signing, is determined not to decide his future until the end of the season.
The Port Adelaide powerhouse remains intact as multimillion-dollar offers mount from suitors in its home state of Victoria.
“Nothing has changed my mind,” Butters told reporters Monday. “Yes, I feel like it will probably be at the end of the season when I make my decision.
“And I think I’ll stick with it all year.
“I’m really enjoying my football at the moment, seeing these young kids doing well. And I feel like we’ve got a few boys coming back with Connor (Rozee) and a few boys still missing, so I think the future is pretty bright.”
Butters is being pursued by clubs including the Western Bulldogs, Hawthorn, Collingwood, Geelong, Essendon and Richmond.
The triple club champion’s contract at Port expires at the end of the season and he becomes a restricted free agent, with the South Australian club promising to match any offers.
Butters has spent the past week in the unwanted spotlight amid a controversial court case after it was revealed he was abusive towards referee Nick Foot.
But Butters was acquitted after the appeal panel ruled he had been denied natural justice due to driving by tribunal member Jason Johnson during stages of the trial.
“I keep that pretty open to myself… I keep the off-field stuff off the field and most importantly I worry about my performance and how I control it,” Butters said.
“This is what I get paid for.
“I spend a lot of my time and energy training, getting better as a player, making my teammates better and also being a good leader, so I would like to say I fill my glass with a lot of that.”
When asked how difficult the situation was, Butters replied: “I wouldn’t say it was ideal.
“But hard or not, I feel like there are way worse things going on in the world.”
AAP
Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.
