AFL Hall of Fame membership revoked following assault conviction
Updated ,first published
Former AFL star Nicky Winmar has been expelled from the Australian Football Hall of Fame despite his iconic stand to eliminate racism in the game.
The Saints club has suspended the greats from the Hall of Fame as the AFL Commission revoked the former St Kilda champion’s membership following his recent conviction for assaulting a woman.
Winmar, 60, told News Corp he planned to appeal the suspension and was “devastated and extremely upset” by the league’s move.
The commission has the authority to remove a member through changes to the Hall of Fame’s charter in 2023.
This could result in a candidate being dismissed “if charged with or found guilty of a suspected offence, and/or if the candidate engages in conduct that the commission considers to be prejudicial to the interests of the AFL or to bring the AFL, the candidate or Australian Rules into disrepute”.
The AFL did not use that power to sack North Melbourne great Wayne Carey, who was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2010 despite being convicted of assaulting a female police officer in the US in 2007. This occurred after his then-girlfriend Kate Neilson accused him of smashing a wine glass in her face. He did not make any accusations.
He pleaded guilty to indecent assault after grabbing a woman’s breast in 1995.
The AFL blocked Carey’s legend induction into the NSW Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2024, when the league took a stance honoring victims of violence against women.
Winmar has hit back at what it claims are the AFL’s double standards.
“Once again, I am appealing the decision and would like some clarity from the AFL as to why there were other players in the Australian Football Hall of Fame found guilty of similar charges and why I was expelled before my appeal was heard,” he told News Corp.
Carey’s offense occurred before his induction and changes to the Hall of Fame charter in 2023, and the AFL did not exercise that power retroactively.
The AFL has expelled football star Barry Cable from the Hall of Fame in 2023 and stripped him of his legend status after he was identified in a civil case for sexually assaulting a Perth girl during his playing career. In a separate criminal case involving a different girl, Cable was found not guilty of historic child sexual abuse charges dating back to the 1960s.
Cable was a two-time VFL premiership player for the North Melbourne Football Club in the 1970s.
Winmar, 60, was found guilty of three counts of assaulting a woman in the Bendigo Magistrates Court earlier this month.
Winmar declined to comment when contacted by this masthead on Wednesday.
A flamboyant and highly skilled forward and winger, Winmar played 251 games for the Saints and Western Bulldogs.
He was a key figure in the AFL’s fight against racism in the 1990s, when he held up his shot and pointed to his skin during a 1993 match against Collingwood at Victoria Park, during which he was racially abused by Magpies fans.
The AFL acknowledged Winmar’s contribution to the game in a statement on Wednesday and explained why one of the game’s highest individual awards was taken from him.
“The Australian Football Hall of Fame exists to recognize the highest achievements in our game and to be inducted into it is one of the greatest honors Australian football can bestow,” AFL chief executive Craig Drummond said.
“The commission has a responsibility to protect the integrity and reputation of this honor.
“Violence against women has no place. Not in our community, not in our game, not in the values that the Australian Football Hall of Fame strives to uphold.”
“The Commission recognizes Nicky Winmar’s significant contribution to Australian football and his place in our history. However, the recent findings against him make his place in the Australian Football Hall of Fame inappropriate.”
The Saints did not kick Winmar out of the Hall of Fame.
“The decision regarding Winmar’s continued place in the Hall of Fame will be made following the formal conclusion of the entire legal process, including the completion of any appeals,” the Saints said in a statement released minutes later by the AFL.
“Violence against women has no place in our society. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this situation.”
