Hay, Roos Stoush Set To Escalate
The Age
Thursday February 15, 2007
THE legal row between the Kangaroos and defender Jonathan Hay threatens to escalate, with both parties reportedly refusing to back down over the issue of Hay's mental illness and whether he should have disclosed it to the club.
In a dispute that the Hay camp fears could result in the Kangaroos threatening to delist the 27-year-old, the player's manager, Peter Christie, and his Perth-based lawyer have privately insisted they had offered to accept a contract termination at the end of 2007 should Hay fail to perform to the club's expectations.AFL Players' Association chief Brendon Gale said: "The offer put forward to the Kangaroos is more than fair in our view and the footballer is doing his best to do the right thing by the club."We believe the club should be supporting him at this time. We have worked so hard to de-stigmatise illnesses like depression and this is very disappointing. We are certainly supporting the player in this case."The players' association has been working on what could prove an important test case for the competition for the past six weeks. Christie, who would not comment yesterday, reportedly voiced his fears to the AFLPA that Hay would be sacked. Gale said the Kangaroos would have no grounds within the rules to sack him and had not suggested as much.The Kangaroos signed Hay to a three-year deal worth $950,000 at the start of last season without knowledge of Hay's health issues, which even his closest confidants at Hawthorn were not fully aware of.At the end of his disappointing first season - Hay was dropped and later disciplined for poor behaviour off the field - he revealed he had bipolar depression and had been diagnosed three years earlier.The club has been working to not only reduce Hay's contract but lay down performance clauses which could see the contract cut short by a season.The Roos argued that it had no issue with Hay's depression, simply his failure to disclose it. Another former Hawk who also has depression, Nathan Thompson, came to the club with his health problems disclosed.Another meeting between Christie and Kangaroos chief executive Rick Aylett is expected to be held next week with Hay on target to return during the NAB Cup.
© 2007 The Age
