‘They did almost everything right’: Dillon defends Cats despite $140k fine

Geelong have been handed a massive $140,000 fine for failing to lodge the variation to Jake Kolodjashnij’s contract which included what AFL chairman Craig Drummond described as “a waiver” to reduce their exposure to legal risk if the defender suffered another concussion.

The AFL Commission met on Tuesday night to consider the matter following an investigation by James Peters KC, who found the failure to lodge the document by the Cats was an oversight rather than a deliberate attempt to conceal it from the authorities.

The club was represented at that meeting. The Cats argued that a $40,000 suspended fine, which was hanging over them following a $77,500 fine last year after an AFL audit into the club’s third-party agreements and associates between 2019-2024, should not be added in this case as the Kolodjashnij waiver error occurred before that penalty.

However, the AFL decided to add the suspended fine to a $100,000 sanction to come up with a total of $140,000. Two industry sources confirmed the size of the penalty to this masthead, which the AFL later released on Thursday. Geelong were contacted for comment.

AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon conceded the controversial concussion waiver signed by Kolodjashnij would not have been approved by the league, despite defending Geelong’s handling of the saga and declaring the club had done “almost everything right”.

“It wouldn’t be approved because it’s inconsistent with the collective bargaining agreement,” Dillon said.

When asked whether a player could sign a similar concussion waiver in the future, he replied: “At the moment, under the collective agreement, it can’t happen and it won’t happen.”

The AFL’s independent review by Peters found Geelong’s breach was the failure to lodge the variation to Kolodjashnij’s playing contract, which would have allowed it to be scrutinised by the league and the AFL Players’ Association.

Had that occurred, Dillon acknowledged the waiver would not have survived the league’s scrutiny because it sought to remove rights afforded to players under the collective bargaining agreement.

“Geelong had a big call to make in relation to Jake Kolodjashnij’s future, and they did almost everything right,” Dillon said.

“They consulted widely with the AFL, with doctors, lawyers, insurers and, importantly, with Jake himself and his representatives.”

Dillon later doubled down on that assessment, saying the Cats had acted with Kolodjashnij’s interests in mind.

“They had his interests all the way, they consulted widely, but ultimately, they had to lodge the agreement with the AFL, and that’s where they fell short,” he said.

Earlier, the AFL declared in its statement releasing a summary of Peters’ findings that the Cats did not intend to deceive the league and that Kolodjashnij was not coerced into signing the agreement.