The system failure at the heart of the Jake Kolodjashnij case - and the moral questions it raises

The only conclusion that can be reached from a strict reading of the Geelong concussion waiver findings is that the $140,000 fine – for failing to lodge a letter – is excessive.

Administrative oversights don’t warrant such a whack unless the governing body is looking to mollify the multitudes who are both sick of the cute Cats and the way headquarters have handled concussion in the past.

Clearly the commission considered a heavy fine would satisfy that mob, while the findings of James Peters KC would enable former Geelong president Craig Drummond to continue as AFL chair .

Handing over such a cheque might be difficult for the Cats to stomach but, from their perspective, proving to Peters that they “did not intend to conceal the existence of the agreement or deceive the AFL or AFLPA” is more important to their reputation.

Many may never accept Peters’ finding, but the fact Geelong opened up a conversation with the AFL’s legal and medical teams, an outside insurance expert, and the player and his family before committing to the ultimately flawed agreement lends weight to Peters’ conclusion.

They should have, in hindsight, opened up the conversation more widely, but I suspect Jake Kolodjashnij, being an unassuming athlete in his early-30s, did not want his medical position discussed in public.

What no one can hide from is the fact the concussion panel’s inconclusive finding on Kolodjashnij left a club to manage something the AFL and the players’ association should have seen as a high priority and a shared responsibility.

Particularly when those controlling bodies were alert to the potential complexities ahead because another player had already been allowed to sign a waiver, before returning to the VFL, with an AFL club in a competition containing AFL players.

The doctors were living the problem because they were (and are) facing increasing professional indemnity insurance. Insurance experts knew because they were trying to get individual player cover, particularly pertinent now after Zurich’s decision to not cover concussion. Legal eagles knew because they were following the class action relating to concussion, and the coroner’s report into Shane Tuck .

But somehow the controlling bodies sent a player back to a club with an ambiguous finding from a concussion panel without any protocols as to what should happen next.

For all the high-minded statements coming from various quarters, that is a system failing.

What surprised most on Thursday was when AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said that the questions surrounding the investigation weren’t moral questions.

Maybe not if you keep the terms of that investigation narrow, but the ethical dilemma this case represents should have been contemplated more vigorously when putting a player in Kolodjashnij’s position, and they must be part of the debate now.

How much agency should Kolodjashnij have to decide to continue his career when the risks – both present and future – are explained to him in great detail, and the doctor is prepared to support him?