COMMENT
Intolerable AFL outcast Sam Newman is not just a ticking time bomb for the league, but a major embarrassment.
And surely the good people at AFL House can no longer keep their heads in the sand as Newman gleefully pisses on their Hall of Fame table like a lost drunk oblivious to his surrounds.
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League officials, and Geelong for that matter, have to act. It is time to strip the 80-year-old of his tainted Hall of Fame status.
Newman’s willingness to shock over the years possibly started with some sort of old fashioned naivety … but now it is beyond offensive, it is disgraceful, dangerous.
Yes, his misinformed and vile comments about the rape victim at the centre of the Ralph Carr case have been condemned, but this only serves to fuel the “attention-seeking” Newman.
For reference and reference only, he said: “I’m just wondering what sort of evidence they had about him raping her … Other than the fact she might have buyer’s remorse.”
He was speaking to his mate, Wayne Carey, himself an Australian Football Hall of Famer who well and truly lacks any credibility when it comes to attitudes towards women.
But even Carey could see Newman had crossed a line.
“Sam given that you’re in Sicily and you are only going off what you are reading, I’d probably suggest you don’t have an opinion about it, just like I don’t,” Carey said.
Newman still has a lot of old friends in the industry, and many outspoken and respected figures in the media, too.
It is why the outcry over this scandal is somewhat muted, as was the outcry last year when he gave two high-profile neo-Nazis a voice on his podcast.
But the reality is this has been going on for years … decades, in fact.
As a reminder to the gatekeepers of the Australian Football Hall of Fame, the eligibility criteria is not just about a player’s record and ability.
“Integrity” and “character” are also taken into account.
In June this year, Nicky Winmar was removed after he was found guilty of three assault charges against a woman.
The AFL’s statement at that time made it perfectly clear what was not acceptable of a Hall of Famer.
“Under amendments to the Australian Football Hall of Fame Charter adopted in 2023, the AFL Commission can remove an inductee if they have been charged with or found guilty of an indictable offence and/ or if the inductee engages in conduct which the Commission considers is prejudicial to the interests of the AFL or is conduct which brings the AFL, the inductee, or Australian Football into disrepute ,” the statement said.
Again, it’s impossible to see how humiliating a rape victim, or promoting neo-Nazis does not bring the game into disrepute, or is not damaging to the interests of the AFL.
Yes, the Geelong Football Club has a lot of clout at AFL House and the Hall of Fame secretary is, yes, a Geelong man, but supporting Newman by not taking action clearly goes against their own discretionary rules.
Even the typically conservative News Corp mastheads were so appalled by Newman’s comments that they were moved to publish articles.
And TV presenter Angela Pippos called it “predictable, ill-informed and dangerous comments in a society where sexual violence is grossly under-reported.” Pippos included hashtags of Sam Newman and “victim blaming”.
Journalist Marnie Vinall said: “Sam Newman is saying that vile stuff for attention, we actually don’t have to give it to him by making those clips go viral.”
Well known Australian actress Christie Whelan said: “I have come to expect it from old fossils like Sam Newman. Asking what evidence there was against Ralph Carr other than ‘buyers regret’. Do you know how hard it is to get that conviction? And STILL men cannot accept the rape of a woman. The disrespect, the misogyny – tiresome.”
Whelan then added: “It’s not age. It’s mentality.”
Journalist Sherele Moody said: “Football commentator and media dude Sam Newman just claimed the woman raped by sports manager Ralph Carr had ‘buyer’s remorse’ and he questioned the evidence of the rapist’s crimes.
“I hope Newman is cancelled by AFL and by every media outlet that platforms him. How dare he stand up and call a rape victim a liar.”