Geelong secret deal involving a player with a history of concussion has been abandoned after the AFL said it had not approved the arrangement and criticism mounted from the AFL Players’ Association and past players and coaches.
According to the league, the Cats notified officials on Thursday that they would remove a waiver the unnamed player had signed to acknowledge risks and seek to waive some potential future legal rights. The AFL said the waiver had not been lodged with, or approved by, the league or the AFLPA.
“The AFL and AFLPA are aware of a complex and unique case in which a Geelong player was cleared as fit to play following an assessment by an AFL Concussion Panel,” the league said. It added that the player had signed a risk acknowledgment letter, which would now have the waiver removed, and that the league was satisfied the document had not been used to allow a medically unfit player to return.
Geelong secret deal draws AFLPA concern
AFL Players’ Association chief executive James Gallagher said the reported arrangement could breach competition rules and Australian law. He said the game and its clubs have a duty to provide a safe workplace and cannot contract out of obligations under the collective bargaining agreement or health and safety laws.
Gallagher also noted that no player is permitted to train or play unless medically cleared, and said the union was in discussions with the AFL to understand the case and prevent it being repeated at the elite level.
The arrangement, first reported to have been made two years ago, involved a player who had suffered multiple concussions and would assume legal responsibility for any on-field brain injury. It was reported to have been cleared by the club’s board.
Geelong’s chair at the time, Craig Drummond, has since been appointed chair of the AFL Commission.
In a statement on Thursday, the Cats said they would remove the waiver while maintaining that they were not seeking to vary the AFL standard playing contract or avoid responsibilities under health and safety laws. The club said the letter signed with the player went further than intended and acknowledged the absence of the AFLPA in the process.
Geelong said it had engaged in extensive discussions with the player, the player’s family and representative about the concussion history, and that those discussions, including advice from the club’s Chief Medical Officer and the AFL Concussion Panel, were documented in the letter signed by the player. The club said no direction was given requiring the player to medically retire.
Brain health, concussion and chronic traumatic encephalopathy remain a significant challenge for the AFL, which has introduced changes intended to make the game safer. A class action led by former Geelong player Max Rooke has been before Victorian courts for more than two years.
The case, which includes more than 100 former AFL players and now names former Cats doctors dating back to 1985, is expected to go to trial next year. The scrutiny of concussion in elite sport has intensified across codes, from Australian rules football to events such as the Commonwealth Games 2026, as governing bodies respond to growing medical and legal concerns.