All four players named in the AFL's betting probe have escaped suspension, but the league's message to players and officials was clear following the hefty fines
All four players named in the AFL's betting probe have escaped suspension, but the league's message to players and officials was clear following the hefty fines handed out on Thursday; bet on AFL matches in the future and you will miss games.Football operations manager Adrian Anderson presented the findings of the three-month long investigation at Telstra Dome with Adelaide's Simon Goodwin copping the largest sanction.The Crows' star onballer was found to have placed four bets involving AFL matches totaling $16,024.58 with betting agency Betfair and was fined $40,000 with half of that sum suspended, and ordered to undertake compulsory counseling.Melbourne's Daniel Ward was next in line having placed 18 bets totaling $3,705 and was fined $10,000 with $5,000 suspended and will also attend compulsory counseling sessions on an ongoing basis.Ward also volunteered to do 100 hours community service with the Berry Street charity as part of his punishment.Anderson said both players admitted to having gambling problems and said the league would be supporting them fully as they undergo counseling.The other two players named in the investigation - the Kangaroos' David Hale and Sydney's Kieran Jack - were at the lower end of the scale having placed bets totaling $100 and $10 respectively.Both were ordered to attend compulsory counseling for as long as deemed necessary by the counselor, while Hale was also given a suspended $5,000 fine for his four bets and Jack was reprimanded for his two.The AFL launched the probe after being alerted to Goodwin's activities by Betfair in November and uncovered the other three players after forwarding a list of AFL players and officials to both Betfair and Tabcorp.All four co-operated fully with the investigation and accepted full responsibility for their actions with the league finding no evidence of corruption from any of the players involved.Anderson said the amount of money bet, the age and experience of the players involved, the fact that all were first time offenders and the co-operation given to the investigating team had all been factors in determining the punishments which he hoped would act as a deterrent in the future."All players, coaches and officials are on notice," Anderson said."This is the first time that players have been sanctioned under this regulation. Although no suspensions were imposed in this case, I wish to clearly state that suspensions will be applicable for future breaches of the AFL regulation 19.3 covering gambling."The AFL player regulations clearly state that gambling is expressly prohibited within our game and none of the four players involved in this investigation has claimed he was unaware of the AFL's rules."The AFL's investigators have found no evidence that any player bet against his team on any occasion. However, the AFL wishes to state that these rules are central to the integrity of our game."Anderson said the AFL would continue to monitor betting activity with regard to AFL matches and would be seeking the co-operation of state betting regulators going forward in an effort to maintain the integrity of the game.