A moral lesson for all Australians

Wednesday, 25th November 2009

The community in the AFL sex scandal has a case to answer quite separate from any criminal allegations, says John Heard

The alleged facts are straightforward. Up to 16 people from Melbourne’s outer northern suburbs are under suspicion of the sexual assault and false imprisonment of two women. So far, three males — two aged 18 and one 17-year-old — have been charged with three counts of rape, two counts of indecent assault and one count of false imprisonment. The charges relate to an unofficial, unchaperoned end-of-season football trip to Phillip Island and, in particular, to a contested reading of the events of 10 October 2009. Lurid details, widely reported, describe a weekend that took in binge drinking, the viewing of pornographic material, up to $10,000 in property damage, and group sex acts. Some of those under suspicion, and two of the three charged, have played for the Montmorency Football Club.

Beyond that basic outline, however, the understanding we have of the events is in flux. No one denies that there was such a trip, and no one claims that it was a genteel affair. Certainly, none of the parents, players, and other associates of the club — which is known, after the affectionate name for the area, as Monty — deny that the weekend involved binge drinking, the viewing of pornographic material, and likely property damage. Certainly, and perhaps most surprisingly, there has been no denial of the claim that the attendees engaged in group sex acts with two Phillip Island women.

The families of the accused, Montmorency locals, and supporters of the club, however, baulk at the public criminal characterisation of the weekend and its aftermath. A Facebook group with the efficient title The Monty Boys R INNOCENT !!! has attracted more than 1,000 members. The postings there are surprising too. They speak of the alleged rapists in glowing, apparently genuine terms. One of the accused, in particular, has been lionised on the discussion boards and defended in the public comment sections. He is a good bloke, scores of members claiming to be locals attest, and they offer numerous examples of his personal decency as proof. When I visited the area on the weekend, indeed, the defence of the accused was in full swing.

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