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"We can beat anyone, as long as we do whatever it takes" - Essendon Football Club Advertisement. As muscular sporting slogans go, it's a beauty. But for Essendon Football Club, it's become memorable for all the wrong reasons, symbolising the attitude that brought the Club undone. It was their motto as they prepared for the 2013 AFL season, just as the story of the Club's supplements program broke open, kicking off the biggest sports drug scandal in Australian history. Three years on, despite numerous reviews, investigations and court hearings, there are still questions the club has not answered. To this day, the players still don't know exactly what they were given. This week Four Corners takes you inside one former Essendon player's battle to find out just what was in the supplements he was directed to take. As a rookie with the club, Hal Hunter joined the other more senior players in the supplements program. He gives an eye witness account of what it was like to be part of the regime and what went on once the scandal broke. He describes how the Club has stonewalled his attempts to obtain his medical records prompting him to take action in court, the first Essendon player to do so. Hal Hunter's case gives an insight into the oversight of the club and its approach to the duty of care it owed all its players.

Four Corners is Australia's premier television current affairs program. It has been part of the Australian story since August 1961, exposing scandals, triggering inquiries, firing debate, confronting taboos and interpreting fads, trends and sub-cultures. Its consistently high standards of journalism and film-making have earned international recognition and an array of Walkleys, Logies and other national awards.

Primary Title
  • Four Corners
Secondary Title
  • Whatever It Takes
Date Broadcast
  • Monday 18 December 2017
Release Year
  • 2016
Duration
  • 43:00
Channel
  • Media Services
Broadcaster
  • The University of Auckland Library
Programme Description
  • Four Corners is Australia's premier television current affairs program. It has been part of the Australian story since August 1961, exposing scandals, triggering inquiries, firing debate, confronting taboos and interpreting fads, trends and sub-cultures. Its consistently high standards of journalism and film-making have earned international recognition and an array of Walkleys, Logies and other national awards.
Episode Description
  • "We can beat anyone, as long as we do whatever it takes" - Essendon Football Club Advertisement. As muscular sporting slogans go, it's a beauty. But for Essendon Football Club, it's become memorable for all the wrong reasons, symbolising the attitude that brought the Club undone. It was their motto as they prepared for the 2013 AFL season, just as the story of the Club's supplements program broke open, kicking off the biggest sports drug scandal in Australian history. Three years on, despite numerous reviews, investigations and court hearings, there are still questions the club has not answered. To this day, the players still don't know exactly what they were given. This week Four Corners takes you inside one former Essendon player's battle to find out just what was in the supplements he was directed to take. As a rookie with the club, Hal Hunter joined the other more senior players in the supplements program. He gives an eye witness account of what it was like to be part of the regime and what went on once the scandal broke. He describes how the Club has stonewalled his attempts to obtain his medical records prompting him to take action in court, the first Essendon player to do so. Hal Hunter's case gives an insight into the oversight of the club and its approach to the duty of care it owed all its players.
Classification
  • Unknown
Owning Collection
  • Chapman Archive
Broadcast Platform
  • Television
Languages
  • English
Captions
Live Broadcast
  • No
Rights Statement
  • Made for the University of Auckland's educational use as permitted by the Screenrights Licensing Agreement.
Subjects
  • Australian football
  • Doping in sports--Australia
Genres
  • Current affairs
Hosts
  • Sarah Ferguson (Presenter)
Contributors
  • Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Production Unit)
  • Quentin McDermott (Reporter)
  • Hal Hunter (Interviewee)
Subjects
  • Australian football
  • Doping in sports--Australia