Saad returns positive B sample

St Kilda forward Ahmed Saad will sit out the remainder of the season after returning a positive B sample. Picture: Darren England Source: Darren England / HeraldSun

ST KILDA forward Ahmed Saad has begun a provisional suspension under the AFL's Anti-Doping Code after confirmation he has returned a positive B sample.

Saad will miss the remaining two matches of the home-and-away season after contacting the AFL on Tuesday to inform them of his positive test.

Late last month it was revealed that the 23-year-old had tested positive to an irregular substance after consuming an energy drink, but he was allowed to keep playing until the B sample was returned.

The Saints last night confirmed Saad had been in contact with the AFL yesterday and was now awaiting an infraction notice that will result in an AFL tribunal hearing.

He faces a two-year suspension from the game.

In a statement to the Herald Sun last night, St Kilda said that "Saad inadvertently took a substance alleged to be on the AFL Anti-Doping prohibited list.

"The commencement of the provisional suspension is not an admission of guilt or wrongdoing, and the matter will be determined before the AFL tribunal at a date to be fixed.

St Kilda said Saad will "continue to co-operate with the AFL and ASADA as necessary throughout this process.

"The club and AFL Players' Association will continue to provide appropriate support to the extent allowed under the Code.

"The club and the AFLPA both remain bound by confidentiality under the AFL Anti-Doping Code and as such are not permitted to make further comment at this time."

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AFL players says sink the sub

Essendon captain Jobe Watson was subbed out through injury earlier in the season. Picture: Colleen Petch Source: Colleen Petch / HeraldSun

SCRAP the cap and put four back on the bench.

That is the clear view of players in an exclusive AFL Players' Association-Herald Sun player survey.

It shows players have lost faith in umpires, with 83 per cent reporting inconsistency in their enforcement of rules from week to week.

And players have had enough of fiddling with the rules - 75 per cent supported a three-year moratorium on changes.

The substitute rule, under which three players can be used as interchanges and one player from the starting 21 can be replaced by a substitute, was introduced in 2011.

But 79.6 per cent of the 654 players surveyed want a return to the four-player interchange system.

A decision on the interchange cap was due to be made at Monday's meeting of the AFL Commission, although the Essendon case may prevent it.

There is urgency because a low cap - 80 a team a match was put to the commission last season - would affect decisions clubs make about player retention, drafting and trading.

The Herald Sun understands a cap of 120 is more likely to be introduced.

Teams have averaged about 140 rotations a match this season.

The commission last year delayed implementing a recommendation from the Laws of the Game committee to cap interchanges at 80, although AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou said a cap of some kind would be introduced.

New AFL football operations manager Mark Evans has already moved to clear up confusion over the interpretation of several rules.

Evans will host a summit of senior coaches and umpires in November so coaches, players and umpires can be on the same page on interpretations of the most contentious rules as they begin training for next season.

Rules likely to be covered include illegal disposal in tackling; players drawing head-high contact and other frees; and interpretations of rules in marking contests.

The sliding rule may also be up for discussion, with almost 64 per cent of players saying it had not been implemented successfully this season and 53 per cent agreeing the rule was required at all.

"It is vitally important to clubs and coaches they can instruct and prepare their players on how the laws will be applied," Evans said.

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Barba a $1 million man for Broncos

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BRISBANE will be forced to pay more than $1 million to wrench Ben Barba away from Canterbury.

The Daily Telegraph can reveal compensation discussions between Bulldogs and Broncos officials have commenced, with a minimum bounty of $300,000 placed on Barba's release.

It's believed the Broncos are also willing to double Barba's current salary to around $750,000-a-season, taking the total asking price beyond seven figures for next year alone.

The two clubs also have a precedent to work from, with Brisbane compensating Canterbury for the loss of representative prop Ben Hannant in 2010.

On that occasion the Broncos supplied their rivals with tickets and corporate hospitality at Suncorp Stadium, but the Barba transfer will involve much heavier freight.

Brisbane were also able to rely on a get-out clause for Hannant to return his family to Queensland - something Barba does not enjoy.

Instead the fullback is relying on Canterbury to recognise his need to be with family in Brisbane on purely compassionate grounds.

Recent comments from coach Des Hasler and CEO Raelene Castle suggest a release is a formality, provided Brisbane offer satisfactory compensation and Canterbury's need to find a capable replacement is met.

Any compensation that Canterbury receive would not be counted under the salary cap, as was the case when Sonny Bill Williams paid his former club $750,000 for quitting a contract in 2008.

Newcastle also paid Cronulla $100,000 last year to obtain the services of veteran enforcer Jeremy Smith, who also pleaded to break his contract a year early on compassionate grounds.

Castle was tight-lipped on recent negotiations when contacted on Tuesday night.

"We've had some preliminary discussions with Brisbane, but things are long way from being finalised," she said.

Barba's management had fresh discussions with Bulldogs coach Des Hasler on Monday.

Resigned to letting Barba go, Hasler faces the daunting task of finding a new fullback with the equivalent X-factor.

Following failed approaches to Josh Dugan and Israel Folau, Hasler made a renewed appeal to Raiders dynamo Anthony Milford over the weekend.

Milford, however, only enjoys contractual permission to relocate to Brisbane next year and is at short odds to play alongside Barba in 2014.

But David Furner's sacking from Canberra could provide Hasler with a solution, given Blake Ferguson enjoys a get-out clause in the event of Furner leaving the club.

While Josh Morris has been impressive since moving from centre, Ferguson boasts the game-breaking ability that Hasler is craving from his future No. 1.

Morris will also remain at fullback for at least another fortnight after recent tests revealed that Barba needs more time to recover from an ankle injury suffered in Round 21.

Barba is not expected to return until Canterbury's final round match - ironically against Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium - on September 5. 

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Whincup laughs off upheaval

Whincup says it's "business as usual" at Red Bull. Source: Mark Horsburgh / Supplied

CHAMPIONSHIP leader Jamie Whincup has laughed off claims the sacking of his team principal will derail his bid to win a record fifth V8 Supercar title, with the Red Bull Racing Australia driver declaring it is "business as usual" at the all conquering outfit.

The shock dismissal of Holden Racing Team (HRT) bound Adrian Burgess earlier this month has cast doubt on Whincup's championship credentials, with rivals suspecting the team will be weakened by the turmoil that will see team owner Roland Dane take back full control of racing operations at Winton this weekend.

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Burgess, the mastermind behind two of Whincup's title wins, was suddenly sent packing by the team after it was revealed he had signed a deal to reunite with former Jim Beam charge James Courtney at HRT next year.

Ahead of what could prove to be a championship changing round at Winton beginning Friday, Whincup defiantly predicted the upheaval at the team would have "zero" effect on the speed of his or teammate Craig Lowndes' car.

"We are not vulnerable at all," Whincup said.

"Adrian had to make a call for him personally and he did what he had to do. He won't be at our team from here on in but we are a 50-deep team here and losing one person will not change us.

"We will be operating at 100 percent and will be business as usual."

Burgess was employed by the team after helping win Dick Johnson Racing (DJR) the 2010 championship with Roland Dane deciding to step back from running the hugely successful Triple Eight outfit.

According to Whincup, Burgess had little to nothing to do with the engineering department and was employed to oversea the operation in its entirety.

"All the fundamentals are still the same," Whincup said.

"Losing him should have no effect at all moving forward. Adrian oversaw everything so RD (Dane) could look at other projects. RD will step back in and get on the front line. It is a job he has done before.

"Adrian had nothing to do with the engineering of the cars and as far as car speed goes, nothing will be different at all."

Whincup, who leads the championship heading into the final event before the start of the endurance season, said Dane would bring the best out in the team with his hard-nose management style.

"RD is the best operator," Whincup said.

"His plan was to step back but he is going to have to get on the front-line for a while. It is great news for us because he is the best.

"But he is also a hard man and a hard task master so we know we are up for a challenge. We will have a hard grind in front of us but we will be the better for it."

Whincup's lead in the championship has been chipped down to just 129 points and the four-time title winner is expecting the like of Lowndes, Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison to keep up the fight.

"It is a tight championship," Whincup said.

"I am happy that we are leading, but I am not quite sure we deserve to be with some of the results we have had.

"I'll take it but we need to stay on top of our game because all those guys will be fighting right until the end."

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Faulkner to make Ashes debut

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UPDATE: TASMANIAN all-rounder James Faulkner will make his Test debut for Australia in the fifth and final Test at The Oval on Wednesday.

He is one of two changes, with Mitchell Starc also included while Jackson Bird and Usman Khawaja have been dropped.
 
Shane Watson will move up to bat at number three with wicket-keeper Brad Haddin moving to six and Faulkner slotting in at seven.
 
The 23-year-old will be the 17th player used on tour and the second debutant behind Ashton Agar as Australia attempts to avoid losing four Tests in England for the first time.
 
Agar, 19, has been suffering a virus for a week and is being sent home to rest ahead of preparing for the domestic season with Western Australia.
 
The son of former Tasmanian all-rounder Peter Faulkner, James is essentially a bowler in a team crying out for batsmen. He has not scored a first class century.
 
In 37 first class matches Faulkner has a top score of 89 and averages 30. He has claimed 132 wickets at 22.
 
A quirk of statistics gives him the best first class average on tour, a total of 82 runs for just once out in five innings with a top score of 48.
 
Faulkner has played eight one-day matches for Australia with a highest score of 54 not out, made against England in the Champions Trophy two months ago, and has a batting average of 37. He has 11 wickets at 30 and has also played three Twenty20 internationals.
 
Captain Michael Clarke described Faulkner as a "tough" competitor and admitted that "maybe" Australia had not been tough enough on this tour.
 
Faulkner was outstanding in last summer's Shield final, leading the way in Tasmania's victory with 46 and 89 and four wickets for the match.
 
Faulkner was a bowling sensation at the IPL and stood out with bat and ball in a losing Australian side in their Champions Trophy clash with England.
 
He has no shortage of confidence or aggression for someone new to international cricket, as Faulkner showed when he was fined for giving Chris Gayle a send-off after bowling the West Indian danger man during the one-day series in Australia last summer.

Usman Khawaja has been dropped. Source: AFP

Clarke claimed that Watson was fit enough to continue his role as an all-rounder but Faulkner was likely to do most of the bowling.
 
"It's an extra string to James's bow that he can bowl as many overs as possible," said Clarke.
 
"He's fit and strong and will play a big part with the ball so he adds that extra option to take 20 wickets.
 
"But I think it's the overall package that James brings, his toughness."
 
Clarke was unconcerned that the addition of Faulkner was likely to weaken Australia's batting, on paper at least.
 
Although, as Clarke pointed out, paper has not been a reliable guide on this tour.
 
"As we've seen so far in this series statistics, records, first class performances haven't meant that much. It's about finding a way over five days to have success," he said.
 
"I know James Faulkner has the strength to do that whether it be with the bat or the ball."
 
Faulkner won't need to bat with any great distinction to gain a better record than many of the batsmen on tour. Only Michael Clarke (49) and Chris Rogers (43) are averaging above 30 in this series.
 
"Like a lot of our young players he's a wonderful talent. I think he's got the toughness to mix it with any opposition at the highest level," Clarke said.
 
"He's a fighter, he's a competitor, he mightn't look the best all the time but he'll find a way to stay out there and help his partner go on to make a hundred or make sure he's batting with the tail and find a way to get them through. I think he's got that in him.
 
"With the ball he's extremely competitive and will find a way to take wickets as he's done so far on this tour and in the shorter forms of the game.
 
"Generally the better conditions are for batting, the better James is because he's at you all the time and he's extremely competitive."

Australian team: Chris Rogers, David Warner, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke (c), Steve Smith, Brad Haddin, James Faulkner, Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle, Ryan Harris, Nathan Lyon.

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Hird: Give us the details

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ESSENDON and its coach James Hird have demanded comprehensive details of how the AFL plans to prosecute the charges against them before they submit to judgment.

A negotiated settlement between the Bombers and the AFL appears the only possible resolution to the drugs crisis before the finals.

"I think if the AFL give us the time we need to prepare for this, there is little chance of it being finalised before the finals," Essendon chairman Paul Little said last night.

An AFL commission meeting on Monday that was to decide charges of bringing the game into disrepute will proceed without considering sanctions on the Bombers.

Essendon yesterday accepted an AFL offer for more time to prepare its defence.

Hird also accepted the offer, but maintained he wanted an independent body to hear the charges.

Hird said AFL boss Andrew Demetriou and the league had a "conflict of interest" because of their involvement in the investigation process.

Demetriou stands firm

A spokesman for Hird yesterday said the AFL's decision to abandon hearing the charges at Monday's meeting changed nothing in his fight to clear his name.

"Mr Hird's lawyers wrote to the AFL last week seeking certain undertakings, particulars of the charges, and asked the AFL what the basis of their case was ... who its witnesses were and what they were going to say in respect of the charges so that Mr Hird could properly prepare his case," spokesman Ian Hanke said.

"Other than not responding to those matters and thus accepting there could not be a contested hearing on 26 August, everything remains up in the air."

The AFL backdown averted a Supreme Court injunction threatened by Hird, but that could still happen.

Medicos allay parents' concerns

A Bombers spokesman said: "Lawyers for the club requested the AFL advise which witnesses it would be calling, the evidence it expected those witnesses would give and specified procedural matters.

"As the AFL has not provided that information the club is not in a position to proceed next week and that is why the matter needs to be adjourned."

Earlier yesterday, Demetriou had said he expected the charges to be heard at Monday's meeting.

The parents of Essendon players last night were updated on the progress of the supplements investigation and the club's prospects of playing in the finals.

The Bombers, Hird, assistant coach Mark Thompson, football boss Danny Corcoran and club doctor Bruce Reid were charged over the club's 2012 supplements program nine days ago.

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