Dank misses deadline for AFL appeal

Controversial sports scientist Stephen Dank has failed to provide documents requested by the AFL appeals board after missing his hearing.

Dank did not attend Monday’s opening day of his appeal against a life ban for doping offences related to the Essendon supplements saga.

Instead, Dank sent a letter to the appeals board through his former lawyers, saying he could not attend because of a family medical emergency.

The three-man board adjourned the hearing while ordering Dank to provide details about the medical emergency including the hospital, the date of his relative’s admission and a report from the treating doctor.

But a AFL spokesman said Dank had failed to provide the requested documents by Friday’s 5pm deadline.

“The Appeal Board is expected to provide its ruling on the non-submission next week,” the spokesman said.

“The AFL will await that ruling.”

Lawyers representing the AFL and ASADA on Monday could barely contain their scorn at Dank’s late request to adjourn, saying the appeal should be thrown out.

“There is no court in the state that would’ve tolerated the way in which Dank has conducted this case and himself throughout this process,” AFL counsel Renee Enbom said in her submission.

“It is time to bring this process to an end. Everyone involved, including the players, are entitled to some finality.”

A defiant Dank vowed late on Monday that he still intended to appear and that Jobe Watson would have his surrendered Brownlow Medal back by the time his hearing was over.

“My most desired outcome, of course, is for everyone to be cleared,” Dank said on fiveAA radio.

“Unfortunately, players have served suspensions so that time can’t be given back to the players … but I think by the time we’ve finished this hearing, Jobe will have his Brownlow back.”

Watson was one of 34 past and present Bombers players banned for the 2016 season for violations of the anti-doping code arising from the club’s 2012 supplements program.

A key figure in the saga, Dank was banned for life from working in any sport in Australia or overseas after the AFL anti-doping tribunal found him guilty of 10 anti-doping code breaches.

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