Opinion: Jordan De Goey’s track record makes his attempted player welfare stance disingenuous

It is fair to ponder if scrutiny around Jason Horne-Francis over recent weeks has been overly intense.

It is OK to wonder if the private lives of sportspeople should be kept, well you know, private.

But for Jordan De Goey to attempt to position himself as the frontman for this cause is disingenuous and frankly insulting to those who have legitimate complaints.

De Goey has the right to enjoy his downtime, within the same limits defined for any player. There shouldn’t be huge concern with Collingwood supporting his decision to travel to Bali during his mandated mid-season break.

As seen over the past few weeks, a player can just as easily run into trouble close to home, even at a posh French restaurant, as they can at an overseas partying capital.

And there is nothing wrong with De Goey having a few drinks and blowing off some steam boogying at a nightclub.

But as for the contents of the now infamous videos – shared by a friend on Instagram it is worth remembering – they were a questionable look at best.

The woman in the video claims she had no issue, and we have to take her at her word, but even if she consented it’s not exactly brain surgeon behaviour to try to partially expose someone’s breast in a public place. And making the V sign with his fingers and mouth – sexual connotations need no explanation – is not a hanging offence but again, crude to put it kindly.

De Goey has cultivated an image for himself, think of the tatts, the bad boy persona, and has gladly accepted money from sponsors to share in his appeal. So he can hardly complain about the media – which he has been happy to use when there has been a buck in it for him – focusing on the optics of the situation. But let’s be generous and leave all of this stuff to one side.

And to accept that while he has been charged in two countries over alleged incident with women, both times he has been cleared.

But his Instagram statement released on Saturday was as opportunistic as they come.

“I want to take the opportunity to thank my family, friends and supporters who have checked in or sent messages of support in the past 24 hours,” De Goey wrote.

“I want to openly address the relentless pursuit and persecution of athletes by the media to create an uneducated, bias (sic) and ill-informed narrative that has gone too far. I am one of the lucky ones with amazing support, however not all athletes are so lucky.

“This will end in tragedy if no one speaks up. It’s time for change. #enoughisenough.”

De Goey’s untidy attempt to make himself some sort of martyr for athlete welfare would be hilarious if it wasn’t so cynical. This is a guy with a long history of poor choices now criticising the media for covering risque content posted by an associate of his. Who died and made De Goey Bambi?

But the most absurd element of De Goey’s statement is his use of the word “tragedy.” And that’s not to say that there isn’t potential for celebrities to be hounded into mental health episodes by the press. The media is not faultless and can always get better at doing nuance and covering sportspeople fairly and respectfully.

However let’s just consider for a moment De Goey’s track record. This is a person who in 2018 blew nearly double the legal limit while driving.

A person who the following year was caught texting while behind the wheel.

Who in 2020 was done for speeding while driving a sports car that as a P-plater he wasn’t supposed to be driving.

Who in 2017 lied to his club about a bar fight which left him with a broken hand. Who earlier this year pleaded guilty to harassment in the United States following another bar scuffle.

Someone with a detailed history of road safety offences and night spot violence is in no position to be lecturing anyone about the potential of actions to cause tragedy.

As former Richmond star Brett Deledio said on the ABC on Sunday: “Don’t do dumb things and people won’t chase you for what you’re doing.”

Collingwood officials were due to talk to De Goey on Monday following his return from Bali ahead of the Pies’ next game against Greater Western Sydney this Sunday at the MCG. His free agency status is perhaps the biggest point of intrigue here. He had been enjoying a strong season as part of a revitalised Magpies side under Craig McRae.

He has done himself no favours from a negotiation perspective with his behaviour over the weekend, even if the look is worse than the actions themselves.

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The Magpies must seriously consider letting De Goey walk at the end of the season. Cynically, their best reason to do so from a pure football perspective is that they will receive a compensation pick should another club take him.

And getting something for De Goey would be wise, because his behavioural history gives you little confidence that sooner or later he won’t do something which will make his footy future unsalvageable, at which point the Pies will get nothing for him.

As for his athlete welfare stance, De Goey would have a lot more credibility if he didn’t only come out swinging when his own financial future had been jeopardised.