Former Hawthorn high performance boss Andrew Russell has claimed disgruntled ex-Hawk Cyril Rioli was 'happiest had ever been' at the club just before his shock retirement.
Four years after Rioli finished his AFL career, a racism saga involving Hawthorn and a group of Indigenous players - including Rioli - emerged with a settlement finally being reached “without determination of any parties’ allegations.”
Russell - being interviewed as part of Herald Sun's Sacked podcast - stated he believed the Rioli family had been looked after in a exemplary fashion by Hawthorn while at the club, and that Rioli's comments about his personal happiness supported that.
“The way Cyril was treated at the football club, I’ve never seen anyone else treated as well as Cyril. I’ve never seen anyone treated with as much respect as Cyril and his family,” Russell said.
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“The week before Cyril left he told me it’s the happiest he had ever been at the football club. Because he had done his knee, he was coming back, I spent a lot of time with him. He said, ‘Oh, it’s great, I can’t wait to play with Shaun Burgoyne in his 350th’.
“Gee, didn’t that (racism saga) get out of control.”
Russell also said he didn't believe then-Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson was a part of any racist behaviour at the club.
“He only wanted the best for people. We wanted to help people, we wanted to help all those boys create lives for themselves,” he said.
“Make money, create legacies, all those things. He was the same with everyone. He was the same with everyone and it had nothing to do with (race). He was like that with (Luke) Hodge, he was the same with Jarryd Roughead, he was like that with me. He was like that with Cyril.”