‘We’re a rabble’: Zaharakis whacks Bombers over recent drug report, captain’s trade desire

Former Essendon player David Zaharakis has labelled his former club a “rabble” in wake of a report players raised concerns with the AFLPA after a testy meeting about illicit drugs in late June.

Nine’s Chief Football Reporter Tom Morris reported on Monday evening that Bombers players felt CEO Craig Vozzo crossed the line with the way he spoke to players about drug use, with his words potentially breaching player confidentiality.

Speaking on Triple M’s Rush Hour with JB & Billy, Zaharakis shared his frustration at the club regarding the incident, before extending his criticism more broadly.

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“We’re a rabble at the moment. I don’t know what’s going on; you hear stories every single week,” Zaharakis began.

“I honestly thought my period at Essendon was a pretty rough period – especially 2015/16. Everyone thought we had hit rock bottom, but I honestly believe we are very close, if not further, to rock bottom than what we were then.

“The stories that have come out this year about players wanting to leave and the locker room divide; even with the CEO (Craig Vozzo) and the players are disgruntled… there’s too many stories happening at the moment at Essendon. As a past player, you’re pretty disappointed and shattered with where the club is at. It seems like we’ve gone backwards, rather than forwards.”

Geelong Cats Hall of Famer Billy Brownless added: “(Essendon are) leaking like a sieve! There’s too many leaks and the worst thing you can have at a footy club is a leak.”

Zaharakis was in the infancy of his AFL career when he chose not to take part in the club’s controversial injections program in 2012 that saw 34 of his teammates suspended.

It saw Essendon fined $305,000 in late November of 2015 by Worksafe Victoria for breaches of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The substance players were injected with was ‘AOD-9604’, an anti-obesity drug.

“(A leak) is the worst thing. Especially when you never hear bad stories about the top eight clubs in the league. It’s always the bottom six or seven clubs that have leaks. Essendon is leaking like a sieve,” Zaharakis continued.

“As a playing group, to have controversy almost every day and week… walking into that locker room, I don’t know how you wouldn’t be divided. There’d be certain and different opinions of what’s going on with Zach (Merrett) leaving. ‘Do we want him back?’ ‘Do we want him captain?’ ‘Do we want to play with him next year?’”

“In my time as a player, I never had a captain wanting to leave. Jobe Watson and Dyson Heppell… Jobe and Dys, you’d never even think about them entertaining something like this. So, with Zach there and potentially entertaining that (trade), I wouldn’t think you’d want him to be a captain next year.

“I love Zach as a person, and he was a great teammate of mine, but it would be hard to look that person in the eye and say, ‘Are you fully committed to this footy club?’ ... I personally don’t see it happening (him staying).”

Zaharakis’ former teammate and current club captain Zach Merrett has been heavily linked with a move to Hawthorn, although is yet to officially request a trade away from Tullamarine.

The 251-gamer won an incredible sixth best and fairest last Thursday night, addressing his playing future at the club in his acceptance speech.

“I’m disappointed where we’re at. I love the club. I barracked for Essendon since I was born, so it wasn’t like I just played for them and was passing through,” Zaharakis ended by saying.

“I’m an Essendon person through-and-through. I’m now just a long-suffering fan like everyone else and I just want the club to succeed. You do sit back and can’t help but feel disappointed.”

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