Nick Hockley rejects suggestions Cricket Australia mismanaged Jamie Mitchell’s sexual abuse allegations

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Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley failed to apologize to Australian under-19 cricketers over allegations of sexual abuse during the team’s 1985 tour of India and Sri Lanka.

Key points:

Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley says abuse allegations were handled properly

AC will join the Redress Scheme but will not compensate victims of ACT abuse

Jamie Mitchell discovered the tour documents via media reports

Mr Hockley also rejected suggestions that the governing body had mismanaged the case, saying its response was “best practice”.

When asked if the players on the 1985 Australian Under-19 Tour should apologize from the governing body, Mr Hockley told ABC Sport “I think we owe them to them. support as best we can, ”adding that players would be offered access to Cricket Australia’s employee assistance program.

Last Sunday, an ABC Sport investigation found that Australian cricketer Jamie Mitchell had returned from the 1985 Australian Under-19 tour of the subcontinent and alleged he was sexually assaulted by “someone”. ‘one of authority’ during the tour.

The case is now the subject of an investigation by the Australian Federal Police (AFP).

Jamie Mitchell’s Hellish Tour

Jamie Mitchell was a booming cricket star in the 1980s. But since returning from a tour of India and Sri Lanka, broken in body and mind by his experiences, Mitchell has been searching for answers on what’s going on. happened.

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In August 2021, Mr Mitchell reached out to Cricket Australia to express his concerns, but said he had been ‘swapped’ by the governing body and felt no empathy during a call from Mr Hockley, who referred Mr. Mitchell to the Cricket Australia Integrity Unit.

It was only three months later, after the Tim Paine scandal, that Mr Mitchell heard again about Cricket Australia, the head of its integrity department providing access to support services.

Mr Hockley has since expressed regret over his handling of the phone call to Mr Mitchell in August, 10 days after Mr Mitchell’s allegations came to the attention of the then chairman of Cricket Australia , Earl Eddings.

“If that’s how Jamie still feels about it, I’m so sorry that is how I made Jamie feel,” Mr Hockley told ABC Sport.

“That was absolutely not my intention. I think this is the first such conversation I have had and I firmly felt I was doing the right thing, responding as quickly as possible.

“For those who know me, I think they hopefully consider me a caring and considerate person, so I can only apologize to Jamie. It wasn’t my intention to make him feel That. Procedurally, I felt we were doing the right thing. “

“Lots of unnecessary anxiety”

Mr Mitchell says he was left in the dark by Cricket Australia’s refusal to give him access to tour documents, or even provide confirmation of their existence, which he later learned in the media.

Mr Hockley admitted Mr Mitchell should have been made aware of the matter earlier, but said he would have done nothing else differently if he had had another opportunity.

“I felt this followed best practices,” Hockley said of CA’s response. “And, you know, if I was contacted on a similar matter, that’s the course of action I would take.”

Jamie Mitchell calls for transparency

Former cricketer Jamie Mitchell says he is “relieved” that the 1985 Under-19 cricket tour is under scrutiny as Cricket Australia responds to allegations of abuse.

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Last week, in a statement provided by Rightside Legal, whose partner Michael Magazanik represents the former cricketer, Mr Mitchell said: “The tour has caused me trauma and distress for many years.”

Mr Mitchell had asked Cricket Australia to answer a series of key questions and provide him with documentation.

Cricket Australia’s integrity department has since informed Mr Mitchell that he will seek AFP’s approval to release the relevant documents to him within the next week.

Mr Mitchell said other aspects of Cricket Australia’s response fell short of his expectations.

“There have been many comments that Cricket Australia have been in regular contact with me since I brought this matter to their attention, and that is simply not the case,” said Mitchell.

“Three months went by between my first contact with Nick Hockley and the late offer of help from Cricket Australia. I had to find some second hand stuff. It caused me a lot of unnecessary anxiety.

Australian Cricket Association boss Todd Greenberg says he’s delighted that Cricket Australia is working to find answers to what happened on the 1985 tour. (AAP: Dan Himbrechts)

“I have also seen comments that Cricket Australia have reached out to my teammates to offer their support, but those I have spoken to say that is not the case.”

Victims left “penniless”

Mr Mitchell’s story highlighted Cricket Australia’s failure to enroll in the National Redress Scheme in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The program was set up to provide survivors with the ability to seek financial compensation for their abuse without the need for legal action, but payments are capped at $ 150,000 and survivors cannot file complaints against them. institutions that have not joined the program.

Mr Hockley says the organization is now looking to join the program.

In August, when Mr Mitchell’s allegations first came to the attention of administrators, Cricket Australia was among institutions ‘intending to join’ the program, but he was subsequently taken off the page .

Jamie Mitchell is holding the loose green cap he wore on the 1985 tour of India and Sri Lanka. (Luke Bowden)

In December, a spokesperson for the Department of Social Services told ABC Sport: “To provide accurate messages to survivors, organizations that have not taken active steps to join for an extended period are being deleted. “

On January 2, Mr Hockley told the ABC that Cricket Australia had “signed up to the Redress Scheme”, but Cricket Australia has since confirmed that it did not sign a memorandum of understanding until December 24, 2021 and that his “on-boarding” process was not finished.

Mr Hockley said Cricket Australia is now “fully engaged” with the program, adding: “I take great care in making sure that everyone who interacts with cricket is safe and feels safe and secure.”

But, Mr Hockley said, it was not for Cricket Australia to compensate survivors of sexual abuse by former ACT Under-17 and Under-19 team coach Ian King. , whose teams participated in national carnivals administered by Cricket Australia and contained players destined for the senior national squad. .

“I think what is clear is that it is the responsibility of Cricket ACT,” said Mr Hockley. “We are working closely with our members on these issues, but it is ultimately their responsibility.”

Extra prison time

A former Queensland state cricketer already held in an ACT juvenile sex offense prison will serve another three years behind bars.

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King was jailed for 19 years for a series of serious sexual offenses against boys that he trained in ACT in the 1980s and 1990s.

When asked whether Cricket Australia’s hands-off approach to King’s offense would meet the community’s expectations of the sport’s cutting-edge body, Mr Hockley said: “This is something that we will continue to work on [on] and chat with Cricket ACT to make sure they are supported in this matter. “

Up to 15 players who were abused by King found themselves “penniless” in their attempts to claim payments from Cricket ACT’s reparation program, which was deemed unable to meet the program’s financial obligations despite earning a profit. of $ 670,000 in 2020-2021 on the back of $ 2.2 million in funding from Cricket Australia.

When asked if the sport needs to take the lead in the AFL concussion fund and carve out a portion of its significant television rights revenues to address the historic abuse issues that continue to persist. to surface, Mr Hockley said: “I think this is something that we have to continue to watch and how the sport responds in the most appropriate way.”

“Nobody blames Nick Hockley for what happened in 1985”

Mr Mitchell told ABC Sport that a consolation of his traumatic experience was that his story had given others confidence, but, he said, the game needed to do more to address the historic sexual abuse allegations.

The team photo of the Australian Under-19 team touring India and Sri Lanka now offers a flood of unhappy memories for Jamie Mitchell. Highlighted (left to right) are team doctor Malcolm McKenzie, team manager Jack Bennett, coach Bob Bitmead and teenager Jamie Mitchell. (Provided)

“The response to my story has been overwhelming from people I know and humiliating from complete strangers,” said Mr Mitchell.

“Some have taken the force of the article to disclose painful lived experiences. If people feel empowered to speak up, that’s a good result.

“However, it has become evident since my story became public that Cricket Australia is not yet able to place the welfare of players above its corporate brand.

“The damage to CA’s reputation is evident through [the] public reaction to my story and, potentially, [it’s] irreversible [for CA] if he does not read the mood and offers genuine, sincere and belated recognition and remorse [for its]historical failures.

The loose green cap that Jamie Mitchell won before a life-changing tour. (Luke Bowden)

“No one blames Nick Hockley for what happened in 1985, but everyone expects him to show empathy, leadership and humility as CEO of Cricket Australia.

“Sponsors, broadcasters, players, parents and cricket fans expect more from the governing body of the game.

“That’s not what CA says from here on out. It all depends on what CA does. So far CA has left many players on this tour anxious, frustrated, uninspired and still demanding the truth.”

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