North Melbourne sack Tarryn Thomas over threatening behaviour towards a woman

North Melbourne have axed Tarryn Thomas after the AFL found he had threatened a woman in direct messages multiple times, imposing an 18-match ban.

Kangaroos chief executive Jennifer Watt said Thomas had received strong support from the club to change his behaviour and knew that any new indiscretion would threaten his football career.

Tarryn Thomas on the field for the Roos last season.

Just minutes after the AFL confirmed a punishment that would have wiped out almost the whole season, North said it had lost patience with Thomas.

“The club has provided Tarryn with significant time, resources and support but we’ve now arrived at a point where the individual’s needs don’t match those of the club,” Watt said.

“We know Tarryn needs help – for himself and for the women in his life – but it’s clear the path we’ve taken over the past 12 months hasn’t had the desired impact.

“To that end, we have made the decision to end Tarryn’s time at North Melbourne.

“This decision doesn’t come lightly or easily. We brought Tarryn to the club as a teenager and we acknowledge that he has faced complex and challenging circumstances over his life.

“We hope Tarryn will find the support that is right for him and that he does the work required to be the best version of himself.”

Run out of chances: North Melbourne’s Tarryn Thomas.

The Age had earlier confirmed the league’s decision, which Nine’s Tom Morris first reported on Tuesday, from two sources familiar with the situation who were not authorised to talk.

The AFL integrity unit investigation found that Thomas “had engaged in multiple acts of misconduct including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times”.

“Tarryn’s conduct does not represent behaviours acceptable to anyone in our game or our community and his actions were not of a standard that the game or the public expect,” said the league’s general counsel, Stephen Meade.

“While we understand and are empathetic to the challenges Tarryn was facing in his personal life, there is no excuse for the behaviour or the hurt he caused a young woman, this is never OK.

“The fact that Tarryn chose to engage in behaviour over direct messages that was, and is, clearly inappropriate, even while he was undertaking education and being counselled for previous breaches contributed to the length of suspension imposed.”

The 23-year-old has not trained with North Melbourne since January 17 when the investigation that has put his career at risk became public.

The league’s integrity unit spoke to Thomas at AFL headquarters on January 29.

His representatives are understood to have fought the length of the ban with Thomas’ contract due to expire at the end of 2024.

More to come

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