Pay talks "will reignite this week" with the Australian Football League and players' union "agreeing to meet after almost two months in a standoff," according to Lauren Wood of the HERALD SUN. AFL Players’ Association CEO Paul Marsh said that the time "has come for a resolution." The parties "have been at loggerheads since the previous collective bargaining agreement expired in October." The association "is seeking a percentage-based share of defined football revenue rather than a fixed figure." With a "face-to-face meeting scheduled this week, Marsh said the time had come for action." Marsh: "We do have a meeting locked in with the AFL, so it’s good to get the talks back on track and hopefully things will flow from here" (HERALD SUN, 1/9). The AAP reported the AFLPA "has reached out to former Essendon coach James Hird amid growing criticism of his treatment prior to his health crisis." Hird "is understood to be recovering at an undisclosed health facility after being rushed into hospital last Wednesday night with a suspected drug overdose." Former St. Kilda coach Grant Thomas "is among those who have questioned the treatment of Hird after the Essendon supplements saga and public silence since" his hospitalization. Marsh "declined to comment on whether the league should have done more for Hird" but said that the union had offered its support to the father of four (AAP, 1/10).
