Justice Wilson finished the notes she was taking and rolled the silver Parker pen between her fingers. She nodded to the AFL’s QC. "Yes, Mr Martin."

"Thank you, Your Honour. I have listened with great interest to the submission of my learned friend," he began, using the courteous term by which lawyers referred to each other in court. "Most unfortunately he has offered little of substance for the court to consider." Through Martin, in his typically long-winded manner, the Australian Football League claimed that:

• the players’ contract did not oblige the AFL to interpret the rules of the game in a particular way;

• the player, by signing his contract, had agreed to abide by the verdict of the Appeal Board;

• the Rules did not oblige the Appeal Board to give reasons for its verdict, and this was not a denial of natural justice;

• the Appeal Board's only obligation was to act honestly and without bias, tell the player the details of the charge, and allow him to put a case in his own defence;

• the rules of natural justice did not otherwise apply to the Appeal Board;

• the Appeal Board would not be able to do its job if it was subject to the same formalities as legal tribunals, one of which may be the automatic right to legal representation;

• the existence of the Appeal Board in itself was a guarantee of a fair hearing and the delivery of natural justice.

The AFL General Manager leaned towards his solicitor. "He likes to talk, doesn’t he?"

The solicitor smiled. "Have your cheque book handy, he’s being paid by the word."