Footy great Matthew Lloyd is embroiled in scandal over high school team’s drunken premiership party that saw staff punished
Footy great Matthew Lloyd is embroiled in scandal over high school team’s drunken premiership party that saw staff punished
- Lloyd coached the school side to the premiership
- Was reportedly present at a party
- Several employees have been punished
AFL champion Matthew Lloyd has been embroiled in a high school scandal after he allegedly partied with underage players he coached to a premiership at a party where alcohol was part of the celebrations.
The former Essendon great coached Haileybury College to its first direct Associated Public Schools premiership since 2018, sparking wild celebrations by the players.
Haileybury College trailed 31 points with about eight minutes remaining in the third quarter before beating Caulfield Grammar School in a smashing comeback by 8.9.57 to 7.7.49.
Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury was the assistant coach, but it is unknown if he attended the post-match celebration.
The presence of school staff at the party was a violation of school codes and child safety standards, and the school is now investigating those present.
Former Essendon champion Matthew Lloyd coached the premiership winning Haileybury College side and then attended the party
Channel Nine shared footage of Lloyd and the players celebrating in the sheds after securing the university’s first outright premiership since 2018
A former teacher of the school told the Announce sun the Saturday night party “broke all the rules.”
‘Students shouldn’t party with coaches,’ they said.
The former teacher added that the party was a “clear violation of child safety rules.”
Images and vision were posted on social media by students, but were later removed by instruction from the school.
A statement from Haileybury said the school was ‘informed that Saturday night, after the APS football game, a group of parents organized an impromptu celebratory gathering with students.
“It was with great disappointment that the school learned that several staff members were attending this event,” it said.
“The school has acted quickly to discipline the staff involved and ensure they meet their professional obligations regarding social gatherings with parents and students.
“We are continuing our investigation and will take further action as necessary,” the statement said.
Pictured during his playing days, Lloyd said coaching the college to premiership success was ‘one of the best days I’ve ever had in my football career’
A vision was posted on TikTok in which Lloyd addressed the players after the historic win, praising them for the “brotherhood” they had forged.
“Ability will get you to a certain point, but the heart and faith and a system and a bond and a brotherhood and everything we stand for in Haileybury[helped win this premiership],” he said.
“I’ll be honest, our 10’s get a belt, our 2’s get a belt, we had no right to do what we just did here.
“But (we won) because of what we have in this room.”
Speaking on Channel Nine’s Footy Classified, Lloyd said it was ‘one of the best days I’ve ever had in my football career’.