http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/aka-suspects-5-drug-cheats/2007/11/03/1193619206118.htmlJASON Akermanis named as many as five AFL players in a briefing with sports anti-doping authorities about suspected drug cheats.
The Brisbane Lions triple-premiership player, who joined the Western Bulldogs at the end of 2006, became embroiled in potential litigation this year after West Coast premiership player Michael Braun was identified as one of the players.
Akermanis said he was annoyed about being asked about the issue again after returning from holidays in London last Friday.
"I'll tell you one thing — there's no point trying to do the right thing, that's for sure," he said when contacted by The Sunday Age.
"I have no comment. There is nothing to gain from commenting about anything and it hasn't been a happy thing at all for me."
The Braun saga stemmed from one of Akermanis' weekly newspaper columns in August, which referred to an opponent who "ran like Superman" during a match against the Lions.
He later met with the AFL and the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority, when it's believed he repeated concerns about suspected drug cheats, which he first raised in 2006.
The next day a television report identified Braun as the player who Akermanis alluded to in his column.
The Eagles and Braun rejected the claim, which they described as appalling and baseless.
Akermanis has never been drawn publicly on naming Braun and remains angry the Eagle's name was made public.
Braun continues to pursue legal action against Akermanis over the issue.
It is not known exactly how many players Akermanis named during his briefing with ASADA in August, but all were later subjected to extra testing.
Some of football's biggest names were among those queried by Akermanis. ASADA has since cleared Braun of using performance-enhancing drugs, saying it had examined previous drug test history, as well as target-testing him and reviewing available information. It said it had found no evidence of the use of performance-enhancing substances.
Asked for his reaction at the time, Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade said "in our view, Jason has done nothing wrong" and the club would stand behind the Brownlow medallist.
