Barry Cable abused a girl in the 1960s and 1970s, a judge has found
A judge has ordered the North Melbourne and WAFL legend to pay over $800,000. This is after finding that he sexually assaulted a Perth girl during the 1960s and 1970s.
A judge found that legendary footballer Barry Cable abused a Perth teenager repeatedly during the peak of his career.
Cable, 79 years old, was sued by a woman in the District Court of Western Australia. She claimed Cable had abused her for five years, starting in 1968, when she was 12 or 13 years old.
Mark Herron, who presided over a civil case earlier this year and found that the abuse occurred, awarded the woman $818.700 in damages.
Cable’s victim is unlikely to receive any financial compensation, as he was declared bankrupt before the trial.
Cable has denied the abuse of this woman for years and has never been charged criminally.
Cable didn’t actively defend the proceedings. Instead, it relied on written materials already provided.
His victim testified that she remembered the abuse vividly, backed up by her diary entries.
Four other women testified that Cable had abused them sexually as children.
Cable has tried unsuccessfully several times in the last few years to get the proceedings permanently dismissed.
The WA Court of Appeal dismissed the most recent appeal last year.
A spokesperson for the AFL said: “The AFL has acknowledged today’s court findings and does not have any further updates at this time.”
Cable, one of the most decorated football players in history, was elevated in 2012 to Legend status by the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
After a distinguished playing career with Perth and East Perth, in the WAFL, and North Melbourne, in the VFL he went on to become a coach in both leagues.
In 2005, the AFL named him as a coach and player in the Indigenous Team of the Century.
The League confirmed that the AFL Commission approved a change in the Hall of Fame Rules that will allow the committee to “suspend, or revoke, the Hall of Fame Membership of a Player, Coach, or Official who has been convicted of a serious indictable offense in court or engaged in conduct detrimental to the interests of football.”
The AFL Commission will make the final decision about whether Hall of Fame status or Legend status should be revoked.
The new rule will not be implemented until the Australian Football Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, which is scheduled for June 27, this year.
