Melbourne Demons star Clayton Oliver charged by police, to face court after driving on suspended licence, seizure
Melbourne Demons midfielder Clayton Oliver will face court after being pulled over by authorities for driving with a licence that was suspended on medical grounds.
The news was first reported by 7NEWS Melbourne’s Mitch Cleary, who said Oliver was charged by police and is set to appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court in January.
“The Demons midfielder was banned from driving after he suffered a seizure but he was caught behind the wheel,” Cleary said on 7NEWS.
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Melbourne confirmed in a statement to 7NEWS that Oliver “immediately” informed the club following the incident.
It continues what had been an eventful year for Oliver, who was rushed to hospital in October after a collapse which he blamed on a combination of ADHD medication, a lack of sleep from stress and a big first day back at the gym.
“It’s been a little bit stressful – it usually doesn’t get to me,” Oliver told 7NEWS at the time.
“I take medication for my ADHD … sort of been light-headed and high heart rate – that sort of affects me a fair bit.
“I sort of fainted that day off the Watt bike (at his first day back at training).
“I was in bed, asleep with Joel. Then got up to get a drink … next thing I was on the ground.”
Injuries also derailed Oliver’s 2023 campaign while he was later the subject of strong trade speculation before the deadline, with coach Simon Goodwin confirming later in October that the club had put the 26-year-old on notice over behavioural issues.
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“What Clayton needs to be really clear on is that we now have some minimum standards of behaviour that we want him to adhere to,” Goodwin said on SEN.
“And if he can’t come along with our culture, there will be some consequences that come with that and we need to be in a position where we can drive our high-performance culture and Clayton is a big part of that.”
Goodwin though made sure to clarify the team did not “consider” trading Oliver and later added that the Demons star had also been dealing with some “personal challenges” away from the field.
“It’s a very complex situation that we’ve got going on with Clayton and clearly those challenges have been ongoing for multiple years,” he said.
“This isn’t something that has just reared its head in recent times. This is something that has been ongoing for our footy club and ongoing for our team for a number of years.
“We’re working incredibly closely with Clayton right now and building the best people around him and care around him to deal with his complex personal issues.”