Riewoldt furious with Nixon
St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt reportedly said he would like to punch Ricky Nixon's lights out if it turned out his manager had been involved in a sexual relationship with teenager Kim Duthie.
A confidential report into the saga by Michael Galbally QC, commissioned by the AFL Players Association, was leaked to Fairfax Radio on Thursday.
The report found that Nixon had sex and took illicit drugs with Duthie in a Melbourne hotel room, Fairfax Radio said.
Nixon has admitted their relationship was inappropriate, but repeatedly denied it was of a sexual nature.
St Kilda coach Ross Lyon admitted the leaking of the explosive report was a blow for the Saints, but was confident the embattled club could cope with this latest off-field distraction.
As a result of the Galbally report, the AFLPA stripped Nixon of his player manager's licence for two years, effectively ruining his career.
The investigation into Nixon and the ban that followed came after the St Kilda nude photo scandal late last year, when Duthie made public several photos after stealing them from a computer that belonged to Saints defender Sam Gilbert.
"Quite simply it (the report) has been released ... certainly it's not ideal," Lyon said on Thursday.
"But there is always some sort of distraction.
"Is it going to distract us?
"The aim is for it not to, if anything it really stimulates some focus on what is important."
The photo scandal and its aftermath have taken a major toll on the Saints, with Lyon admitting this week that Gilbert was still struggling to cope.
After making the last two grand finals, the Saints only have one win and a draw from their first five games.
Asked how the players had reacted to the leaking of the report, Lyon responded: "Life is full of disappointments."
"We are big boys," added Lyon.
"We understand the challenge and the pressure and if you don't like it well, pack up and leave - but that's not we're we are at."
St Kilda play Carlton on Monday.
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