Dog days over for Aker

THE WESTERN Bulldogs have sacked veteran forward Jason Akermanis.

Club president David Smorgon confirmed at a media conference on Wednesday afternoon that Akermanis' contract had been terminated, largely because of breaches of confidentiality.

Flanked by senior coach Rodney Eade and football operations manager James Fantasia, Smorgon said the decision was unanimous and had been made in the best interests of the club.

He also said that Akermanis had been given the option to retire, but declined.

"Jason has been a very good player for our club ... but recent events have made the relationship between Jason and the Western Bulldogs untenable," Smorgon said.

"We recognise when we recruited Jason that he was a unique individual with talent. Outside of his performances and his significant on-field endeavours for the club, Jason's profile provided our club with a presence in the media that undoubtedly has been beneficial for the Western Bulldogs.

"However, it's also the case that over the last 18 months, Jason has been involved in a number of incidents in which matters confidential to the inner sanctum of our football department and players have been the subject of inappropriate disclosure on their behalf outside the club."

Smorgon said that as the Bulldogs neared the finals, they could not accept behaviour that may prove a distraction.

"It's team above all else ... it doesn't matter whether you're the best player or No.42 on the list or an official or management, we won't tolerate standards that are not in keeping with our standards and core values," he said.

Akermanis has not played at AFL level since round 10, when he was suspended by the club for two weeks for his newspaper column on homosexual footballers.

However, his commitment to Melbourne radio station MTR had landed him in more hot water with high-profile football personality Sam Newman recently revealing Akermanis' involvement in a meeting with teammates.

Despite recovering from a hamstring injury to spend the last three weeks with VFL affiliate Williamstown, Akermanis had struggled to force his way back into the senior side.

Eade said at his media conference earlier on Wednesday afternoon that the 33-year-old's VFL form had been reasonable and that he was in the mix for Sunday's match against Fremantle.

However, he will not add to his 77 games with the club, which he joined at the end of 2006 after 248 games and 307 goals for the Brisbane Lions.

The 2001 Brownlow Medallist, he played in each of the Lions' three premiership sides and formed a lethal combination with midfielders Michael Voss, Simon Black and Nigel Lappin.

But he left the Lions in acrimonious circumstances, having lost the trust of his teammates and then-senior coach Leigh Matthews through his outspoken comments.

Akermanis' predicament at Whitten Oval was similar, with club officials and teammates asking him to "reassess his priorities to the group" when he was demoted last month.

He stepped away from his column and radio obligations for three weeks, and said at the time that he had not considered retiring over the incident.

"At the end of the day, I want to play in this team so I'll do what it takes to play in that team and make sure that all parties, the club, the playing group and myself, are all on the same page, heading in the same direction and trying to win games of football," he said.

After deliberating over a decision on his future, Akermanis signed a one-year deal with the Bulldogs in November last year.

It was confirmed that he had agreed to a reduced salary, instead motivated by the club's on-field prospects after successive preliminary finals appearances.

The Bulldogs will pay out the remainder of his contract.