I know John Elliott was president around the time the salary cap breaches were alleged to have occurred, and unlike the Melbourne Storm NRL saga of 2010 there were no recent premierships for the AFL to strip Carlton of (its most recent flag was in 1995).
Interestingly enough, the Blues’ first pick in the 2002 draft, Kade Simpson (at #45), lasted the longest out of his cohort of draftees, retiring in 2020 after over 300 games, though as you can imagine he played in the most career losses of any player given the penalties had a huge impact on the club’s on-field fortunes (four wooden spoons and five sacked coaches) in the subsequent years.
Imagine if this happened at the Sydney Swans (who, like the Melbourne Storm, have been successful in a market dominated by the other code) - they wouldn’t be as successful as they are today.
The Melbourne Storm have been able to rebuild almost immediately after their 2010 saga; that season aside they haven’t missed the finals due to not winning enough games since 2002.
