Partner of AFL premiership hero sues former club
Melbourne premiership defender Steven May’s partner Sachi Dade is suing his former club, coach Steven King and head of football Alan Richardson.
According to The Age, documents have been lodged with the Federal Court, with Dade filing a miscellaneous application against the club on May 22.
Steven May of the Melbourne Demons and partner Sachi Dadearrive arrive ahead of the 2024 Brownlow Medal Getty
May retired on the eve of the 2026 season stating he wanted to give the club fresh air following police charges that were over his head at the time. Those have since been dropped.
A case management hearing is scheduled to take place on Friday, with the filing saying the application is a privacy matter.
When contacted for comment, the club said it was aware of the matter.
An SEN report in April revealed Melbourne was forced to apologise to players and their partners after a pre-season meeting reportedly caused “distress”.
The meeting was held by then-chief executive Paul Guerra, King and Richardson.
The meeting was reportedly framed as a way to introduce players’ partners to Guerra and King, who were recent additions to the club.
May at the time was on personal leave away from the Dees.
The SEN report quoted a whistleblower who raised concerns about the club’s ability to respect “the most basic standards of privacy and duty of care”.
