In good nick: Brent Stanton Credit:Getty Images Robinson is of the belief the players were not administered anything illegal during the club's 2012 supplements program, when he worked closely with Stephen Dank, the architect of the program. It was Robinson who recommended to James Hird that Dank join the Bombers. Robinson had trusted him so much that Dank provided supplements for Robinson's then pregnant wife. Robinson is overseas but will be back in time to appear before the AFL's anti-doping tribunal - if the players do call him. Nicknamed "The Weapon", Robinson recently settled an unfair dismissal case against the Bombers for about $1 million, having argued he was made a scapegoat when stood down after the club had self-reported fears of performance-enhancing drug use to the AFL and ASADA in February last year. He has admitted the pressure of the saga had even left him on the verge of suicide. While Robinson's beef was with the club, he has made it clear he had no issues with the players, whom he has said are "good people". He is prepared to support the players in any way he can.

ASADA is expected to call biochemist Shane Charter, dubbed "Dr Ageless", and compound pharmacist Nima Alavi to give evidence as part of a case relying heavily on circumstantial evidence. It's understood Robinson was grilled over five days by ASADA investigators last year. His alleged role in the supplements program was laid out in the league's charge sheet against Essendon last year, which resulted in punishment for governance breaches. This included a $2 million fine for the club, the loss of draft picks and a 12-month ban for coach James Hird. The AFL alleged "the club, including, in particular, (Ian) Robson, (James) Hird and Robinson, proposed that the program, which related to the physical and physiological development of the players, would be 'cutting edge'. The club undertook and persisted with the program without performing a thorough analysis of the risks of such a program to the health and safety of players, and without any similar analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of such a program". "Soon after Robinson's appointment, on September 28, 2011, Dank was interviewed for the position of sports scientist ... Dank had come highly recommended by Robinson, who had known him since 2004. That night, Hird invited Dank and Robinson to his home to discuss what they were going to do to 'turn this club around'." "On 4 October 2011, Robinson suggested to Dank that they call various peptides (including substances that were prohibited by the AFL Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Code) 'amino acids or something', a view with which Dank agreed. As a result, Robinson and Dank referred to various substances as 'amino acids' or 'amino acid blends', terms of no scientific meaning. The use of these terms was common throughout the club. There is considerable uncertainty as to the exact nature of certain so-called 'amino acids' injected into the players and support staff, but it is reasonably likely that players and support staff who were injected with 'amino acids' received peptides."

After club doctor Bruce Reid complained in January 2012 to Hird and then football manager Hamilton about the injecting program, Robinson unveiled a protocol which Dank and the club had to follow. This included "not contravening any laws of sport based on the WADA code" and having players sign "a letter of informed consent" before they were injected. About three weeks later, four substances were purportedly approved for use - AOD-9604, thymosin, colostrum and tribulus. The Bombers were billed for 26 vials of thymosin in January 2012. Thirty-eight players had agreed to one injection once a week for six weeks and then one injection per month. Dank maintains this was for a permitted form of thymosin peptide, not the banned beta-4, and believes he can clear the players. In an interview on Channel Seven last year, Robinson said: "Everything I was involved in, I made sure was put on the table. I sent emails out with the supplements that I knew were taking place. Now what happened behind closed doors, that I wasn't privy to, I can't talk to that."