December 2, 2025 — 5:16pm
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Six AFL premiership players have fronted court as part of a case against former player agent Ricky Nixon, who was later found guilty of selling fraudulently signed football merchandise.
Melbourne premiership captain Max Gawn appeared in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday and revealed he had a phone conversation with Nixon in the aftermath of the allegations going public.
Melbourne footballers Max Gawn (left) and Jake Lever leave court after giving evidence on Tuesday.Justin McManus
Gawn told a magistrate he spoke jovially to Nixon, and that other than general chit-chat, he only recalled Nixon saying “f—ing Charlie Spargo”. Spargo was also part of the Demons’ 2021 premiership side.
“I’ve got nothing against Ricky, so I was happy to hear his side,” Gawn said.
When shown one of three signed footballs in court, Gawn said it looked fake because it was too shiny. Gawn said he was “95 per cent sure” the signature on the ball, which was presented to court in a clear perspex box, was not his.
Gawn, Spargo and fellow AFL players Jake Lever, Steven May, Tom McDonald and Christian Salem were also given gloves and asked to inspect the footballs on Tuesday.
Ricky Nixon leaves court after the case. He was convicted and fined.Justin McManus
All but one was adamant the signatures on the balls were not theirs, with differences appearing to the way they write.
“Not my handwriting, I didn’t write it,” said Spargo, who now plays for North Melbourne.
Adam Daly, Warrick Weir and Tim Holt all told the court they bought signed footballs for $595 from Nixon after coming across an advertisement on Facebook in late 2021, after that year’s AFL grand final.
The Demons beat the Western Bulldogs by 74 points in the 2021 grand final.
Melbourne footballer Tom McDonald leaves court after giving evidence.Justin McManus
“As soon as I opened the balls I could realise the signatures had all been signed by one person, not individual players,” Daly said.
Daly said that when he reached out to Nixon to query the authenticity of the balls, Nixon replied: “They are not fake … the Facebook morons are f—wits. Stop believing social media flogging. Don’t contact me again, I won’t be responding.”
Weir told the court the first ball he received had the wrong player number next to Gawn’s alleged signature, which prompted him to also contact Nixon.
Weir said he was told Nixon had spoken to Gawn personally, and that Gawn had apologised and not realised the ball was in circulation. Gawn denied this occurred.
Holt, who said he purchased the ball as a wedding gift for a friend who is a Demons supporter, told the court he reported the purchase fraud to police.
During an interview with police, Nixon told investigators he withdrew $16,000 cash and paid for 49 signed footballs from a man out the back of a truck in an undisclosed car park.
In the interview, Nixon maintained he believed the signatures were real, but acknowledged he should have checked before signing the certificates of authenticity himself.
Detective Senior Constable Dean Russell told the court he visited Melbourne’s training base, Casey Fields, to speak with Demons players after receiving reports from those who had bought footballs.
Melbourne footballer Steven May outside court.Justin McManus
He said the general response among players was that the signatures were not theirs.
Nixon told the court he had bought footballs off the same man for four years without issues, and that previous memorabilia included that featuring former Richmond star Dustin Martin and Collingwood Football Club.
Nixon said he no longer sold sporting memorabilia unless there was a photograph attached of the player signing the item.
He said his next career move was a “major” new business venture, after his relationship broke down due to the publicity around the case.
Magistrate Brett Sonnet found Nixon guilty of charges including obtaining financial advantage by deception and using a false document. He convicted Nixon and fined him $4500.
Nixon, 62, was ordered to repay the three victims $595 each.
“I accept that,” Nixon said.
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