The role the daughters of the estranged couple seem to be playing behind the scenes is one of the most remarkable—and understudied—aspects of the Sayers v. Sayers tale unfolding in the Melbourne courts.
Soon after it became apparent that the case would go to trial, Claudia and Bronte Sayers publicly supported their father, Luke. Together, they released a statement that seems to have been influenced by his new media advisors.
However, a source claims that the sisters are now frustratedly telling pals they are “just sick of it and want it to go away” since the issue has turned into the full-fledged media circus it was always going to become.
They’re taking a strange approach if that’s the case.
After Bronte shared a picture of the now-famous “F*** them all” cake on social media, which was widely interpreted as a barb at her father’s adversaries, those close to them claim there was a lot of head shaking. “It was like pouring petrol on the fire,” a source told me after Claudia shared a screenshot of a later news article about the cake.
The sisters’ behavior begs the obvious question: why keep feeding the issue if they truly want it to go out of the public eye?
After all, getting your Instagram post featured in the Herald Sun’s pages is one thing. Posting the article yourself is a very different matter.
They now seem to be stuck in a rather uncomfortable position.
Luke Sayers (center) with his daughters Bronte (right) and Claudia (left). They have been likened to “pouring petrol on the fire” for their outspoken, and some would argue controversial, support of their father.
As a statement announcing his departure from Carlton was released, a series of text exchanges between the estranged couple Cate and Luke Sayers (above, in 2024) show how things went apart.
The main question on the court’s agenda is whether Luke Sayers can finally defend himself against his wife Cate’s defamation claim, not how much they love either parent.
Importantly, a truth defense against the accusations has not been submitted by Mr. Sayers’ legal team.
If they had, Claudia and Bronte might have contributed to their father’s explanation of what transpired when a shoddy d*** photo momentarily surfaced on his Twitter account next to the name of a Bupa executive.
Rather, Sayers is claiming qualified privilege, which essentially means that his statutory declaration to the AFL, which contained allegedly defamatory statements about his wife Cate, was prepared “in performance of a legal, social, professional or moral duty” and is therefore admissible.
In all honesty, it is hard to imagine what Claudia and Bronte could add to this. They were probably not there when their father, who was Carlton’s president at the time, testified before the AFL’s integrity unit.
The respectable and sensible thing to do would be to say nothing.
Dirty laundry has already been revealed in public court, making it a humiliating tale. Due in part to two affluent young women who, in my opinion, ought to know better, it has now turned into a tit-for-tat on social media.
It coincides with the emergence of text exchanges this week between the former PwC CEO and his estranged wife, which further damaged his reputation after last year’s pornographic photo incident.
The conversations, which took place right after the January 2025 d*** pic controversy, show the ramifications following the appearance of the nude photo on Mr. Sayers’ X account.
After the picture was up for about twelve minutes, Mr. Sayers removed it and apologized to his followers, saying that his account had been hacked. “Sorry, my account has been hacked – please ignore all posts,” he said.
Regarding her parents’ legal dispute, Bronte Sayers seemed to give a direct message. Claudia shared the piece on her Instagram after it appeared in the Melbourne local news.
Before his legal dispute with Cate began in March, Sayers, the former CEO of PwC Australia, was spotted walking hand in hand with his new girlfriend, Alexandra Elms.
Luke’s pre-trial walk in East Melbourne was accompanied by his daughter Claudia (right).
Sayers has continuously disputed that he uploaded the picture, and an AFL inquiry that was carried out without seeing at the phone or speaking with Cate and other pertinent parties eventually found that the image had been uploaded by someone else.
Cate then filed a lawsuit against her husband, claiming in a statutory declaration given to the AFL during the inquiry that he had violated her privacy, betrayed her confidence, and defamed her.
Sayers repeatedly apologized in the text messages that were made public this week after Cate felt that she was essentially left to bear the burden.
Sayers reportedly informed Carlton and AFL officials that Cate was in charge of publishing the picture, according to court documents. But he maintains in the messages that a hacker was responsible for the upload.
Cate disputes that she posted the picture and asserts that the controversy caused significant harm to her public image and reputation, which led to her lawsuit.
The conversation happened between January 22 and 23, not long after Sayers left Carlton.
“I recently announced my departure from Carlton,” he added.
Sayers apologized to his followers and claimed that his X account had been hacked after removing the picture of his flaccid penis from the internet after it had been up for almost twelve minutes.
What part Bronte Sayers (above) and her sister Claudia might play in their father’s qualified privilege defense is unclear. It raises the question, “Why say anything at all?”
“I wondered why I just received a swuillion messages from people in Oz,” Cate retorted. The final statement bothers me as well because everyone now believes that I wrote it as “someone who has access to his account.”
“No they don’t,” said Sayers in response. “I was very clear about pursuing this hack privately from this day forward…which I am on.”
Then Cate retaliated, saying, “No, Luke, read the media.” You’re cleared once more; you took good care of yourself, but your media representatives left it to me. Thank you.
Luke said, “Baby no no no…its [redacted].. it couldn’t have been clearer in the statement,” to which Cate replied, “Ffs read the statement.” The world believes that I uploaded it. Thank you.
Luke texted, pleading, “I’ve tried to call.” I adore you. The way you’re feeling breaks my heart. All that matters is that no one we know believes you did it in any way.
Cate was still in Italy when the messages were delivered. “I am angry with you.” I require room. “You saved yourself and again dumped me right in it as the person who accessed your account,” she said. “Find another hotel.” Examine the story in the media. I am devastated and doubt I will ever be able to go back to Australia. However, you can! You did a great job.
Sayers texted, “I was hacked,” as well. I’ve stated it many times. I shoved Dan Andrews down the stairs, and it’s all c***. In the end, we are united, we are one, and we are establishing the way things ought to have been five years ago. I adore you. Please let’s get together for coffee right now to discuss.
Sayers mentioned Daniel Andrews in relation to an online plot involving the former premier of Victoria and his Mornington Peninsula back injury in 2021.
However, there were other peculiar political overlaps surrounding the story.
FMRS Advisory, a consultancy established by four former senior Andrews loyalists, adds an additional dimension.
According to reports, FMRS helped Bronte and Claudia prepare their public statement regarding their parents’ legal dispute.
After the crisis that split the family apart, the two publicly supported their father in that statement.
This disagreement is rooted in a lengthy and intricate family history with divergent recollections of the past. They declared, “We support our father and his position based on what we have lived and experienced.”
The statement was made during a court battle between the attorneys for both parents over whether the defamation case should be tried in public or behind closed doors in the Family Court, where cases are suppressed.
The Family Court’s primary purpose in Australia is to safeguard children’s welfare and their right to continue having relationships with both parents, not to protect adults from humiliation.
However, Luke seems to be depending on his daughters to help him in the court of public opinion, even if he is unable to move the issue into a private forum.
Claudia commented, “Thanks dad for always being in our corner,” when Bronte shared the famed picture of the cake.
It was an odd word choice. Most people would concur that Luke need to express gratitude to them.
