Essendon chief executive Xavier Campbell feels it's unfair the AFL club's anti-doping saga has dragged on for three seasons.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced on Tuesday it will appeal the not-guilty verdicts reached by the AFL's anti-doping tribunal on 34 present and former Essendon players.
It's expected the Court of Arbitration for Sport case won't be finalised before the 2015 season ends.
Campbell, speaking to ABC Radio on Friday night, noted there was no doubt the club had "made some mistakes".
But the man who was unanimously appointed CEO in July 2014 felt it was wrong that players had to deal with the consequences for three consecutive seasons.
"I feel for the players from a welfare perspective," he said.
"It's tough. I feel for them and I don't think it's necessarily fair that it's gone on for such a long period of time and again we're at this point (of waiting).
"This has gone on for a lot longer than we had all imagined."
The Bombers were kicked out of the 2013 finals by the league for bringing the game into disrepute over the ongoing scandal, while speculation about their fate was a near-constant distraction in 2014.
Campbell suggested focusing on football had helped players get through the tumultuous time and was confident they had the resolve to deal with the latest wait.
"It will be a challenge for them and there will be weeks when they're up and weeks when they're down," he said.
"I've got no doubt about that and I've seen it first hand across the last 26 or 27 months.
"I'm sure we'll get through it ... we just have to keep supporting the boys and their families."
Campbell revealed addressing the players on Tuesday with news of WADA's appeal was "probably one of the harder things" he has done at Essendon.
"They were really flat on Tuesday," he said.
"Come Wednesday they were a bit more upbeat and Thursday even more - and that's just the nature of a decision like that."
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