Sorry Addict Pays Price

The Age

Tuesday November 20, 2007

By Karen Lyon, With Rohan Connolly

FALLEN Brownlow medallist Ben Cousins finally offered the football world the apology it had waited eight months to hear last night, but the former West Coast skipper said he was "bitterly disappointed" to be suspended from the game for 12 months.

Yesterday, after a marathon hearing before the AFL Commission at Telstra Dome, the self-confessed drug addict was found to have brought the game into disrepute.

His continuing rehabilitation will be monitored closely by the league over the next year by the league's chief executive Andrew Demetriou.

Only with the AFL's approval will Cousins, 29, be allowed to restart his brilliant career in 2009.

A meeting between Demetriou and medical experts will determine the type of rehabilitation that is best for the player as well as what sort of target drug-testing Cousins will be subjected to over the next 12 months.

A further relapse almost certainly will end his career.

Should the commission decide next year that returning to football is not in the best interests of the player or the game, it again can ban him for a further 12 months.

Should he win back his place in the AFL for 2009, Cousins again could be subjected to strict conditions on his contract.

Supported by his parents Bryan and Steph, as well as his legal representative David Grace, QC, and manager Ricky Nixon, Cousins spoke for only 90 seconds, offering an apology, publicly admitting to drug addition for the first time and asking for privacy.

Neglecting the hand-written statement in front of him, Cousins spoke calmly, first thanking the AFL Commission for a "fair hearing".

He also said his rehabilitation was further progressed than had been portrayed in the media.

"I would like to address the fact that I am overcoming drug addiction. It is an ongoing process," he said. "Contrary to media reports, I am a lot further down the track in my rehabilitation than has been reported."

For the first time, he made a full apology for his dramatic behaviour over the past year.

In March, Cousins spent a month in a drug rehabilitation clinic in California and he missed the first half of the AFL season despite making a mid-season comeback for the Eagles.

He was sacked by the club last month after being arrested by West Australian police over drug-related charges.

Those charges since have been dropped.

"I would like to apologise to the AFL, the players and supporters for the embarrassment my conduct has brought to the game," Cousins said.

"I would like to thank my family, my friends and supporters for their support and also their understanding.

"I am bitterly disappointed that I cannot continue to play football, but that is not to say that I have given up hope in the future of doing so in the future.

"Finally, I would like to ask the media to give us some space as I continue my rehabilitation and gain full health."

Earlier in the day, Cousins had spent more than 41/2 hours being grilled by the AFL Commission.

With his father, lawyer and Nixon in the meeting that started just after 9am, the champion footballer was said - by AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick - to have been frank and very honest in his answers.

Neither Fitzpatrick nor Demetriou would say whether Cousins detailed his drug use during the hearing.

With his evidence complete, Cousins was then forced to wait for more than 21/2 hours in his manager's offices, also located in Telstra Dome, while the league decided his immediate future.

Assisted by prominent Melbourne lawyer, David Galbally, the commission sorted through several hundred pages of legal documents before reaching its decision.

Fitzpatrick said the decision to ban Cousins should be seen as a message to players, supporters, clubs and the general public that the commission was prepared to tackle difficult subjects for the best interests of the game.

"It was a sad day today, a day when the AFL Commission was called on to exercise its responsibility to our players, our supporters, our clubs and the general public," Fitzpatrick said.

The chairman, a dual premiership captain at Carlton in the early 1980s, acknowledged the difficulties faced by modern footballers but said the increased scrutiny and recognition came with increased benefits.

"It is a privilege to play at the highest level and players must take responsibility for their actions and understand the expectations of AFL supporters and the general community," he said.

AFL Players Association chief executive Brendon Gale said last night he would contact Cousins, Nixon and league officials today to seek clarification as to what the midfield star had been suspended for.

"The thing we need to really clarify, I think for all of us, is in sustaining a charge of conduct unbecoming, what conditions did the AFL Commission have regard to?" Gale said.

"I'm not exactly sure. I don't think anyone is, and I don't expect them to disclose specifics of that, but I think we need to get a general idea to inform us all."

Gale said Cousins' brief statement to a media throng yesterday had shown positive signs that his rehabilitation was progressing.

"I'm encouraged by the fact he confirmed he's got a drug addiction because maybe this is the first real step towards getting it all back together, and 12 months now will give him an opportunity to do that," he said.

"I think it sends a pretty strong message, a very painful reminder of the destructive nature of drugs, when a guy of his stature and standing has been gelded in this way." -- With ROHAN CONNOLLY

THE ROAD BACK

In deciding whether Ben Cousins can enter the 2009 draft, the AFL Commission will consider the following points:

? The extent to which he has consulted and co-operated with medical experts nominated by the AFL in relation to a drug rehabilitation program and drug testing.

? Whether there has been a relapse by Cousins to drug or substance abuse and the likelihood of any such relapse.

? Whether the lifting of the suspension is in the best interests of Cousins and/or of the AFL.

? If the commission determines to grant the application, it may do so without conditions, or on such conditions that in the opinion of the commission are in the best interests of Cousins and/or the AFL.

? If the commission determines not to grant the application, Cousins shall not be eligible to play in the AFL or to be eligible to be drafted onto or included on a club's list until one month before the draft for the 2010 season

© 2007 The Age

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