The AFL Commission satisfied itself that Ben Cousins had brought the game into disrepute. But the commission declined to say what evidence it considered or which, or how many, of his various indiscretions it had taken into account before kicking him out of the game for the next 12 months.
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On top of that, commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick has clouded the issue by conceding that Cousins probably hadn’t even harmed the game.
The commission moved against Cousins following his arrest in Perth last month on charges of possessing a prohibited drug and of refusing a driver assessment test.
The criminal charges led to him being sacked by the West Coast Eagles, but were later dropped by police.
Cousins subsequently returned to the United States where he had undergone drug rehabilitation earlier this year, only for allegations to emerge that while there he went on a cocaine binge and had to be hospitalised.
Police are considering laying charges, but Cousins claims there was no binge and that he suffered a mental breakdown.
Whatever the outcome of US police investigations, it will have been difficult for the AFL Commission to have regarded either of those incidents as bringing the game into disrepute.
There are other incidents attributed to Cousins that aren’t disputed.
He has bolted from a booze bus, been arrested for drunkenness, has associated with gangland figures in Perth, he is a self-confessed drug addict and he has missed training without good reason.
But the AFL did not act on any of those indiscretions when they occurred.
The commission was unequivocal in the verdict it reached during the seven-hour hearing.
“Mr Cousins has been involved in conduct which was unbecoming and likely to prejudice the reputation and the interests of the AFL and to bring the game of football into disrepute,” Fitzpatrick said.
But when asked later the extent of the damage Cousins had done to the game, Fitzpatrick seemed less certain.
“I’ve thought deeply about that,” Fitzpatrick said.
“I’m not sure it has been.”
For all that, Cousins has admitted at last that he has a drug addiction.
He says that he is a long way further down the road to rehabilitation than has been reported in the media and that he is determined to regain full health and play football again.
Which may happen sooner than expected.
While he is banned from playing in the AFL, Cousins is still permitted to play in the West Australian Football League (WAFL).
Timeline of former West Coast skipper Ben Cousins’ behavioural issues, ahead of the AFL today finding him guilty of bringing the game into disrepute.
2002
March – It is reported Cousins and teammate Michael Gardiner socialise with convicted heroin trafficker John Kizon. The two players are cleared in a club inquiry after claims they had been caught in a police sting allegedly ordering cocaine.
Sept – Cousins punches teammate Daniel Kerr at the Eagles’ best and fairest celebrations (Cousins wins back-to-back awards). In a separate incident, Cousins breaks his arm falling down a flight of stairs at a nightclub.
2005
May – Cousins and Gardiner are quizzed by police over a shooting at a Perth nightclub. Police confirm the pair refuse to answer questions about a man charged with disposing of a gun. One man was shot and another stabbed in the brawl.
2006
Feb – Cousins runs from a booze bus in the Perth suburb of Applecross and evades police. He later confirms to police he was driving the car but refuses to answer questions. Cousins stands down from the captaincy and admits to “errors of judgement”. Cousins is later fined $900 by a Perth magistrate.
Sept 30 – Cousins joins the man who replaced him as captain, Chris Judd, on the premiership dais after West Coast beat Sydney in the grand final by one point to win the 2006 flag.
Dec 3 – Cousins is arrested for drunkenness in Melbourne but escapes any punishment from his club.
2007
March 20 – West Coast suspend Cousins indefinitely, for missing training sessions. Gooding says Cousins must overcome some private and personal issues.
March 22 – Cousins’ father Bryan confirms his son has a “substance abuse” problem.
March 30 – Cousins flies to Los Angeles to undergo drug rehabilitation. Judd walks out of a press conference after being asked about the club’s drug problems.
April 20 – Cousins, back from the US, apologises for his conduct in a statement read out on television. He vows to play again but never mentions the word “drug”.
May 14 – AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou meets with Cousins to discuss his progress.
July – Cousins returns to train at West Coast and ends his suspension. He is selected to play the Brisbane Lions in round 14, but injures his hamstring in the lead-up. He makes his comeback against Sydney in round 16 and is one of his side’s best players, in front of an adoring home crowd.
Sept 7 – Cousins tears a hamstring to end his season as West Coast are beaten by Port Adelaide by three points in their qualifying final at AAMI Stadium.
Oct 16 – Cousins arrested by WA police in Perth and charged with possessing a prohibited drug and failing to comply with a requirement to undergo a driver assessment. Both charges were subsequently withdrawn.
Oct 17 – West Coast sack Cousins, citing an accumulation of incidents and the need for him to undergo more rehabilitation.
Oct 27 – Cousins flies to Los Angeles for further rehabilitation.
Nov 1 – Cousins reported to have gone missing in Los Angeles, but his father Bryan says he is not missing and is undergoing rehab.
Nov 2 – The AFL charges Cousins with brining the game into disrepute.
Nov 19 – Cousins suspended from the AFL for 12 months after the AFL Commission finds him guilty of bringing the game into disrepute. Cousins apologises for embarrassing the league and admits publicly for the first time that he is battling a drug addiction.
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