Simpson delisted by Dockers

The AFL career of Josh Simpson could be over after the troubled midfielder was delisted by Fremantle on Tuesday.

Simpson hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in April when he refused to fly to Sydney as the team’s emergency for their round five clash with the Swans.

The 20-year-old, who was also sanctioned by the club in January for failing to meet team standards, was banished to the WAFL before taking a leave of absence in June.

Simpson was ordered to complete a personal development program during his time away from the club, but the Dockers released a statement on Tuesday claiming those standards weren’t met.

The two-game midfielder is believed to have been dealing with complex personal and family issues in his remote hometown of Yalgoo for much of this year.

Simpson, who was selected by Fremantle with pick No.17 in the 2012 national draft, must now rely on another club to take a punt on him if he is to continue his AFL career.

“The personal development program included guidelines and protocols that Josh was required to strictly adhere to,” Fremantle football operations manager Chris Bond said.

“Josh’s inability to consistently fulfil those requirements and, over a period of time, achieve the personal and professional levels required by the club to succeed as a player at the elite level has resulted in the very difficult decision to delist him.”

Simpson joins retired duo Kepler Bradley and Scott Gumbleton as notable departures from Fremantle.