A-League veteran Mitch Nichols charged with cocaine possession

I think mitch should be given a second chance we all make mistakes and I believe this is a first offence for him I would hate to think this could be the end of his career He has not been to court yet so let's not judge him too harshly, innocent until proven guilty I have really enjoyed watching him play with Brisbane roar n Sydney Wanderers

Agree

You continue to conflate performance enhancing drugs with recreational drugs. Taking the former is obviously cheating; taking the latter is not unless they're taken during competition. Bosnich's problem was that he tested positive right after the game. The AFL and NRL policies pertain to recreational drugs only, not to drugs falling under the WADA ambit. So how, exactly, does taking a recreational drug out of competition make one a drug cheat? It doesn't. Smoking a reefer or snorting coke out of season isn't cheating because it has zero impact on performance. Taking PEDS is a different matter entirely but that's not what the AFL and NRL policies are about. As for Bosnich, he himself says he was an addict for several years after he got his ban. He was unfit to play - if he'd been fit, he'd probably have had a job offer. It's not as though football is any different than any of the other sports - if the player is good enough, all will be forgiven. That's certainly been the case in recent years with the EPL, which has rules not dissimilar to the AFL and NRL - players caught taking PEDs get WADA bans, players caught taking recreational drugs get a few weeks suspension and are not identified publicly. Their careers go on. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/fa-drugs-tests-bans-covered-up-13-saido-berahino-a7572756.html And I believe the EPL is one of the few football organizations that actually does test for recreational drugs. So far as I can tell, the FFA does not, nor do most other football leagues. So, which is worse: the AFL and the NRL testing for recreational drugs, and giving a couple of strikes, or assorted football leagues not testing for them at all? On this one, I can't see that football is any more principled than the other codes.

I didn't say it was a sports problem. I said I feel no sadness for sportspeople who continually thumb their noses at their respective codes drug policies after seeing fellow players continually getting caught week after week. Nothing more nothing less. Sports people are just dumb that they would put their lucrative contracts on the line when we continue to see player after player get caught out. Couldn't care less what professions do or don't use drugs FWIW.

Is a non-performance enhancing drug really going to have him banned from playing? Will he even get a conviction for this, depends whether the quantity is considered large enough I guess. Hope not as it will certainly hurt his chances of an overseas contract. The only way you can get into Casablanca is with either a hot girl on your arm or it seems a bag of coke (to be shared for hot girls), he chose the latter. Now we (A League) have made the big time in Australian sport, one of ours getting done for recreational drugs. Well done Mitch!

hahaha...very good comment including the words line, snort and noses. Well done TK!

Bosnich's offence was in 2002. He played 4 matches as stand-in keeper for CCM as an injury replacement ... 6 YEARS after the offence. That was 10 years ago. He was a GK, which is a specialist position & he was a short-term injury replacement. If Nichols is convicted, there is no way he gets a 2nd chance anywhere other than semi-pro leagues in Australia. There are tens of thousands of players looking for professional contracts. No rational employer is going to hire a guy who has had a drug conviction. AFL, NRL & even Rugby and cricket can make up their own rules & their limited player pool means drug cheats & criminals will get 2nd, 3rd, 4th chances. Or, guys like Ben Cousins they the clubs & central administration just turn & look the other way even when police tell them they've got a player with a drug problem.

The key there is "in competition. " If you test positive for coke in competiton you are banned under WADA protocols. Outside competition, WADA has no interest. The Essendon saga relates to drugs banned in and out of competition, which is a different matter.

So far as I recall, Bosnich tested positive on game day, which is a WADA violation. Yes, he got a ban, but that wasnt what finished his career: it was his addiction that took him out. And he did get second chances - with the A League.

If Mitch is convicted..Japan and Korea are no longer options....recall a great MotoGP talent having his Suzuki contract 'torn up' almost instantly for a marijuana possession charge...sponsors are incredibly adverse to negative PR. "Mitch...you idiot...!"

Is this a joke . If you got caught doing what Essendon and Cronulla did the whole country would get banned from OLympic competition. First offence is 2 years for using anything banned in competition, not counselling. 4 years if its performance enhancing not 3 weeks or 1 year. The player who tested for cocaine in the A-league got a 2 year ban. Mitch Nichols would be off contract as he would have been released so could sign elsewhere. Since my intiial comments were censored I won't say anything else about Mitch Nichols.

Australia's greatest ever goalkeeper, Mark Bosnich had his playing career destroyed by cocaine. You can be sure if Mitch Nichols is convicted his football playing career will be over. Unlike other codes, there will be no 2nd chance.

I know of a lot of sportsmen/women whose careers have been destroyed by taking PEDs. Not sure there are all that many who've had more than disruptions at most for getting caught taking other forms of amusement. Slap on the wrist, generally, regardless of sport or code. Which is probably fair enough. On the other hand, I can think of a few whose lives were destroyed by drugs, so I do think there's some sort of responsibility on the sports bodies to try to prevent more Ben Cousins.

no, Serviceman do too, and are randomly tested in fact there are many jobs that test, like airline pilots, some drivers, assumedly police, but I'm not sure what the long term consequences are for them.

Pretty stoopod from mitch. While most will now snort derisively at Mitch and look down their noses at him maybe Bozza will give him the opportunity to do an occasional line of commentary on Fox?

Pretty stupid from mitch. While most will now snort derisively at Mitch and look down their noses at him maybe Bozza will give him the opportunity for the occasional line of commentary on Fox?

My opinion is that he is innocent until proved guilty. We do not know the full story and until court concludes it is pure supposition. The FFA will look at the incident based upon bringing the game into disrepute plus any further punishment if the allegation is proved to be true. However the alleged drug is a recreational drug and not a performance enhancer and so would receive a different penalty from FFA should Nicholls be convicted. He is a Silly Boy

This incident, combined with his previous history of issues at A-league clubs, could spell disaster for his career within Australia, at least in the short term. I can't think of many A-league clubs willing to take him on right now.

He showed a lot of talent and commitment when he was at the Roar and I was a big fan of him but he wasn't the strongest person mentally/emotionally. I am not saying he is stupid but he often would let external factors get in his way, such as after scoring a goal running to home fans who had been booing him and giving them grief. That showed he was a sensitive person which could be why he allegedly turned to drugs to make the world seem a more bearable place. I hope he can sort himself out and get back on with his life, hopefully on the football field but if not doing something that he finds enjoyable and meaningful.

Hrmmph: stuck in moderation-limbo. We need to be clear about the distinction between policies on performance enhancing drugs and policies on recreational drug use. The FFA, NRL and AFL all subscribe to WADA’s code on banned substances, so the penalties for someone caught taking banned PEDS will be imposed by ASADA/WADA and the same for all players in all three codes. The codes themselves don’t get a say in the matter. The NRL and AFL have additional policies on the use of recreational drugs outside the WADA ambit; they test players periodically in and out of competition; and they have sliding scales of penalties. Ben Barba got a warning for his first offence, then a 12 week ban for his second offence. The AFL policy can also result in players getting a warning first, then further penalties for subsequent offences. I’m not sure that the FFA has any policy on recreational drug use so getting arrested may fall under their general "code of conduct" provisions.