Nick's Collingwood Bulletin Board

I certainly think he is more likely to blame for the failure of his comeback than clubs being too conservative or image focused. If he really was clean, fit and ready to go, doing all that was asked of him, someone would have taken him. Looks like it's not the case. A shame, but a comeback was always going to be tough.

I think the old saying you make your bed,you lie in it sums his situation re a come back up nicely!

< My avatar says it all!

One could forgive Benny for saying, "Stuff this society. They don't give a rats arse about helping anyone with rehabilitation." It is an unforgiving and uncaring world out there.

And yet the real people who serially bring the game into disrepute are allowed to play on or administrate the game (no names, no pack drill, but we all know who they are). When will people understand alcohol is a bigger problem for footy that any party drugs (which a high percentage of players take, as most of us know).

Poor Benny the scapegoat. He played a generation too late. If he played in the 80s with some unnamed all-time greats he would be a legend. But these are Puritanical times. Footy's version of McCarthyism! Just be careful Alan Didak - they've got you in the gun next, believe me.

alcohol is a bigger problem for footy that any party drugs (which a high percentage of players take, as most of us know).

Jack can you please name these party drugs that we all are supposed to know so that I can compare them with the list of drugs found in the body of my late neice?

jack_spain wrote:< My avatar says it all!

One could forgive Benny for saying, "Stuff this society. They don't give a rats arse about helping anyone with rehabilitation." It is an unforgiving and uncaring world out there.

And yet the real people who serially bring the game into disrepute are allowed to play on or administrate the game (no names, no pack drill, but we all know who they are). When will people understand alcohol is a bigger problem for footy that any party drugs (which a high percentage of players take, as most of us know).

Poor Benny the scapegoat. He played a generation too late. If he played in the 80s with some unnamed all-time greats he would be a legend. But these are Puritanical times. Footy's version of McCarthyism! Just be careful Alan Didak - they've got you in the gun next, believe me.

Agree 100 per cent Jack.

Geez I have had some real mixed feelings about the whole Ben Cousins saga. I was disapointed we didn't pursue him, then became over it when he did the whole "shaved head" thing, thinking you would have known all about needing the longer hair. But now, I am sort of feeling sorry for him.

I know I don't know jack about what the real stories are to why no one wants to pick him up. I am guessing it is the possible risk he may stuff up, the clubs don't want to take. But gee, he wants to get back on track again, and it's one kick in the guts he doesn't need in his rehab I wouldn't imagine.

I hope he ends up playing though, for a VFL team or somewhere in his home state. He's done a stupid thing and is now trying to rectify it (as far as I know)

Anyway. bllahh

nulla wrote:

alcohol is a bigger problem for footy that any party drugs (which a high percentage of players take, as most of us know).

Jack can you please name these party drugs that we all are supposed to know so that I can compare them with the list of drugs found in the body of my late neice?

Nulla I'm genuinely sorry to hear that. That is a tragedy. Sorry mate.

The fact is that more kids will die as a result of alcohol (including car accidents under the influence) than these drugs. Of course Cousins should have got off the stuff (I hope he has), but even you'd have to agree that kids don't pop these pills at nightclubs because footy players are taking them. This is society's problem, not a football problem. If what Cousins did was illegal, why was he never charged? Double standards all round I think. Either you nail everyone, or you make the drugs legal and control them (like alcohol, because prohibition never worked for that drug of choice).

And let me add, I love a drink, but hate binging.

Thanks for the reply Jack and the condolences.


I dont want to get into a drug war and debate and feel that promoting drugs in any way is not good.

Yes a lot of peoples lives are wrecked and ruined by alcohol and innocent lives are lost. I think one should consider some simple facts as well.
Alcohol has been legal for quite sometime so its ingrained into our culture and far more people consume alcohol, so one would expect more people thinking that its safe to drive, or that they can get away with it


Anyone who drinks and drives deserves to be punished harshly and the same should be expected of drug users. I was a social alcoholic and now dont drink, but I dont go round trying to stop people who unlike myself can control themselves when they drink lol

On Ben, he has never denied once over the past 12 months of his turmoil that he is not or was not a drug addict and if my memory serves me correct Jack I think he got off the drug and alcohol driving thing on a technicality.

If as it seems Ben is still having problems or has not overcome 100% his habit then to me the main thing now in his life would be to overcome his habit and make it a priority to get himself in order mentally physicaly and socially free of drugs rather than battling to get back into football.. which to me has short cut his attempts by focusing on what he was rather than what he could be... and there is still a lot in football that Ben can do if he fails to make it back playing and I wish him firstly all the best in overcoming his habit.

I think we didnt go for him due to that the club thought his hamstrings wouldnt last and that he wasnt over his hamstring injuries.

Look, if he's clean and trying hard to rehabilitate...its a damn shame that no club is willing to pick him up.

In fact...if thats the case, its inexcusable that we DIDN'T pick him up.


But unfortunately, i suspect its not the case at all. We were all over him like white on rice...but the second we put a private investigator on him....we suddenly were no longer interested.

St Kilda were also very keen...and after a while they pulled away too.


Methinks that the whole idea is very attractive on paper...but when clubs had a closer look at him, they are perhaps realising its not all as squeaky clean as it should be.

to think guys like Leigh Brown are getting a 2nd go and Ben COusins is not ...purely based on football ability....says a lot about the modern day footballer. Attitude is as important as talent. Even look at Hislop getting delisted so young.

Still hope Cousins gets a chance.

At the end of the day he has no-one to blame but himself. He really did little to promote he was fit and ready to return playing AFL football. He adopted a secretive persona and did some things on the eve of his 'comeback' which if they weren't dodgy, could be construed as dodgy - IE the shaving business.

If Cousins was as fit and ready and clear of his addiction and its lifestyle as some would have us believe, why wasn't he picked up by an AFL club, given he was a reasonably talented footballer? Please don't trot out the sponsor argument because on a number of occasions that's been shown to have been not true. My guess is there was more to the story than has been discussed in the public arena.

A relatively common piece of static that keeps re-appearing relates to his peers and lifestyle. Some allege he hasn't left the lifestyle that got him into trouble in the first place. if true that could be a major contributing factor as to why he wasn't picked up. Sometimes giving up the actual drug use is relatively easy, replacing the lifestyle and your peers is not.

At the end of the day the only person responsible for his rehabilitation is himself. Some here try shifting the responsibility to the AFL but really that could only be an adjunct to his rehabilitation (and a two edged sword at that given the pressures of AFL these days).

Personally i hope he gets over his demons what ever they are, it will taken time, more time than his AFL comeback would have been anyway. I'm not surprised he wasn't picked up at this stage... there is still the PSD for him to convince some club to take him on... but it seems unlikely as perhaps its always was.

IMO it would be an absolute shame if Ben Cousins didn't get another shot at footy. He is an amazing player and I sincerely hope he has been able to deal with his demons and stays on the straight and narrow.

(Drugs are the reason my daughter doesn't have a father and I have also seen the way booze can destroy a family).

Good luck Cuz.

rocketronnie wrote: If Cousins was as fit and ready and clear of his addiction and its lifestyle as some would have us believe, why wasn't he picked up by an AFL club, given he was a reasonably talented footballer? Please don't trot out the sponsor argument because on a number of occasions that's been shown to have been not true. My guess is there was more to the story than has been discussed in the public arena.

A relatively common piece of static that keeps re-appearing relates to his peers and lifestyle. Some allege he hasn't left the lifestyle that got him into trouble in the first place. if true that could be a major contributing factor as to why he wasn't picked up. Sometimes giving up the actual drug use is relatively easy, replacing the lifestyle and your peers is not.

At the end of the day the only person responsible for his rehabilitation is himself. Some here try shifting the responsibility to the AFL but really that could only be an adjunct to his rehabilitation (and a two edged sword at that given the pressures of AFL these days).

Agree. There is more to it than clubs not wanting to take the risk on future indiscretions, there is something not quite right about his behaviour in recent months that is putting them off. Whether that is simply associations (even Ablett snr has come out and told him to cutoff certain undesirable mates), attitude or actual actions is immaterial.

There is no way every club in the league would pass on him purely for image or sponsor dollars (Brisbane's major sponsor publicly stated they'd leave signing decisions to the club). His potential playing ability is too good for that.

AN_Inkling wrote:

rocketronnie wrote: If Cousins was as fit and ready and clear of his addiction and its lifestyle as some would have us believe, why wasn't he picked up by an AFL club, given he was a reasonably talented footballer? Please don't trot out the sponsor argument because on a number of occasions that's been shown to have been not true. My guess is there was more to the story than has been discussed in the public arena.

A relatively common piece of static that keeps re-appearing relates to his peers and lifestyle. Some allege he hasn't left the lifestyle that got him into trouble in the first place. if true that could be a major contributing factor as to why he wasn't picked up. Sometimes giving up the actual drug use is relatively easy, replacing the lifestyle and your peers is not.

At the end of the day the only person responsible for his rehabilitation is himself. Some here try shifting the responsibility to the AFL but really that could only be an adjunct to his rehabilitation (and a two edged sword at that given the pressures of AFL these days).

Agree. There is more to it than clubs not wanting to take the risk on future indiscretions, there is something not quite right about his behaviour in recent months that is putting them off. Whether that is simply associations (even Ablett snr has come out and told him to cutoff certain undesirable mates), attitude or actual actions is immaterial.

There is no way every club in the league would pass on him purely for image or sponsor dollars (Brisbane's major sponsor publicly stated they'd leave signing decisions to the club). His potential playing ability is too good for that.

St Kilda's sponsors also said they had nothing to do with their club's decision. Sponsor pressure is an easy line to trot out by those suspicious of the AFL's increasing corporatisation, particularly as a substitute for the real facts which aren't actually known at this point.