One-Eyed Richmond Forum
Football => Richmond Rant => Topic started by: one-eyed on June 26, 2016, 01:16:21 AM
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King will always be there for Cousins
GLENN McFARLANE
Herald Sun
26 June 2016
RICHMOND cult hero Jake King has vowed never to abandon his troubled ex-teammate Ben Cousins, revealing how he travelled to Perth recently to check in on his welfare.
The former AFL hard man has maintained a close friendship with Cousins since the pair played together with the Tigers in 2009 and 2010.
King said he would always be there to assist the former Eagle and Tiger in whatever way he can, as well as provide support for his family, particularly his children.
“I speak to him every few weeks, I saw him a couple of weeks ago,” King said. “I flew to Perth to make sure he is going all right.”
“I guess he is still doing it a little bit tough. It has been a tough road for Ben and that is a situation where it doesn’t go away tomorrow.”
King spoke about Cousins as well as his own controversial friendship with ex-bikie Toby Mitchell in an episode of Open Mike, to be screened on Fox Footy at 9.30pm on Tuesday night. He insisted he “sleeps well at night” when quizzed about the company that he keeps.
Asked if he spoke to Cousins about drugs, King said: “It’s not for you to know ... if you had a fault and I announced it to the world, I don’t think you would be happy.”
“All we can do is be there and make sure if he needs some help, that you are a physical presence (for him),” he said. “It is not just a phone call. It is actually making sure he is physically OK; it is making sure that Bryan and Steph (Cousins’ parents) are OK; that his kids are going OK.”
“It is not just ‘yeah he played at the club, we looked after him then’. My mindset is when they are a mate, I treat them like family and I will do everything I can, and so will everyone else close to Ben, to make sure he is OK.”
King said it was about being “a mate, not a counsellor.”
The footballer known as ‘the Push-up King” retired from football in 2014 after a serious toe injury brought an end to his 107-game career, but he has still attracted headlines for his friendship with Mitchell, with whom he owns a tattoo shop.
“I have no problem with anything I have done in my life ... the only time I’ve worn handcuffs is for the right reasons,” King said with a smile.
“He (Mitchell) is a good friend of mine. I don’t care what other people’s opinions are because, to me, he is a mate. I class my friends as my family.
King with young Tiger fan Nate Anderson. Picture: Michael Klein
“(Some people) find it intriguing because I think most people don’t understand it.
“The people who don’t understand it, no offence, a lot of the time it comes from people who have had things given to them on a silver platter, and (have) not had to work for it.
“When you have had to work your a--- off, and had to work so hard when people doubt you ... they do it without providing help.
“My friends provided help, my family have provided help. They are the ones I have leant on for guidance and support, so for me, it is pretty simple.”
He also spoke passionately about a young Tiger fan, Nate Anderson, who lost a leg to cancer, and whom he and the club have bonded with in recent seasons.
King and the club organised to fly Anderson and his family to a match in 2014 in a heartwarming gesture, and they were back at the club earlier this season.
“Kids are a big weakness of mine,” he said. “He has had his leg amputated, but he is actually fit and healthy now.”
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/jake-king-says-he-will-never-abandon-former-teammate-ben-cousins/news-story/8a46682fcaf46bdc07d29e0de1b93c89
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Stfu idiot.
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Stfu idiot.
Are you for real?
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Stfu idiot.
Are you for real?
Yes, I think so
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Stfu idiot.
Are you for real?
Yes, I think so
He thinks it is a Hardwick article.
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Stfu idiot.
Are you for real?
Yes, I think so
Not sure why you'd doubt he's for real. He's made his poor character known to everyone.
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One has to question King's motive here.
Ben's problems are somewhat influenced by Bikie gang associations and Kingy has the same associations.
Makes you wonder what the real agenda of Kingy is?
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Miss having this guy on the field. Added so much toughness it was ridiculous given his physique.
Him and Tuck and Jackson.
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Geez was mates with unsavoury characters
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Geez was mates with unsavoury characters
Jake King compared to Geez for the first time ever.
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Ben Cousins has reportedly been taken to hospital after police were called to an incident on a busy West Australian highway.
Seven News Perth reported the former West Coast and Richmond player, who has a history of drug abuse, was in the middle of Canning Highway in Como directing traffic.
He was described as being “incoherent”, while one witness said he attempted to jump on the back of someone’s motorcycle, almost causing the driver to lose control.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/afl/ben-cousins-has-reportedly-been-taken-to-hospital-after-an-incident-with-police/news-story/299306dc791a41b010300c29fcaf6298
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http://www.watoday.com.au/afl/west-coast-eagles/exeagle-ben-cousins-in-hospital-after-directing-traffic-on-canning-highway-20160626-gpsdm1.html
This is literally 500 m from my home.
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FLMFAO
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Unhinged
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Why are my posts in this thread continually deleted?.
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They have been brightening up my day
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Why are my posts in this thread continually deleted?.
Read the forum rules
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Really is a sad state of affairs..
Have to say feel really really sorry for his parents and partner who continue to support him and wear the emotional and physical scars of an addict. I can understand the emotional toll this stuff has taken on them and its not easy.
The guy has a child now and stuff its time to wake up and be the father that they need but I just cant see him sorting out his problems, he needs to admit to himself 'not that he has a problem' but that he needs help. If he can admit that to himself then he is half a chance.
Anyone here taking light of the situation is a fool
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I said to a mate on Saturday night that one day we will open the papers to the inevitable, now this, I hope that doesn't happen but it's not looking good.. :-\
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One has to question King's motive here.
Ben's problems are somewhat influenced by Bikie gang associations and Kingy has the same associations.
Makes you wonder what the real agenda of Kingy is?
Exceptional long bow you are drawing and completely unfair on all parties TBH.
King has known Mitchell since he was a kid. One thing about Jake is he os incredibly loyal, incredibly loyal. Has got him trouble (obviously) at times but he os a very loyal friend
And BTW Ben has 2 little kids now
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I said to a mate on Saturday night that one day we will open the papers to the inevitable, now this, I hope that doesn't happen but it's not looking good.. :-\
Yeah that was discussed on Andrew Gaze and Richo
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I like kin. Cause he would jump in when his team mate was getting battered unlike current group
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Is king there for him?
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Why are my posts in this thread continually deleted?.
Most dont like home truths.
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All I basically said was mates don't need to tell a journo how tight they are with a bloke and then
That theyll always be there bla bla.
Cuzzy has enough mates like that.
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All I basically said was mates don't need to tell a journo how tight they are with a bloke and then
That theyll always be there bla bla.
Cuzzy has enough mates like that.
That's what you were trying to say :huh3
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Ouch for Cousins
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/ben-cousins-jailed-for-12-months/news-story/6a93da32dfe454602336341281618eb1
FALLEN AFL star Ben Cousins has been sentenced to 12 months jail in a Perth court and fined $2400 over drug offences and repeatedly breaching a violence restraining order.
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Ouch for Cousins
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/ben-cousins-jailed-for-12-months/news-story/6a93da32dfe454602336341281618eb1
FALLEN AFL star Ben Cousins has been sentenced to 12 months jail in a Perth court and fined $2400 over drug offences and repeatedly breaching a violence restraining order.
Could save his life.....
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Ouch for Cousins
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/ben-cousins-jailed-for-12-months/news-story/6a93da32dfe454602336341281618eb1
FALLEN AFL star Ben Cousins has been sentenced to 12 months jail in a Perth court and fined $2400 over drug offences and repeatedly breaching a violence restraining order.
Could save his life.....
Was thinking the same thing
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Ouch for Cousins
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/ben-cousins-jailed-for-12-months/news-story/6a93da32dfe454602336341281618eb1
FALLEN AFL star Ben Cousins has been sentenced to 12 months jail in a Perth court and fined $2400 over drug offences and repeatedly breaching a violence restraining order.
Could save his life.....
Was thinking the same thing
It's lucky drugs aren't available in prisons
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Just really feel for his folks who are super people
And his 2 small kids..they deserve better
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Ex-coach’s struggles to reach ‘elusive’ Cousins
Staff writers,
FOX SPORTS
March 29, 2017
FORMER Richmond coach Terry Wallace says it had been difficult to maintain contact with an “elusive” Ben Cousins after the champion footballer left the AFL system.
The former West Coast captain was jailed on Tuesday after pleading guilty to 11 charges, including aggravated stalking.
Wallace, who coached Cousins when he returned to the AFL system with Richmond in 2009, said he’d largely struggled to contact his former player.
“I’ve tried quite regularly over a period of time, particularly moreso after he went back to WA initially,” Wallace said on Fox Sports News’ AFL Tonight.
“But there’s been a lot of people that have actually tried to do that as well.
“Unfortunately Ben hasn’t wanted that assistance from many people, which is up to him. I mean that’s his prerogative and choice.
“There’s been many of us that have tried to keep in touch over a period of time but it’s been very difficult to do. He’s changed phones quite regularly and been fairly elusive.”
Cousins had a public fall from grace in his final years at West Coast and was suspended for 12 months for bringing the game into disrepute in 2008.
Richmond threw the midfielder a lifeline at the end of his ban, with Cousins going on to play 32 games for the Tigers.
The first of his two years at Punt Road was under Wallace, who said Cousins had been in “a better place” when he was in the AFL system.
Terry Wallace talks with Ben Cousins.
“I’d like to say that in my time, I saw him prior to coming back into football when he had been away from the game for 12 months and he was in a really bad state at that time,” Wallace said.
“I saw him over the two years that he was back at the Richmond Football Club and he was in a far, far better place.
“So much so that his family and his dad in particular, Brian, said to us that he thanked the Richmond Football Club for giving them back their son, that they could go out and have dinner with him and be able to have level conversations.
“Once he left the AFL system and the Richmond Football Club, I think things went clearly very much downhill again.
“To me, I can’t guarantee what he did and didn’t do while he was at the Richmond Football Club, but I can absolutely assure everyone that he was in a much, much better place inside the AFL system than what he was prior to coming back in and obviously post.”
Wallace said while he felt everything possible had been done to help Cousins once the extent of his problems became clear, a failure to understand the severity of his drug issues when they first emerged had proven costly.
“I think perhaps where Ben probably fell short and the AFL fell short was — you go back to when he perhaps first started taking things and we didn’t realise how bad and how dangerous these drugs were,” Wallace said.
“You talk about something like ice, I think that now we understand exactly how it can get hold of a young person’s lifestyle and we see it on a daily basis unfortunately now.
“When Ben first started, it was a rockstar lifestyle that perhaps he was living and that drug culture was part of that.
“But I don’t think that him as a young man or the system itself knew how actually bad and insidious that was.”
Wallace said ultimately he felt for Cousins’ family and hoped his stint behind bars would help him in the long run.
“Ben’s had so many opportunities given to him along the way,” Wallace said.
“Of course no-one wants to see him in this position but I feel so much for his family who have tried everything, really, to try to turn things around in Ben’s life, but unfortunately the drugs and insidious nature of the way that they are have got control of him and got control of his life.
“So he now goes to jail for perhaps six months and (we’ll) see whether that can change things around at all.”
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/former-richmond-coach-terry-wallace-details-struggles-to-maintain-contact-with-elusive-ben-cousins/news-story/2eeea7d48cbf77d039b742a8ed3c5095
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I would be surprised if Wallace could reach out to any players he coached at the RFC
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I'd be surprised if he couldn't