Media articles about Richmond & Cuz - July 9 / Cousins' baggage overwhelming

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Cousins' baggage overwhelming

 * Courtney Walsh
  * The Australian
  * July 09, 2010

AS an endorsement, Richmond coach Damien Hardwick was hardly effusive when discussing Ben Cousins' future beyond this season.

That the veteran, who trained yesterday but will not play against Fremantle after his hospitalisation for an overdose of sleeping tablets, has returned to reasonable form in recent weeks means little when it comes to convincing Richmond it is worth persevering with him for another year.

While Hardwick described Cousins' football in recent weeks as "very, very good" and that "from that point of view he is doing all he can", the baggage that comes with him is oversized.

"There are a lot of factors that come into it so we will address that at the end of the year," Hardwick said.

By year's end that could include the release of a documentary into the troubles that forced him from West Coast and captures his new beginning as a Tiger as well as an unauthorised biography certain to ruffle feathers in AFL circles.

Cousins' time at Richmond has nothing on his final days in Perth but it has nonetheless been eventful.

Consider his role in the shambles in Sydney earlier this year that led to the Tigers banning him for a week and Daniel Connors for two months. Or earlier stints in hospital for stomach pains reportedly caused by an overuse of anti-inflammatory tablets.

Than there was the long-awaited tell-all interview in which, among other things, he sold his case for a contract next year.

The latest incident, innocent enough in cause though sinister in repercussion, concerned Richmond more, according to Hardwick, who agreed it had been another "interesting, colourful" week that began when he reached for the phone on Monday morning.

"I couldn't (believe it) and that was the scary thing about it," Hardwick said.

"To know that one of your players has gone into intensive care, you just want to drop everything and go in and see them, but obviously we couldn't at that stage. It was just a massively concerning time for our footy club."

It is not as if Hardwick has not had enough to deal with as a rookie coach, let alone deal with repeated problems from his most senior player.

He lost Richmond's best player in the last 15 years, Matthew Richardson, to retirement in the pre-season while Nathan Foley, a senior midfielder, has hardly played and was ruled out for the rest of the season yesterday.

Then there was early evidence this could be the worst Richmond side ever, something Hardwick has managed to change in turning the season into an encouraging portent of things to come at Punt Rd.

Aside from the Connors issue, Hardwick also had to deal with Graham Polak, both the decision to give him a pre-season lifeline on the rookie list and then his horror concussion at VFL level a fortnight ago.

Only this week, with Cousins capturing the headlines, Hardwick also confronted the almost certain loss of the rookie-listed Relton Roberts.

The 24-year-old showed promise in two early games but has disappointed the club with his lack of discipline and this week headed back to the Northern Territory, with Hardwick saying the ball was now in his court.

And a court case involving another Tiger, Troy Taylor, is still to come.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/cousins-baggage-overwhelming/story-e6frg7mf-1225889557807

[one-eyed]

Richmond to assess strife-prone Ben Cousin's future with the club

  * Michael Horan
  * Herald Sun
  * July 09, 2010

BEN Cousins will return to football next week with seven games left to convince Richmond to retain him next year.

As Cousins trained with his teammates at Victoria Park on Thursday, Tigers coach Damien Hardwick said the strife-prone Brownlow medallist would be assessed at the end of this season.

"We've always said it will be a list-management decision at the end of the year," Hardwick said. "All Ben can do is put his best foot forward, play some good football.

"On and off the field he's doing all that's possible for him at the moment. Footy-wise he's been very good the last four to five weeks.

"If had to decide right now? There are a lot of factors that come into it, so we'll address that at the end of the year."

Cousins said his first memory of his now infamous sleeping pill drama was waking up in intensive care on Tuesday morning, not knowing what day it was.

He said he had not been drinking alcohol when he took the medication, which he had not used before. He took about double the normal amount.

"It was a new one, not your typical sleeping tablet," he said on radio.

Cousins warned against taking sleeping pills, citing the accidental death of Australian actor Heath Ledger in January, 2008.

"You saw what happened to Heath Ledger and, well I'm a person that everybody knows, but it happens all the time in the community," he said.

He said his problem arose because his history of drug addiction and long-term usage of sleeping tablets led him to being prescribed with a stronger brand.

"That's part of why I was on the tablet I was on, and I just took the wrong dose," he said. Cousins conceded his football future was in the balance.

"I just want to get back and play and if it is my last year, I want to enjoy every minute of it," he said. "If it's not and I get the opportunity to go again, even better."

Meanwhile, Hardwick expects Fremantle to be a potent opponent at Etihad Stadium tomorrow night despite the loss of star on-baller Michael Barlow (broken leg).

After three straight wins the Tigers' confidence is high, but Hardwick warned the fourth-placed Dockers would be a major challenge.

"It's a huge loss," he said of Barlow. "But they've got a quality list and I think they'll cover his loss. They've got the depth."

The Tiger coach then conceded his biggest concern was trying to nullify big Dockers ruckman Aaron Sandilands.

"No matter what we do we can't counteract Sandilands, to be honest," he said.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/richmond-to-assess-strife-prone-ben-cousins-future-with-the-club/story-e6frf9jf-1225889592125

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Tigers have much to consider on Cousins' playing future

  * JON PIERIK
  * The Age
  * July 9, 2010
 

RICHMOND coach Damien Hardwick says many factors will need to be considered before the Tigers reach a definitive decision on whether Ben Cousins plays on next year.

Cousins has been ruled out of tomorrow night's clash against Fremantle, leaving him with just seven senior matches at most to convince the club he deserves a new one-year deal.

That appears increasingly unlikely, although Hardwick said yesterday he had been impressed with Cousins' recent form. ''All Ben can do is put his best foot forward, play some good football,'' he said.

''On and off the field he is doing all that is possible for him at the moment. His footy has been very, very good for the last four to five weeks, so from that point of view he is doing all he can. There are a lot of factors that come into it, so we'll address that at the end of the year.''

Aside from his playing ability, it's believed those factors will include Cousins' health, the leadership needed for the club's young players to mature quickly and the direction the list is taking. Hardwick refrained from revealing details of a conversation he had with Cousins since the midfielder was released from hospital on Tuesday after overdosing on sleeping pills.

It was the third time this season Cousins had been in hospital, but it's unclear if this added scrutiny on the player and club has started to grate on Tiger officials and whether this, too, will be a factor in determining whether he plays on.

Cousins said on Nova Radio yesterday he had been using sleeping tablets ''for a long time'', but on Sunday night had taken about double the dosage of pills that were ''not your typical sleeping tablet''. "I just took the wrong dosage,'' he said.

He denied reports he had been drinking, but told of the events after the Tigers' win over the Swans on Sunday afternoon that led to him taking the tablets about 2am on Monday morning.

''I went home, my missus cooked me a feed, I sat on the couch and rang the world so I could try to get to sleep,'' he said. ''I was just watching the Tour de France and then … I thought: 'Uh, oh, I've had enough now, I have to get some sleep'.''

Cousins fell asleep on the lounge and said he did not remember anything until Tuesday morning, when he awoke in Epworth Hospital's intensive care unit.

''You saw what happened to Heath Ledger … but it happens all the time in the community. If you're going to go over, that's more than likely the way it will happen,'' he said. Cousins said one of his biggest regrets was missing former West Coast teammate Michael Gardiner's 31st birthday on Monday.

''I have to make a formal apology to my big mate Micky Gardiner, it was his birthday on Monday and I slept through the whole day,'' Cousins said.

Cousins took the sleeping pills to counter the effects of caffeine tablets consumed during the match. These tablets are legal and, while debate about their impact swirls, Hardwick said he wouldn't stop his players from taking them. ''We discourage our young players from using it,'' he said. ''For some of our older players, it's part of their preparation.''

Cousins trained with the Tigers at Victoria Park yesterday and is expected to return for the clash against North Melbourne on Sunday week.

''He was eager to play [tomorrow night], very disappointed when I told him he wasn't going to play,'' Hardwick said. ''But for the good of the [club] and Ben's health, physically wise, it wasn't a hard decision to make.''

Midfielder Nathan Foley, battling an Achilles injury, will have surgery within a fortnight and won't play again this season, while rookie Relton Roberts has returned home to his young son and family in the Northern Territory and faces an uncertain future at Punt Road.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/tigers-have-much-to-consider-on-cousins-playing-future-20100708-1029f.html

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Caffeine use not a good look: AFL

  * CAROLINE WILSON
  * The Age
  * July 9, 2010
 
THE AFL would welcome a decision to restrict or ban the match-day use of caffeine, according to league chief Andrew Demetriou, who said yesterday he would not defend the practice, which he believed reflected poorly on the image of the game.

''I'm not defending it and we're not trying to defend it,'' Demetriou told The Age. ''I understand the concern, particularly for children watching players and athletes from other sports who they look up to.

''It's not a new thing that players take caffeine tablets but it's not a good look popping tablets. But it's a practice administered by club doctors and it's allowed under the guidelines of WADA [the World Anti-Doping Agency].

''But if WADA, through [president] John Fahey, want to restrict it or place caffeine back on the banned list then we would willingly co-operate with them … We work closely with WADA and if John Fahey has serious concerns then we would respect that.''

Fahey told The Age that the use of caffeine was against the spirit of sport and brought the AFL game into disrepute. Revealing he asked the agency to look at placing caffeine back on the banned list, he added: ''We don't want to see a tragedy.''

Demetriou pointed out that Ben Cousins' dramatic hospitalisation four days ago could not be blamed on caffeine. Cousins overdosed on an unusually strong prescription drug he had been taking as part of his drug rehabilitation to help him sleep.

Accepting that some players took sleeping pills after night games, Demetriou said: ''They certainly wouldn't have taken such a strong drug.'' Of caffeine use before and during games, he said: ''Does it give you a kick? Yes. Is it a good look? No. There's absolutely no doubt that it is not a good look.

''There are lots of other athletes who take it. Would we prefer no one took anything? Yes.''

Admitting he had been so nervous on game day during his VFL career that he baulked at even drinking a cup of tea two hours before a match, Demetriou said his belief was that ''that stuff was bull----. I played with players who took caffeine and other things but I always thought it was as much psychological as anything else.''

Richmond coach Damien Hardwick, who ruled Cousins out of tomorrow night's clash with Fremantle saying he had not had sufficient preparation, has actively discouraged the use of caffeine among his young playing group well before the events of the past week. He said he expected Cousins to be back in the side for Richmond's round-16 clash with North Melbourne.

Demetriou, who shared the industry's concern for Cousins, said his illness had been disappointing also in light of his good form over the past month. ''Ben's had a really good four or five weeks,'' Demetriou said. ''He's been playing well.''

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/caffeine-use-not-a-good-look-afl-20100708-1029h.html