After being on the brink of ruin due to drugs and alcohol, the AFL has announced that former West Coast Eagles star Ben Cousins’ off-field scandals have not ruled him out of the Hall of Fame.
Cousins was a generational talent and even during his darkest days he was still a premiership winner, Brownlow medalist and six-time All Australian.
While juggling his addiction, he was still good enough on the field to carve out a career worthy of a place in the AFL Hall of Fame.
But like other troubled footballers before him, such as Gary Ablett Senior and North Melbourne’s Wayne Carey, Cousins’ candidacy for one of the game’s top honors has been thrown into doubt.
But after turning his life around, Cousins’ wait might not be much longer as AFL Commission chairman Richard Goyder revealed his football career will be honored “in due course”.
Cousins (pictured left with West Coast legend Chris Judd) did more than enough on the field to deserve a place in the AFL Hall of Fame.
However, his drug and alcohol addiction caused Cousins to retire prematurely from the AFL in 2010 and spend 10 months in prison for harassing an ex-girlfriend.
Today, Cousins has cleaned up his life and the AFL has confirmed that he is still eligible for a place in the Hall of Fame.
The day came when the league announced that former Hawthorn striker Jason Dunstall would be elevated to Legend status this year.
The AFL had previously remained silent on whether the former Eagles and Tigers star’s long list of off-field scandals had ruled him out of the Hall.
It’s easy to understand why, as Cousins’ headline-making acts continued into 2019.
His public battles began in 2007, when rumors emerged about his drug use amid incidents such as abandoning his car to evade police and being found asleep outside a casino.
Despite rehabilitation efforts, including stints in expensive American rehab facilities, his struggles persisted and culminated in multiple arrests and legal problems.
Despite his challenges, Cousins continued to play professional football, even after being suspended from the AFL in 2007. He joined Richmond in 2009, but retired after two seasons.
Cousins’ problems first came to light in 2007 and continued for many years, with his most recent arrest in 2020.
Happy, healthy and slim Ben Cousins is now ready to show what he’s got on Channel 7’s hit show Dancing with the Stars (pictured).
Channel Seven first took a chance on Cousins by offering him a news broadcasting position in Perth in a move that has helped the troubled former AFL star turn his life around.
Cousins’ personal life was also marked by turbulence, with strained relationships and legal problems involving his ex-partner and his children.
Despite rehabilitation efforts, including treatment and seeking counseling, his battles with addiction and the law persisted.
In 2018, Cousins was released from prison after spending 10 months in custody for stalking an ex-partner, but faced more legal problems and spent seven months behind bars in 2020.
In total, he was imprisoned on six different occasions in 13 years, but today things have changed.
Cousins made a welcome return to the Eagles this year, playing in a Second Generation Academy opener against GWS on March 24 (pictured).
AFL commission chairman Richard Goyder has given Cousins hope, saying he will be considered for the Hall of Fame “in due course” and speaking glowingly of his recovery.
Cousins changed his life significantly by working at Channel 7 as a sports newscaster in Perth three times a week.
He has also joined a Perth breakfast radio team on Mix94.5 and is about to debut on Seven’s hit show Dancing With the Stars.
After joining Seven last year, the former West Coast player has been analyzing AFL games on the weekends.
“I will say it’s a pleasure to see Ben in the shape he’s in now, and I’ve seen him quite a bit out west,” Goyder said.
‘Believe [Cousins’ recovery] It’s fantastic…what I would say with the Hall of Fame, and it’s almost my precursor to our committee discussions every year, is that it’s not about who’s in, it’s about who’s not.
“It’s an incredibly high bar to be a Hall of Famer in the AFL, and it’s an even higher bar to be a Legend, so we’ll look at those things in due time.”