The league has made a rod for its own back with the standards they so publicly enforce. I know these guys are so privileged but they are young and have demands on them that exist in virtually no other areas or professions I can think of for guys that young. (I look at some of them having to turn up on match day when they aren’t playing in a jacket and a tie. They look like they dressed in the dark and have never tied a tie before in their lives & some of them strangling in tight collars that stick out in any direction. What do they want from these poor guys?) How many GREAT champions would have no career because of their behaviour if they played today (or even spent time in jail without the club looking out for them). And how much worse would they have ended up without football? There is even one person mentioned in this thread that may well have ended up in the gutter at an early age if not for footy but still managed to perform on the field with enormous success and is now a respected voice in football.

I’m sure the players’ behaviour is no worse today than before but now it’s in the news all the time. I’m guessing the AFL is worried that “It’ll turn the mums & dads away” and clubs are worried about sponsorship. I say make sure you’ve got the best possible cattle on the field and let them play. I look at how Cousins has been handled; he’s the Paris Hilton of the AFL now and in the meantime we’ve replaced watching great football with great gossip.

It's easy to say don't recruit "troublemakers" but sometimes you don't know if a player's going to turn out a problem until after you've recruited him.

How do you know if a 17 year old draftee is going to come under the wrong influences and be a problem child four or five years down the track?

I'm sure Collingwood had no inclination that Didak was going to end up getting [censored] at bars and associating with criminal bikies at 5am when he was selected in the draft 7 years ago!

True. The recruitment selection ( player profile) process can't capture every possible scenario and no recruiter in my time could ever lay claim to being Nostradamus or Sig Freud.

The best any club can do is to ensure they foster a culture of discipline, accountability & commitment. It needs to be enforced by club personnel inc the leadership group and not fall prey to playing 'favourites'. (read Collingwood & congrats to Geelong).

But for all the Hawks fans, I wonder if they wouldve shown G.Ablett Snr the door had they known what was to evolve of his talent. Would the Mfc have acted the same?