Reality Check!
Team Captain
Today on the front page of The Courier Mail, we have photographic evidence of star Gold Coast Suns player Harley Bennell cutting up what appears to be cocaine. I went on bigfooty today naturally expecting outrage from such a strong community oriented group of posters. Instead to my disgust, not only is this news not on the front page of the main forum, I have come to find posts like these (please pardon the embellishment, as Caroline Wilson would say never let a false attribution get in the way of a good article).
Reality Check: This is not a stressful job, rather the opposite. We have comprehensive scientific evidence to support the fact that exercise and physical contests are the best way to relieve stress. In addition players are given unlimited support. Each club has ample therapists and they have more talent than any quack the average Joe goes to see.
Reality Check: While Bennell may have underestimated the addictive power of the drug he was taking, he definitely knew he should not in any form be involved with illicit drugs. The fact that he has chosen to ignore this shows he is arrogant and does not care about his job at all. His earnings come from a group of people who have invested a lot of money into the AFL's new club and wanting to see it grow and become successful. If he had mental issues he could have fronted up to the club about it clandestinely. Instead he's chosen to piss all that up against the wall to follow the white rabbit.
Reality Check: This is probably the worst thing about it. Days after you've taken this drug, your senses continue to be elevated and you can engage in physical contests with more fervor than when the drug is completely flushed out of your system. Admittedly in the long term cocaine use is not an effective performance enhancing drug regardless of whether you get caught or not, but that doesn't change the fact that he had an unfair advantage over his opposition for some of the games he played.
Now let's compare this to Jobe Watson's admission of being administered drug AOD-9604 back in 2013.
- It was not prohibited at the time it was administered.
- Even though its status as a banned substance was contentious, he did not lie about taking it.
- He never made the conscious choice to go out and find the drug, it was administered by the club and he took it in good faith.
- It is not a drug he took for recreational faces so he could slap the greater football community in the face and say "I don't care what you think I'm going on a bender". He took this as part of his job.
And the reaction on bigfooty?
Intensified abuse of the EFC.
wannabee wiseacre said:
Reality Check: This is not a stressful job, rather the opposite. We have comprehensive scientific evidence to support the fact that exercise and physical contests are the best way to relieve stress. In addition players are given unlimited support. Each club has ample therapists and they have more talent than any quack the average Joe goes to see.
21yo serial bong abuser said:
Reality Check: While Bennell may have underestimated the addictive power of the drug he was taking, he definitely knew he should not in any form be involved with illicit drugs. The fact that he has chosen to ignore this shows he is arrogant and does not care about his job at all. His earnings come from a group of people who have invested a lot of money into the AFL's new club and wanting to see it grow and become successful. If he had mental issues he could have fronted up to the club about it clandestinely. Instead he's chosen to piss all that up against the wall to follow the white rabbit.
manchild69 said:
Reality Check: This is probably the worst thing about it. Days after you've taken this drug, your senses continue to be elevated and you can engage in physical contests with more fervor than when the drug is completely flushed out of your system. Admittedly in the long term cocaine use is not an effective performance enhancing drug regardless of whether you get caught or not, but that doesn't change the fact that he had an unfair advantage over his opposition for some of the games he played.
Now let's compare this to Jobe Watson's admission of being administered drug AOD-9604 back in 2013.
- It was not prohibited at the time it was administered.
- Even though its status as a banned substance was contentious, he did not lie about taking it.
- He never made the conscious choice to go out and find the drug, it was administered by the club and he took it in good faith.
- It is not a drug he took for recreational faces so he could slap the greater football community in the face and say "I don't care what you think I'm going on a bender". He took this as part of his job.
And the reaction on bigfooty?
Intensified abuse of the EFC.
