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Joel Smith has been banned from playing any form of Australian rules football until 2028.
Smith, who has made 42 AFL appearances for Melbourne, returned a positive test for cocaine following the Demons’ win over Hawthorn in round 23 last year.
He was later hit by Sport Integrity Australia (SIA) with charges of trafficking or attempted trafficking of cocaine to third parties.
The AFL announced Smith’s punishment, in connection with five anti-doping rule violations under the Australian Football Anti-Doping Code, on Friday.
The league said in a statement that Smith’s suspension has been agreed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), SIA and the AFL with Joel Smith.
Smith is banned until January 9, 2028, but can return to training in November, 2027.
“The outcome in this matter, in which Joel Smith has been suspended for more than four years, reflects the seriousness with which the AFL treats breaches of the Australian Football Anti-Doping Code and is a salutary lesson for any player using illicit substances that are prohibited under the WADA Code,” AFL CEO Andrew Dillon said in a statement.
“The use of performance-enhancing substances is strictly prohibited in Australian Football and the AFL will continue to work with Sport Integrity Australia to identify and prosecute the use of such substances In-Competition and other conduct prohibited by the Australian Football Anti-Doping Code.”
“The AFL does not in any way condone the use of illicit drugs. If a player chooses to use illicit drugs, the potential consequences are substantial, including risks to health and safety and of losing the privilege of playing professional football, as has occurred here.”
Joel Smith. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Melbourne has backed senior coach Simon Goodwin to lead the embattled AFL club back to finals but have overhauled his assistants following a review into their football department.
The Demons released the hotly-anticipated findings of two reviews into their football department and board, on Friday, as they try to settle more than 12 months of turmoil.
Since Goodwin coached them to their drought-breaking 2021 premiership, Melbourne have had straight-sets exits from the ’22 and ’23 finals series and this season they failed to make the top eight.
But the review backed the senior coach, while changing up his assistants, including appointing two midfield coaches to handle a unit headlined by disgruntled stars Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver.
“The review confirmed the strength of our football program’s leadership and staff, while identifying an opportunity to refresh energy and leadership within the assistant coaching group supporting senior coach Simon Goodwin,” President Brad Green said in a letter to members.
Interestingly, football boss Alan Richardson wasn’t mentioned in Friday’s release.
The Demons have appointed Goodwin’s old Adelaide teammate and experienced assistant coach Nathan Bassett to oversee their backline and team defence.
Former Melbourne skipper Nathan Jones returns to work as midfield coach alongside Sam Radford, while Troy Chaplin will switch to forward line coach.
The appointments follow forward coach Greg Stafford’s departure and former senior assistant Andrew McQualter landing the West Coast senior coach role.
The review found Melbourne needed to “refine our method of play” and empower their players in their high-performance model, with the Demons engaging an external leadership expert to implement a club-wide program.
Former All Blacks manager Darren Shand, involved in the review, will mentor the club’s leaders.
Christian Petracca. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
Green admitted 2024 was difficult on multiple fronts.
“We faced some big challenges, and we recognise that certain off-field issues caused disruptions,” he said.
“We admit that some situations could have been managed better, and we’re committed to learning from these experiences to handle the inevitable challenges more effectively in the future.”
Chief executive Gary Pert is resigning at year’s end, while former player Steven Smith will nominate for the club board and is potentially their next president.
A year ago Pert made the extraordinary claim that the club’s culture was the best he had seen in 40 years as a player and football administrator.
But some of the Dees’ problems have been due to simple rotten luck.
Much-loved player Angus Brayshaw retired because of concussion issues, while Petracca’s season was ended by his horror injuries in the King’s Birthday loss to Collingwood.
Petracca subsequently weighed up his options before the August 31 announcement that he was staying for next season.
© AAP
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