Cousins has certainly had his share of ups and downs, and as I watched him eloquently thank friends, family and fellow players, a reminder of just how bitter a blight drugs can be in our society came into sharp focus. Cousins all but had his professional and personal life destroyed. That he managed to salvage it to the standard that he has is cause for celebration.
It's a shame that so many (particularly Eastern States-based) football pundits saw fit to pile their contempt upon a player and a club for what is unquestionably a medical condition. That poor choices play their role in the creation of addiction is both true and simplistic, as poor choices can lead to cancer, diabetes and, come to think of it, knee reconstructions. And to reduce the complexity of psychology and personal experience to "poor choices" is painfully simplistic. Whether or not the West Coast Eagles ought to have done better in assisting Cousins is another matter, and hardly one for which Cousins himself needs to be held to account.
Cousins' on-field courage was staggering, and he deserves to be remembered as a great player. That his personal life is not blemish free hardly sets him apart from his peers. They say in life that we fall to climb. Cousins certainly did that. The challenges of remaining free of his addiction without the support network of the game he loves is likely to be stark, but he deserves nothing less than our very best wishes.
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