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Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/can-cousins-stay-off-it-this-mad-monday/ It’s the wild day of the AFL calendar – Mad Monday – and there’s a BEN-DER alert on those party animals, the Tigers. After Richmond farewelled Ben Cousins yesterday, the players will pump up the celebrations on Mad Monday. It was a brave last AFL game for Cousins, who racked up 21 touches while playing with a bung hamstring. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/can-cousins-stay-off-it-this-mad-monday/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/can-cousins-stay-off-it-this-mad-monday/#item3926 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-next-cousins-instalment-better-include-some-remorse/ “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-next-cousins-instalment-better-include-some-remorse/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-next-cousins-instalment-better-include-some-remorse/#item3907 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/drug-troubled-cousins-quits-footy-at-the-right-time/ The chapter has ended. The super-cut frame of Richmond star Ben Cousins won’t grace the AFL’s gladiatorial arena ever again. The recovering drug addict will announce his retirement at 10.15am today. It’s a wise move, as Cousins has fought his demons for two years since returning to the AFL as a Tiger. As an Eagle, Cousins was invincible. A Brownlow medallist. A West Coast premiership captain. He had looks and a body to die for. Confidence – even a smug arrogance. But as a confessed sufferer of an “addictive personality”, Cousins would always battle long-term after his comeback. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/drug-troubled-cousins-quits-footy-at-the-right-time/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/drug-troubled-cousins-quits-footy-at-the-right-time/#item3818 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-should-steer-clear-of-pills-even-legal-ones/ Even if you take the Richmond Football Club’s explanation at face value, the troubled Ben Cousins’ latest flirtation with disaster proves that he still uses substances as a crutch. And he probably always will. Following a profile on Cousins in GQ last year, I wrote that he was still in the grip of his addiction and despite all the hype about his new clean image. He offered a throwaway remark in the interview that he could still “have a few beers” and had learned to “drink differently.” Rubbish. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-should-steer-clear-of-pills-even-legal-ones/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-should-steer-clear-of-pills-even-legal-ones/#item3484 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-footy-club-is-the-worst-possible-place-for-cousins/ Our national enthusiasm for deifying and excusing flawed sports stars was demonstrated again this week with Ben Cousins being afforded hero status for manfully accepting a one-week ban over his role in a fracas with a group of Richmond teammates at a Sydney hotel last weekend. The discussion surrounding the incident – in which Cousins’ role was very limited and, up to a point, defensible – reveals a major problem with the way this troubled footballing champion’s battle with drugs and alcohol is being addressed. It is this – the people who are ostensibly supporting Cousins still seem more worried about keeping him on the park, than keeping him away from the very environment which could drag him back into the world of drug abuse. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-footy-club-is-the-worst-possible-place-for-cousins/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-footy-club-is-the-worst-possible-place-for-cousins/#item2840 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/malthouse-and-cousins-a-tale-of-two-confused-clubs/ The AFL and its clubs have had no shortage of moral minefields to tip-toe through this year. From nude photos to boozy cruises to rape charges to senior coaches abusing opposition players to drug trafficking charges, the league has run the gamut of off-field issues. Or, as I like to think of it, they’re a Christmas Day scuffle away from earning their Charlie Sheen Badge. Two incidents have dominated the airways over the past five days: The tete-a-tete between Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse and St Kilda’s Steven Milne  and Richmond’s late-night hotel ruckus . feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/malthouse-and-cousins-a-tale-of-two-confused-clubs/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/malthouse-and-cousins-a-tale-of-two-confused-clubs/#item2832 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-needs-a-real-friend/ BEN Cousins still drinks. I discovered this in Fred Pawle’s excellent piece on the AFL’s favourite recreational drug user in this month’s GQ magazine. I also learned that the Louis Vuitton drawstring (tracksuit) pants he wore in the photo shoot cost $1460, but I won’t get into that except to say footballers have changed. It would not be such a revelation that Cousins still enjoys the odd beer had he not spent the slabs of his career heading out for a quiet drink after the game, only to emerge four days later on the front of The West Australian in the same jeans, white thongs and Elwood t-shirt. In his final season at West Coast, he was spending more time with bikies than at training. We’ve been led to believe Cousins’ transformation from druggie to role model is complete, but Pawle’s article proves he has a long way to go. When asked if he still has a drink, Cousins’ reply was sheepish. “Yeah…I have to be careful with that sort of stuff,” he said. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-needs-a-real-friend/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/ben-cousins-needs-a-real-friend/#item1110 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/and-now-a-trick-i-learned-from-my-grandmother/ At last, a breath of fresh air from a footballer - and Ben Cousins, of all people. He flashed his middle finger to a dressing-room camera before the Richmond-Fremantle game in Perth at the weekend (video below). The Tigers won by three points. Cousins went on to issue a pro-forma apology at the urging of his club, saying he didn’t “mean to offend anyone and I apologise if my actions have caused offence”. The tone in there is like a po-faced seven-year-old apologising under pain of not getting any more lollies at a party. Today, in this piece, we meet the man: feedback@thepunch.com.au (Antony McMullen) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/and-now-a-trick-i-learned-from-my-grandmother/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/and-now-a-trick-i-learned-from-my-grandmother/#item180 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:12 +0000 “Ben Cousins makes me want to take ice,” was the declaration of one punter into the twitterverse. Others commented that if coke helped you get a body that ripped, it was time to get snorting. Cousins said in the introduction of his doco Such is Life that he wanted to “send a powerful message to young people, for that matter all people, about the way drugs affect your life”.