
At the peak of his career, Ben Cousins was considered to be one of the greatest players to ever wear the West Coast jersey.
The Brownlow Medal winner, who was also a six-time All Australian, played 238 games for the West Coast Eagles.
But in 2007, the now 41-year-old was axed from the AFL team after he was arrested on drug-related charges.
Watch the trailer for Channel Seven’s Ben Cousins: Coming Clean below. Post continues after video.
Now, in his first interview with the media in 10 years, the retired AFL player has opened up about his fall from grace in Channel Seven’s Ben Cousins: Coming Clean.
In the interview, which has since been described by viewers as “uncomfortable” and “appalling”, Cousins opened up about his drug use, expressing remorse for his role in creating a drug culture within the West Coast Eagles club.
“I am sorry, I am remorseful,” he said.
“And the fallout from that has been pretty significant on the club,” he added.
“So, it has taken a while since that time for the club to find itself back in a position like it is today.”
In a surprising admission, Cousins later added that he counts himself as “one of the luckiest people I know”.
When asked if he “almost has it all,” Cousins responded: “Almost, yeah. Enough to know that a lot of good things have happened to me up until this point in my life”.
“It’s important for me to remember and remind myself of that because I am one of the lucky people,” he added.
Few people in the sporting world have fallen from grace as publicly and spectacularly as Ben Cousins. Ten years after a tell-all documentary, the Brownlow medallist has given another raw interview, opening up about his long battle with drugs. @BasilZempilas #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/LbG4IHNYsB
— 7NEWS Melbourne (@7NewsMelbourne) March 29, 2020