AFL STARS ON DRUGS

ECSTASY, speed and marijuana are frequently used by AFL footballers,
according to retired Sydney Swan Dale Lewis.

Lewis said he was aware of former teammates and high-profile opponents who
ran the gauntlet of the league's drug-testing procedures.

And he understood there to be a "medical underground" that enabled players
to use undetectable masking agents to beat the drug testers.

Lewis's revelations yesterday will rock the AFL which will soon release a
report that it carried out 600 drug tests in 2002 for no positive results.

He said he knew of former Sydney teammates who were "s....... themselves"
when ASDA staff arrived at the Swans.

The former Swans utility said high-profile players were often tested,
leaving the lesser names, in a sense, to run the risk.

"They were thinking, 'they won't pick me, I'm too much of a small fish to
worry about.' But I know of guys who panicked. You don't hear about it at
the time, but later on . . . they were s....... themselves," Lewis said.
Lewis, who retired last season after 182 games, said speed and ecstasy
pills were commonly available in bars and nightclubs.

"If you ask each player on list at a league club, a minority (would say)
they haven't done drugs of any description at all," Lewis said.

"Out of 40 guys, if there wasn't 75 per cent who haven't done some sort of
recreational drug, I'd (give it away)."

Most disturbing to the AFL would be Lewis's assertion that drug users are
beating the testing procedure carried out by the Australian Sports Drug
Agency by underworld drug education.

"There's an inner sanctum happening," Lewis said. "There'd have to be
because if you were going to be a habitual user or do anything with drugs,
it would be in your best interests to know certain things about the length
of time it's in your system and ways of getting around it."

Lewis said star footballers were often caught up in an environment of high
society - surrounded by "beautiful people" - which led them to believe
their standing in life was above the average person.

"Beautiful people take drugs and our guys say: 'Hang on, I want to be a
beautiful person, I'm a footy star,' and all of a sudden they get caught up
with what they're doing," Lewis said.

Lewis is adamant more drug education is needed. He spoke out yesterday so
young players might learn before it's too late.

"They're on $300,000 and for the sake of dropping one tablet, it could be
the end of you," he warned.