Melbourne captain Max Gown has forcefully denied there is a drug culture at the Devils despite claims that suspended teammate Joel Smith sent text messages to players offering them loads of cocaine.
Gown said illicit drug use was a community-wide problem and he was not aware of Smith's behavior or widespread drug use within the club, after new allegations against the Melbourne striker were revealed amid the ongoing Sports Integrity Australia investigation.
The captain's call came after Melbourne legend Gary Lyon declared his club would be “negligent” if they did not “dig deeper” into players' activities after Smith's initial positive test for cocaine was confirmed last October.
In his reaction on Wednesday, Gowon said he had not read the details of SIA's allegations as he had repeatedly denied there was a culture of illicit drug use at the club.
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon also backed Melbourne to continue to manage its off-field issues as he said the league's illicit drugs policy was “under review”.
Gown said Smith's claims that Smith was trafficking cocaine were “absolutely shocking” but said the attacker would continue to have his support as the SIA investigation continued.
“I think you'd respect that there's an investigation. I haven't read a lot of it to be fair… but it's obviously very shocking,” Gown said.
“I haven't spoken to (Smith) since 7pm last night – to be fair, 7pm in my house is pretty tough,” Gown said.
“So I will talk to him on Wednesday.”
Gown was firm on the lack of widespread illicit drug use at the Devils, defending chief executive Gary Burt's off-season comments that the club had its best culture.
Never before during his time in football.
“All I can say is that I underwent drug tests for 16 years, and I underwent hair tests for 10 years,” Gawn said. “In those 10 years I was never told that our club had a drug culture.”
“Yes, if the investigation proves to be correct, there is a player taking illegal drugs, but we are naive to think that this does not happen in society… I understand that we are a high-performance industry and we will do it zero love, but until I am told that we have a problem or I can Seeing the problem with my own eyes, I can't help but stay away from face value.
“I like to think I've got a good understanding of our group. I'm incredibly optimistic that we have the right culture. We're always working on that.
“I'm not hiding, there are issues and we have to make sure we do it right.”
Gown said the Devils, who have been on a three-day break, would likely discuss the allegations against Smith internally if club leadership decided it was necessary.
“We are professional footballers and we have to get away from that, but I also realize there is a societal problem,” Gawn said.
“Maybe in my time, 45 players (on the roster), we'll never get to zero, and hopefully we will, and hopefully the NFL will get to zero and there's nobody.
“Right now, this is just speculation, and I'm just there to support Joel… He's still a friend, he could be a teammate, who knows.”
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon said there was no reason for the league to intervene in Melbourne as he supported the club to deal with the issue itself.
“There were issues during the off-season, but I think they have great leadership,” Dillon said. “They have things to work on, but they are a very experienced club led by an experienced CEO and a great leader.”
“Illicit drug use is a community issue, and we are not ashamed of it. We will continue to educate, and I believe we were one of the first sports in the country to have an illicit drug policy, and there have been many players over the course of almost 20 years who have changed their behaviors because of it.” .
“It is currently under review, and we will continue to ensure that our illicit drugs policy is at the forefront based on the best medical and welfare advice available to us.”
Former Melbourne captain Lyon said the human trafficking allegations seemed extreme, but the Devils should also have explored all possible links when the issue first came to light last October.
“If they don't know it, they'll be negligent. If they don't delve into their environment, they'll be negligent.”
“I don't think Joel Smith is a drug trafficker. By that definition, anyone who indulges in drug use, if you share it, you're a trafficker.”
“But with Joel having an understanding, that's on him. That's all on him.
“As we deal with it, that responsibility falls to Joel.”
Originally published as Melbourne captain Max Gown insists there is no drug culture at his club
