Mathew Stokes's AFL career is on hold for at least the next three months as the Geelong forward faces his cocaine charges.
Geelong announced a range of club penalties for the 25-year-old yesterday, including suspension until round eight of the regular season, a $5000 fine and the demand that he finds full-time work until round four.
He is due to face court again on March12 after being charged last Wednesday with possession and trafficking of cocaine.
Under the World Anti-Doping Agency Code, Stokes could face a lifetime AFL ban if found guilty of trafficking.
The Cats stood Stokes down on Wednesday after he was freed on bail.
A day later, the Cats' leadership group met with Stokes and then decided on their own penalties, which the club and the AFL have endorsed.
Apart from the $5000 fine, the Cats have also:
suspended Stokes until round eight, allowing him to train at the club until round one only when no other players are there;
ruled Stokes can only train with Geelong's VFL-listed players from rounds one to four;
decided Stokes is eligible to play in the VFL from rounds five to seven;
made it clear Stokes must find full-time employment and train only outside of working hours until round four.
ordered him to help a drug-related community program.
The club said in a statement, ''These sanctions do not speak to Mathew Stokes guilt or innocence on the charges issued by the Victoria Police on Wednesday, and will stand regardless of the outcome of those charges.
''The penalty does not take into account any possible action under the [WADA] anti-doping code, as the club does not have jurisdiction in this area.''
The AFL has endorsed Stokes's club-imposed penalties.
The Cats suspended forward Steve Johnson in 2007 for the first five weeks of the regular season because of off-field misbehaviour.
Johnson responded brilliantly, making the All-Australian teams in 2007-08 and winning the Norm Smith Medal as best afield in the Cats' 2007 grand final win.
Anderson strongly defended the league's education about illicit drugs earlier, saying players had no excuses if they misbehaved.
He added the illicit drugs policy had achieved a significant reduction in positive tests.
''What the education and the illicit drugs policy has done over the last four years has seen the number of positive tests drop below 1per cent in the AFL competition for the first time,'' Anderson said.
In other news, the Cats announced pioneering football administrator and corporate lawyer Diana Taylor would join their board.
Meanwhile, the Western Bulldogs-Brisbane game in Canberra on Sunday is likely to be Brendan Fevola's debut as a Lion.
The pre-season will also feature a challenge match on February27 at Yea in country Victoria, which will also support the areas devastated by last year's Black Saturday bushfires.
The match will be between the losers of the Geelong-North Melbourne and Hawthorn-Richmond NAB Cup round-one games.
AAP
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