Australian Football League club CEO's met Tuesday night to form a united tactical position ahead of Wednesday's league summit on the "three-strike illicit drug policy," according to Patrick Smith of THE AUSTRALIAN. It was believed the meeting was required because the Aussie rules football clubs "hold a variance of views on the eve of the day-long review of a drug policy that increasingly draws heavy criticism." The meeting was believed to have been called by Essendon CEO Ian Robson and had the support of Collingwood CEO Gary Pert, who initially argued before Christmas that the illicit drug issue in football was "out of control and only a united club and AFL action could effectively confront the growing problem." Several CEO's said that they had held "little hope the clubs could settle on one position on the night because of the complexity of illegal drug use and some chief executives would be loath to take a stand before it could be reviewed by their boards." Sticking points "were believed to be two or three strikes," and how early club execs should be informed one of their players had tested positive (THE AUSTRALIAN, 1/30).
