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Ben Cousins In Hospital After Attempting To Direct Highway Traffic

The latest sad incident for a fallen star.
It's the latest in a long line of troubling incidents.
Getty Images
It's the latest in a long line of troubling incidents.

Ben Cousins, the former West Coast Eagles star who has experienced ongoing substance abuse issues, has been taken to hospital after behaving erratically incident on a Perth highway.

Cousins, 37, was taken to hospital in an ambulance around 7.25pm on Sunday after he was said to have been attempting to direct traffic on Perth's Canning Bridge in the suburb of Como. Seven News Perth reported that he was in the middle of the highway trying to direct traffic.

Cousins also reportedly tried to jump on the back of a motorcycle, almost causing the rider to lose control.

"He looked like a bit of a mess. His jeans were riding really low and he was running and sweating heaps," a witness told Seven News Perth.

Cousins was reportedly in the company of several window washers near the Canning Bridge for hours before he ran into traffic.

"We could not understand him so we were like, 'We can't understand you, mate... you're causing us bad business'," one witness said. "He was really lost, confused, making no sense at all."

Police reportedly chased Cousins into bushland before taking him to Fiona Stanley Hospital.

Cousins won a Brownlow Medal in 2005 and a premiership with the West Coast Eagles in 2006. His footballing peak signalled his personal slide. The Eagles suspended him in march 2007 for substance abuse problems. He went to a rehab facility in America and returned to football in June.

Cousins in 2012 after drugs charges. The last few years have all been a bit of a blur.
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Cousins in 2012 after drugs charges. The last few years have all been a bit of a blur.

But after the end of the season, Cousins was arrested for drug possession and refusing to submit to a blood test. He was banned from the AFL for a year. Cousins would get a second chance with Richmond in 2008 but his problems continued to haunt him. The last match of his celebrated 270 game career was in 2010.

Cousins has since had numerous run-ins with authorities. He was arrested three times in 2015 for driving offences and has reportedly spent time in mental health facilities.

WA Police are yet to issue a statement regarding the latest incident.

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