Bailey Smith ‘white powder’ picture under investigation by Western Bulldogs, AFL
The AFL is investigating social media pictures and video which prompted Western Bulldogs star Bailey Smith to apologise for “spiralling out of control”.
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Western Bulldogs star Bailey Smith has apologised for being caught with illicit substances late last year, saying his behaviour “spiralled out of control” in the weeks after the 2021 Grand Final loss to Melbourne.
Smith’s admission comes as a video and photos emerged on Saturday of the midfielder appearing to sniff an unknown white powder.
The video, from late last year, came before Smith chose to step away from football for mental health reasons in mid-December.
The video – separate to the image of Bailey holding a bag with white powder – shows the Bulldogs star with a woman who says, “I need a straw’.
Moments later the Bulldogs star leans over and appears to sniff something, then wipes his nose.
Smith said his mental health spiralled after the Grand Final and he was “ashamed” of his behaviour.
But he has vowed to learn from his mistakes as he looks to rebuild the image that has made him the most marketable player in the game.
“I have recently been made aware of the presence of social media content that shows me with an illicit substance,” Smith said in a statement.
“I am determined to learn from the lessons of my past and be a better person in the future.
“After much reflection, I am now in a position to confess to indulging in behaviours in late 2021 of which I am deeply ashamed.
“I do not have an excuse for those behaviours, however the state of my mental health over that period post Grand Final dramatically deteriorated, and I spiralled out of control leading to poor decision making and actions at the time.
“All of this resulted in the leave I took from football at the commencement of pre-season training late last year.”
Smith is under investigation by the AFL’s Integrity Unit and the Bulldogs, with an outcome of that investigation yet to be determined.
The AFL will interview Smith early next week, with the league’s Integrity Unit to investigate the context of the video and photos.
League officials spoke with Smith and his management team on Saturday.
The AFL said in a statement that “AFL Players are well-educated when it comes to the harms associated with the use of illicit substances, and have a responsibility to themselves, their clubs and their professional careers to uphold community expectations”.
“The AFL will interview Smith in the coming days in relation to the emergence of the content on social media and the context surrounding it. An outcome of that investigation will be communicated in due course.”
Smith faces the prospect of having an illicit drugs strike to his name and a ban of up to four weeks.
He is out of contract at the end of the season, with the Bulldogs keen to lock him into a long-term deal.
The Western Bulldogs said they were “extremely disappointed to have observed social media content showing Bailey Smith with an illicit substance”.
Bulldogs chief executive Ameet Bains said the content was captured after the 2021 AFL season, while the players were on personal leave.
“We absolutely do not condone our players being involved with illicit substances and firmly believe players are well-educated on what constitutes appropriate behaviour,” Bains said.
“While this clearly does not excuse his behaviour, it is our responsibility as a club to ensure we have supported, and we continue to support, Bailey’s health and wellbeing.
“We are encouraged that this year, Bailey has successfully put steps in place to ensure he can manage his mental health and be strong in his decision-making, while being able to perform to the best of his ability on the field.
“This has been reflected in his strong on-field performances across the 2022 AFL season.”
After the 2021 Grand Final loss there had been concerns about Smith’s partying and behaviour.
The AFLPA said Smith had “owned” his mistake and had put steps in place to “learn from it and grow as a person as a result of it.”
“The AFL environment is high pressure and high profile, and Bailey has previously shared his battles with mental health,” the AFLPA statement said.
“When issues such as this arise, there are typically two alternative approaches people think should be taken.
“Condemn, sanction and shame the player involved, or support, educate and try to use the issue as an opportunity for growth.
“The AFLPA will support Bailey through this time, and we are confident the Western Bulldogs will do likewise.”
Insiders said the errant off-field behaviour ended when Smith took time out from the game for mental health reasons late last year.
Since then, they say there has been no issues with his off-field activities, which has reflected in his career-best form as he works towards a bumper new contract at the end of the season.
It is understood he has been “in a great space” off the field this year before the bombshell video and photos emerged on Saturday.
WATCH: SHOCK NEW SMITH VIDEO EMERGES
Western Bulldogs star midfielder Bailey Smith has been caught appearing to sniff an unknown substance in a shock partying video.
The video, separate to the image of Bailey holding a bag with white powder — shows the Bulldogs star with a woman who says, “I need a straw’.
Just moments later the Bulldogs star leans over, appears to sniff something and then wipes his nose.
It is understood the video was taken late last year, weeks after the Bulldogs lost the 2021 Grand Final to Melbourne in Perth.
WATCH THE VIDEO IN THE PLAYER ABOVE
After that loss there had been concerns about Smith’s partying and behaviour.
Insiders said the errant off-field behaviour ended when Smith took time out from the game for mental health reasons late last year.
Since then, they say there has been no issues with his off-field activities, which has reflected in his career-best form as he works towards a bumper new contract at the end of the season.
It is understood he has been “in a great space” off the field this year since his time out of the game.
BULLDOGS INVESTIGATING SMITH ‘WHITE POWDER’ PICTURES
Pictures that appear to be of Western Bulldogs star Bailey Smith holding a bag containing a white substance have emerged on social media in the latest controversy to hit the AFL.
The images surfaced on Saturday morning.
In the images Smith is NOT shown taking the powder. The images have been widely distributed online.
The Sunday Herald Sun does not know what the substance is or the context of the photos.
When contacted on Saturday morning the club released the following statement: “The Western Bulldogs are aware of images of Bailey Smith circulating on social media.
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“The Club is investigating the legitimacy of these images and is not in a position to comment further at this time.”
Triple premiership skipper Luke Hodge urged the Bulldogs to closely monitor Smith’s welfare in the wake of the probe into the photos.
Hodge said on SEN: “What the Doggies have to do is make sure this kid is OK because he is going to be rock bottom right now.”
“There will be out there saying yeah so he should be and fair enough in that opinion, but the most important thing for the next few weeks or few months while he is trying to improve or make up for any mistake he might have done, he is going to be rock bottom.
“It is a big job for his friends and his family and the Western Bulldogs and they need to look after him.”
Shane Mumford was suspended for two games and fined $25,000 in 2018 after a photo of him from 2015 snorting white powder off a table was revealed.
Former Crows Brad Crouch - now with St Kilda - and Tyson Stengle - now with Geelong - were banned for two and four games respectively for “conducting unbecoming” after they were found to be in possession of an illicit substance in 2020.
Under the AFL’s illicit drugs policy, players including Crouch and Mumford, who have confessed to drug use, are handed a strike under the code.
A video has emerged of Bailey Smith partying in a nightclub tapping his nose with his index finger after the 2021 grand final.
He is not shown taking any substances in the video, which was posted by a TikTok user in October and captioned: “Best night of my life”.
In a separate video posted by Bailey Smith on his personal TikTok account last week, he is captured partying with his shirt off.
In the video, he’s showing off his tattoos, before the person filming jokingly puts their hands to his throat and calls him “daddy”.
The Bulldogs have the bye this weekend and Smith is currently serving a two-match suspension for headbutting Geelong’s Zach Tuohy.
The brilliant young out-of-contract superstar has been one of football’s most dominant players this season as he works towards a new deal that could be worth up to $800,000 a season.
Smith has been acclaimed for his openness in dealing with mental health issues which saw him take time away from the game during the last off-season.
The AFL is aware of the existence of the photos as they seek clarification.
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