Despite serving a suspension over drug use, Bulldogs star Bailey Smith is set to sign a blockbuster contract extension after returning to training on Wednesday morning.
Smith is serving a two-match from the AFL after photos and videos emerged last week of him snorting a white powder – and the star midfielder subsequently admitted to illicit drug use in an interview with the league.
The AFL also gave Smith a ‘strike’ under the league’s illicit drug policy.
He was already serving a two-match suspension for headbutting Geelong defender Zach Tuohy in a spiteful round 12 clash.
Troubled AFL star Bailey Smith returns to training with the Bulldogs during his two-game drugs ban as the club looks to secure an extension of the poster boy’s contract
Neither incident has appeared to damage his chances of signing a big extension, with Smith out of contract at the end of the season.
Bulldogs CEO Ameet Bains said the club was in ‘promising’ discussions with Smith’s manager, Paul Connors.
‘We don’t think it should have too much impact,’ he told 3AW’s Sportsday about the midfielder’s drug ban.
We had made a fair bit of progress with his manager, Paul Connors, in the last two to three weeks, so hopefully that momentum can keep going.’
Bains was also keen to point out that the white powder incident was not a recent event, and he was confident Smith had learned, and would grow, from the experience.
‘The important part is … the incident was from last year. While the club didn’t have any knowledge of any vision being in existence until it came to our attention last weekend, that period that Bailey was dealing with late last year that led to the poor decision-making was something we knew about and dealt with at the time,’ he said.
‘To his credit, he’s put a lot of things in place over the last six to eight months to deal with that, and his on-field performance has reflected that.’
Smith looked as fit as ever on the training track with his Bulldogs teammates on Wednesday morning, and will hope to return to his scintillating 2022 form when the Bulldogs take on St Kilda on July 15.
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