I can't take that line Shane. How does a young guy in a club make their decision? They talk to the people around them. They watch the actions of the people around them. They weigh that up against what they already know, and what they've been told. And then they decide. It is not a very rational process.
So sure you've had the lecture, but when the club hierarchy say its ok, and almost all of the players go along with it, you are unlikely to be brave enough to say no. This is completely and utterly different to seeking out performance enhancing drugs on your own, knowing that other players and the club hierarchy are firmly against what you are doing. Of course the penalty has to be similar, because otherwise the standard defence at a druggy club would be, "The coach told me I had to have the needles, and all the other players were too, so I did". Even if that is exactly what happened, it can't be a defence. But if it is what happened, then I'm all for players suing the club. Especially because its Essendon.