Ben Cousins was cautiously sorry. He was blandly sorry. He was formally sorry. Cousins was as sorry as he had to be. He might even have been as sorry as he could be. On videotape, it was hard to say.

He has the benefit of the doubt. He needs plenty of that. He made the effort to make the apology; we, the football community, must make the effort to accept it. That is grace.

And yet, it is impossible not to think that something was missing. He admitted to "substance use", not abuse, let alone drugs. Perhaps, legally, this was how it had to be.

He wore an oh-so-casual T-shirt, without a collar, or for that matter, a neckline. Of course, this does not really matter.

And yet he spoke, in not quite so many words, of the need to regain respect. This videotape was watched by many more people he does not know than people he does. Inevitably, they will have watched for style as well as substance. Presumably, plenty of professional thought went into this presentation, which makes the choice of wardrobe all the more puzzling.

The T-shirt seemed to say: "I'm sorry, but only about the 'substance use'."

Cousins apologised to "West Coast, sponsors, the AFL and the community", in that order. It came across as legally sorry, contractually sorry. It was.

He said he did not know when he would play again, that his priority was "my health, my life and my standing". From another, in another tone, this might have come across as self-pity. From Cousins, it did not. He wasn't even convincingly sorry for himself.

So be it. It is difficult for any, except one trained in television craft, to appear to be himself in this medium. We can easily understand why he chose it. Just because this was the first opportunity for a media grilling does not mean that it was the right time. His wellbeing must come first.

Seen in a harsh light, and television is that, Cousins' apology was the sort that meant sorry to have been caught. Sorry to have to do this. In the circumstances, perhaps it was the only sort of sorry that could have been expected.

In the end, it didn't matter, except that it was made. The real reparation to the football community begins now and will take years. If nothing other than words get caught in his throat henceforth, hallelujah.

For now, it can only be said that yesterday, Cousins was probably as sorry as he could be.