A CONCERNED AFL has commissioned an opinion poll to find out the extent of any negative impact the Ben Cousins affair has had upon the game.

The nationwide Roy Morgan poll yesterday began questioning people in every capital city with four specific questions relating to the Cousins drug scandal and whether his downfall has changed the public's attitude towards the game.

With the 28-year-old Brownlow medallist into his second week in a Californian rehabilitation facility — treatment which the 16 clubs learnt yesterday could cost as much as $100,000 — the AFL confirmed it would have a clearer picture in about 10 days as to whether Cousins' plight could have a deeper long-term effect on the game.

The AFL's marketing and communications boss Colin McLeod said the questions relating to Cousins had been formed late last month and would be put to a random sample in all of Australia's capitals over the next seven days.

"We recognise it as an issue and we'd like to work out whether consumers thing it is a serious issue," said McLeod. "It's not as direct as whether or not the Ben Cousins issue will impact on whether you go to the footy or whether you will enrol your child in AusKick.

"We often asked the public about player behaviour, here we are attempting to analyse any consumer psychology relating to Cousins."

While the AFL Commission is next week expected to grant West Coast salary cap relief should it be forced to fund Cousins' rehabilitation costs, The Age understands that the Eagles are still seeking legal advice as to whether it must fully honour Cousins' contract.

The club funded the fares for Cousins and his father Brian and club official Ian Miller to fly to Los Angeles but is understood to have an expectation that a significant amount of the cost of the drug-addicted footballer's treatment will be met by Cousins himself.

AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou was defensive after yesterday's meeting with the 16 clubs regarding the Cousins and Daniel Kerr issues. Most chief executives left the day-long talks in the belief that Kerr would not be charged with bringing the game into disrepute and that the commission would grant the Eagles an exemption from the salary cap regarding Cousins' overseas treatment.

The clubs were told that players who had tested positive in the past to illegal drugs had all had their medical, counselling and other rehabilitation costs exempted from clubs' total player payments.

Carlton chief executive Greg Swann said after yesterday's talks: "It (Cousins' rehabilitation) was raised very briefly, it was discussed, there are a whole lot of things that people have been treated for — depression and all sorts of things.

"Historically they've never been included in TPP calculations so this is something that isn't covered under the rules, so it's an anomaly but obviously something the commission will deal with."

The clubs were told that it was the magnitude of the cost — now estimated at up to $100,000 — that called for the case to go to the game's governing board.

"I don't know what's the recommendation because I sit on the commission," said Demetriou. "The commission meets next Friday and we'll wait and see the outcome."

No decision was reached over the question of the AFL removing power to sanction footballers who committed off-field crimes or misdemeanours from the clubs.

"I think there are some instances where the clubs would like the AFL to step in and there were some others where they don't," said Demetriou. "It was interesting for us to hear the clubs being pretty brutally honest about having some instances where they are compromised and we haven't heard, as a collective, from clubs before."

Of unrest over the AFL's three-strikes rule, Demetriou said: "We'll continue to work collectively over the coming months to look at ways we can improve the current policy."