Australia

Former Wanderers star charged with cocaine possession

Former Western Sydney Wanderers and Socceroo star Mitch Nichols has been charged with possession of cocaine at a Sydney nightclub.

Nichols, 28, was allegedly at Casablanca nightclub in Double Bay in the early hours of last Saturday when police conducted a random drug sweep.

Just before 12:30 am police located three small clear resealable plastic bags containing about 1.1 grammes of a white powder, which they believed to be cocaine.

Police confiscated the drugs and issued Nichols with a field court attendance notice for possessing prohibited drug. He is due to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on Friday, 9 June.

Nichols was told last week that his contract at Western Sydney would not be renewed for next season, and the midfielder is believed to want to try his luck in the European leagues.

However, any offense would still be within the jurisdiction of Football Federation Australia once his contract expires at the end of this month.

Under FIFA’s Code of Conduct, Nichols can be suspended immediately at the discretion of the governing body even without having a contract.

A spokesman for the FFA said it took matters such as this very seriously.

“The matter has been referred to the FFA Integrity Department, which has spoken to the club, and will be dealt with under the FFA Code of Conduct,” he said.