HAWTHORN president Jeff Kennett has called on the media to leave Ben Cousins alone, saying the attention on him would hamper his rehabilitation and was threatening to overshadow the AFL season.

Speaking before Sunday's game against the Western Bulldogs at the MCG, Kennett said the welfare of the West Coast star, who has just returned from drug rehabilitation in the United States, was more important than when or whether he was allowed to play again.

The Hawthorn boss also expressed concern about the AFL's policies about players' off-field behaviour, saying clubs and players were left in the dark about what standards were required.

"I'm beginning to think that the football season is becoming a little bit of a sideshow to the issues surrounding Ben Cousins, certainly the commentary associated with that and drugs generally," Kennett said.

"So much of the discussions are about whether Ben Cousins should be allowed to play or not or when he should be allowed to play or not.

"There's been very little discussion about what is in the best interests of the individual in terms of overcoming the challenges he's got."

Kennett, who is also chairman of national depression initiative beyondblue, said Cousins needed privacy to cope with a difficult situation.

"It's up to the club and the family of the individual to decide when that person is fit and has recovered enough to be able to think again about taking up his career," he said.

"He should not be pursued by the media."

Kennett said clubs did not know where they stood on the issue of the AFL's official player behaviour policy.

"The relationship between the AFL and the clubs would be better if the AFL had as a bottom line that issues of policy should first be cleared with the clubs," he said.

"It's not much point we as presidents ... simply reading what the AFL is thinking and what they're likely to do ... it doesn't give us in the clubs confidence of what may be happening and it certainly makes it confusing for the players.

"Whether it's on drug policy or now whether it's on behaviour, these are issues that should be resolved between the AFL and the presidents so that we can come to an agreement, so we know what the standards are.

"I don't know the basis of the standards that they're expecting of a club and how therefore any penalty can be rendered."