MELBOURNE believes Daniel Ward’s naming, shaming and fining for breaking the AFL betting code could be the catalyst for him to shake his gambling addiction.

Ward was one of four players sanctioned by the AFL on Thursday for breaches of its anti-gambling rules.

The Demons defender was fined $10,000, half of which was suspended to be invoked should he re-offend.

Ward was already receiving help for a gambling problem, with the Demons saying no further action would be taken against him by the club.

Melbourne chief executive Steve Harris said Ward hoped the storm of publicity following the gambling revelations would act as a “circuit-breaker” to him beating his addiction.

“He's genuinely confronting the issue and he has been for the past couple of months,” Harris said.

“He sees this as an opportunity to say ‘I have to deal with this once and for all’.

“The publicity, the odium, the fine, the suspended penalty, the risk his career might be over if he transgresses again is enough to put pressure on him to say ‘if I don’t break this now, I’ll never break it’.

“I think he’s been well and truly punished enough.

“This is an issue which is going to stay with him for the rest of his life in terms of stigma.”

It is understood Ward had already been having professional counselling through the AFL Players' Association.

Harris said the AFL’s threat of suspension for players who breach its gambling code in the future would not eradicate the problem completely, but would act as a deterrent.

“I don't think any penalty will get rid of any crime,” Harris said.

“People have weaknesses, they have re-lapses.

“But clearly footballers like to play football. The worst thing they fear is not being able to play a game.

“So the notion that it might have been 12 or 10 or eight weeks’ suspension will focus people’s minds on it.”