Karmichael Hunt's wife has revealed she was almost relieved when her husband was arrested following "many years" of out-of-control alcohol and drug binges.
The disgraced footballer, who has played three codes in Australia, was arrested and charged in February with supplying cocaine for himself and others during his time with the Gold Coast Suns in 2014.
He agreed to blow the whistle on drug taking among players in a bombshell statement to the Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission that reportedly named up to 12 others who took drugs at wild post-season parties and team golfing trips.
Hunt's wife Emma said her husband had been partying hard for years and it had taken a huge emotional toll on her.
She said she "wasn't overly surprised" when he was caught.
"It was actually almost a sense of relief for me that it was like, OK, we're here," she told Channel 7 news on Sunday Night. "I just felt like hopefully it was the end of it, you know, the end of a period of many years."
She said she was three weeks away from having their third child, Bodhi, when Hunt's cocaine disgrace became public.
"It was the last thing I needed to hear," she said.
Hunt said his wife had tried to get him to stop his destructive behaviour several times but he ignored her.
He spoke of feeling untouchable after finishing intense footy seasons that included no drinking and strict dieting.
In one of four purchases over a 33-day period, he bought cocaine during the day outside a Domino's Pizza shop in Miami.
"My mind convinced me that I deserved every reward I wanted to give myself," he said. "[Emma] tried many times to get me on the straight and narrow and say, 'look it's not worth it, you could get in trouble'."
However, he denied there was a drug culture at the Gold Coast Suns.
Hunt said he had no choice but to throw his teammates under the bus in his statement to the authorities. He said he spoke to every player that was named and they all understood the position he was in.
"The whole 'ratting on my mates' notion that's out there and dobbing my mates in to save myself was pretty disappinting," he said.
His wife said he was being portrayed as disloyal but he is one of the most loyal people she knows.
"I was compelled to talk, I was compelled to turn up to the [Queensland] CCC and if I didn't the repercussions were pretty serious," he said.
He said his parents and wife had known about his drug taking for a long time and his arrest was probably a relief for them, "[so] I could address all my issues and move forward".
In March, he received a $2500 fine but no conviction from a Queensland court.
