RICHMOND midfielder Ben Cousins has been released from Epworth Hospital after undergoing further tests for his gastric inflammation as the club was forced to deny claims it has had to caution him about binge drinking.

A statement from Richmond said the results of the medical tests may not be known for several days and Cousins was expected to resume training within a week.

The Tigers also refuted a claim in an article in The Age on Tuesday that Cousins had been drinking so heavily that the club had to intervene several times last year.

“In response to media speculation raised today, the Richmond Football Club confirms that Ben Cousins has never been spoken to individually with regards to binge drinking,” the statement said.

“The club is extremely proactive in educating players around what is considered responsible and appropriate behaviour, and all players, as part of their development, are involved in regular education sessions.

The 31-year-old had spent last Thursday night in hospital with a gastric infection and was released the following day.

But after making no progress after the weekend, Cousins was readmitted to hospital on Monday for further tests.

The latest setback could risk Cousins’ chances of being available for Richmond’s round one clash with Carlton which is only 10 days away.

Cousins missed Richmond’s NAB Challenge match against Essendon last Saturday and was rested for the NAB Cup loss to Hawthorn three weeks ago as well as the NAB Challenge loss to Collingwood.

He did appear in the Tigers’ NAB Challenge win over Geelong in the second week of the pre-season competition.

Last year the former Eagle suffered a serious hamstring injury in round one, his first game with his new club, but he returned to play 15 matches for the year, finishing fifth in the club’s best and fairest.

Ben Cousins is a $352,100 midfielder in the Toyota AFL Dream Team competition