Updated June 26, 2019 18:47:35

Photo: Former AFL coach Mark Thompson told the court he was in a "bad place" after he left football. (AAP: Joe Castro)

Former AFL coach Mark "Bomber" Thompson has told a court he took drugs to mask the pain of leaving football — including ice — but says he was not a dealer.

Thompson, 55, faced the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, charged with possession and trafficking of illicit drugs, allegedly found in his Port Melbourne home during a police raid in 2018.

"I'm a drug-taker. But I never had any intention of selling drugs. End of story," Thompson told the court.

But the police prosecutor told the court the amount of drugs found in his house was too large for that to be true.

They found 481 MDA pills in a locked room — 11 times the minimum in order to be charged for trafficking.

They also found 33 grams of methylamphetamine, commonly known as ice, which is 11 times the threshold for dealing.

He said he had spent up to 12 hours a day alone trading cryptocurrency after leaving the AFL "in a bad way" following the Essendon supplements scandal.

Thompson had stepped in as head coach after James Hird was hit with a 12-month suspension for his role in the club's supplements program, which saw players use a banned substance.

Thompson left the club after it decided to remain with Hird following the end of his suspension.

He said he now "hates the game" and took drugs to "mask the pain".

Thompson told the court he was in a "bad place" after he left football and was lonely and gullible when he allowed convicted drug trafficker Thomas Windsor to move into his home in December 2017.

"I was home, had a knock at my door and I opened it. He [Windsor] was looking for a friend of a girl I knew," Thompson said.

"I was happy to talk to someone."

He said Windsor took over the property and would become "scary" when he was angry.

"He was tougher than me," Mr Thompson said.

"He was a pretty scary bloke. I was in a spot."

Thompson's defence team said the drugs were owned by Thomas Windsor, a convicted drug trafficker, who was living with him at the time.

An obsession with cryptocurrency

When asked about the four ice pipes which were allegedly found at his home, Thompson told the court: "Some were his, some were mine".

But he said he never had any intention of seeking drugs.

"It was a difficult time, I left work [coaching] in a bad way," he said.

"I took drugs to mask the pain."

He said he also developed an obsession with cryptocurrency, amassing up to $4 million worth.

"In 2017 I found cryptocurrency. It was really what I was looking for," he told the court.

"It was intense. I was under pressure. I did it 12 hours a day by myself."

The court was also told Thompson had several million dollars in a bank account, with his defence team saying he had no reason to get involved in dealing drugs for financial gain.

Earlier in the day, a forensic scientist said Thompson's DNA was found on clear plastic bags in the police raid.

Thompson told the court he did use the bags to store his drugs.

He was supported in court by his family.

The case has been adjourned until July 11.

Topics: law-crime-and-justice, drugs-and-substance-abuse, sport, australian-football-league, port-melbourne-3207, vic, melbourne-3000

First posted June 26, 2019 14:57:39