A series of text messages between Stephen Dank and compounding chemist Nima Alavi in 2012 suggested experimenting on players with a racehorse drug, the AFL's anti-doping tribunal was reportedly told last Tuesday.

The head of the tribunal, David Jones, reportedly told the hearing that Essendon "swallowed" Dank's supplements program in a bid to be more successful and gain a "competitive advantage", according to a transcript obtained by News Limited.

The tribunal heard about a test message exchange between Stephen Dank and Nima Alavi. Credit:Getty Images

The tribunal had met to deliberate on a penalty for Dank, the man at the centre of the Bombers' 2012 supplements program who was found guilty of 10 breaches of the AFL's anti-doping code.

The text message exchange reportedly occurred on August 5, 2012.