PORT Adelaide’s premiership tilt has been devastated with 34 current and former Essendon players including star duo Paddy Ryder and Angus Monfries suspended this season for violating anti-doping codes.

An appeal filed by WADA against the AFL Anti Doping Tribunal’s decision last March to clear 34 former and current Essendon players was upheld today by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.

A dozen Essendon players and five at other clubs, including ruckman forward Ryder and half forward Monfries, were affected as the protracted drug saga appears to reach a conclusion.

Ryder was recruited as the key piece of Port’s premiership jigsaw last season but the club failed to make finals. However the club’s recruitment of Gold Coast spearhead Charlie Dixon as potential cover has been validated.

media_camera Banned ... Port Adelaide’s Angus Monfries and Paddy Ryder.

In other developments today:

ESSENDON players could launch a legal challenge to the verdict within days.

BOMBERS legend Jobe Watson could be stripped of his 2012 Brownlow Medal.

THE AFL has announced a range of measures to allow Essendon to field a team next season.

PLAYERS Association boss Paul Marsh said players were “incredibly upset, sad, angry”.

FORMER Bombers coach James Hird said the decision was a miscarriage of justice.

Ryder and Monfries were given the news around 7.30am.

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley said the welfare of banned players Angus Monfries and Paddy Ryder was the club’s top priority.

“As you could imagine, they’re devastated,” Hinkley said.

“In their lives, this is probably the most important thing they do, bar their families.

“Both boys for me, it’s just (about) their welfare, to make sure they’re OK. And we’ll support them through their time.”

Port’s general manager of football Chris Davies said the club was extremely disappointed with the Court of Arbitration decision.

“Clearly, we are extremely disappointed with today’s outcome and in particular we are devastated for Angus and Paddy who have been through so much already,” said Davies.

“This has been a long, drawn-out process for both of them and we are most unhappy that it has ended with such a significant suspension.

“First and foremost, we will look to support Angus and Paddy in every possible way during their time on the sidelines.

“We are very proud as to how Angus and Paddy have handled this whole process and as a club we will stand by them all the way.”

The CAS said it had been convinced “to its comfortable satisfaction” that clause 11.2 of the 2010 AFL Doping Code (use of a prohibited substance) had been violated and found by a majority that all players were “significantly at fault”.

“The 34 players concerned are sanctioned with a period of ineligibility of two years, commencing on 31 March 2015, with credit given for any individual period of ineligibility already served,” CAS said

“Thus, most of the suspensions will come to an end in November 2016.”

The AFL Commission will hold an emergency meeting via telephone hook-up to discuss the shock result and how it will affect the coming season.

It will be up to the discretion of the commission to decide whether Watson loses his Brownlow Medal.