Former Essendon great Tim Watson believes the AFL has already decided to deduct points from the Bombers over the supplements saga – and will do so after the home-and-away season finishes later this month.

Watson, the father of Bombers player Jobe, believes the AFL had already worked out its potential punishment prior to the ASADA report being delivered last Friday night.

“The AFL operate as well, in fact even better than a political party the way that they operate – the way that they leak out information,” Watson said on Melbourne radio station SEN on Monday.

“They conditioned, I think, the general public a while ago to this whole idea that points were going to be taken away.

“I think they’ve already determined in their own minds, even before this report was handed down … that would be the punishment that was actually afforded to Essendon.”

The AFL and Essendon have received ASADA’s interim report into the club’s suspect 2012 supplement program.

The report, more than 400 pages long, references more than 13,000 supporting documents.

If fifth-placed Essendon had significant premiership points deducted, it could remove the Bombers from the top eight and have immense ramifications for the AFL finals.