Five of the most infamous drugs bans in rugby
Doping is a growing problem in rugby, particularly across the levels of the game that are not in the spotlight. In recent years, scandals in South African schoolboy rugby and semi-professional rugby in Wales have magnified how widespread this issue has become and various unions have tried to crack down on this.
However, in the top tier of professional rugby, failed tests are not as common. That isn’t to say there are none, though. Such cases often receive a lot of attention due to how rare they are among international players.
Here, RugbyPass sifts through some of the most infamous drugs bans of the modern era:
Matt Stevens
Ex-Bath and England prop Matt Stevens was handed a two-year ban by the European Rugby Cup in 2009 after testing positive for cocaine following a fixture against Glasgow in December 2008. The then-26-year-old was at the top of his game when this happened and it understandably created shockwaves.
The South African-born prop bounced back admirably from this ban, moving to Saracens and resurrecting his career. He was a key member of the London club’s resurgence at the beginning of last decade, starting in the victorious Premiership final in 2011.
He would also be capped by England again, playing in 2011 World Cup, and was even a surprise pick for the 2013 British and Irish Lions tour which followed on from his selection for the 2005 tour as well.
Justin Harrison
The Australian was banned for eight months after admitting taking cocaine at an end-of-season party with Bath in London following the 2008/09 campaign.
The then 35-year-old was one of four players charged by the Rugby Football Union with bringing the game into disrepute after the night out which also evolved a fight with rival Harlequins players.
Bath trio Michael Lipman, Alex Crockett and Andrew Higgins all resigned and received nine-month bans for failing to take drugs tests.
Following his ban, Harrison announced his retirement but he made a return to playing by signing a one-year deal with the Brumbies, the side he started his career with.
He then played for Narbonne in France before moving into coaching. Now works as CEO of the Rugby Union Players’ Association (RUPA) in Australia.
Wendell Sailor
The former dual-code Australia international was banned for two years in 2006 for cocaine use during his time playing for the New South Wales Waratahs.
The powerful winger argued that this was only recreational and therefore not performance-enhancing, but the ban still stood.
This came after a few months of ill-discipline in which Sailor was also sent home from a tour of South Africa for his behaviour, suspended for three matches and fined after an incident outside a Cape Town nightclub.
The drugs ban ended Sailor’s five-year union career in Australia. However, while it threw his entire career into doubt, he made the return to league in 2008 with St George-Illawarra, the club his son Tristan has now made the breakthrough at.
Johan Ackermann
The current Gloucester coach had a career in South Africa tarnished by his two-year ban in 1997 for taking the steroid nandrolone to help recover from an ankle injury.
The ex-lock was 26 years of age at the time and already had four Springboks caps to his name, but he was forced to rebuild his career after the ban.
He spent the two years out of rugby working for the police before a return to play for the Golden Lions, Cats, Griquas and Sharks in South Africa. There was also a stint with Northampton in England.
He would also play for South Africa again, becoming his country’s oldest ever player in 2007 at the age of 37. That record has since been surpassed.
Chiliboy Ralepelle
The ex-Springbok hooker’s career has been chequered with drug bans and drug-related incidents.
It first dated back to 2010 when at the then 24-year-old was suspended and sent home from his country’s end of year tour for testing positive for methylhexanamine constrained in a diet supplement.
This later turned out to have been supplied by the Springboks themselves and the charges didn’t stand after it was discovered that the British version of the supplement contained methylhexanamine, something which the South African version didn’t.
However, the 25-cap international failed a test again in 2014 while at Toulouse, testing positive for the anabolic steroid, drostanolone. He was banned for two years and his contract with the French giants was terminated.
He made a return to rugby in 2016 with the Sharks, but the 33-year-old is now awaiting a decision after his hearing for another failed drugs test in early 2019, this time for the growth hormone zeranol, which could result in a career-ending ban.
Comments on RugbyPass
Thanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
13 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
13 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
13 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
12 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
13 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
13 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
13 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
13 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
45 Go to comments