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Stade Francais punish South African Hendre Stassen for his positive drugs test

By Online Editors
Former Bulls player Hendre Stassen has been sacked by Stade Francais (Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images)

South African Hendre Stassen is no longer a Stade Francais player after testing positive for a banned substance.

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The 21-year-old was provisionally banned by his club on July 12 after failing a random test following a Top 14 match in mid-May. A few weeks later, it was then revealed that his B sample also tested positive for the banned substance.

In a statement on Friday, Stade Francais confirmed that was relieved of his playing duties with the club with immediate effect.

“The results of the second test carried out on July 18 at the request of Hendre Stassen were communicated to the latter on July 22  and confirmed the result of the first sample,” said the statement.

“Given the approach and actions taken by the French Agency for the Fight against Doping and damage to the image of Stade Francais Paris, the club has initiated a procedure for breach of the contract of its player which has resulted in his dismissal for serious misconduct.

“The club wishes to recall that it is fully committed to the fight against doping and that it is committed to exemplary flawlessness so that it cannot tolerate the slightest doubt about it.

(Continue reading below…)

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“As a result, Hendre Stassen is no longer a player at Stade Francais Paris. No further statements will be made on this subject.”

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Stassen had established himself as a key piece in Meyer’s jigsaw at Stade last season and his loss would prove to be a substantial blow for the club.

– rugby365.com

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Jon 9 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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