Matt Stevens banned for two years
Bath and England prop Matt Stevens banned from professional rugby for two years
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Thursday, 26, Feb 2009 10:53
Bath and England prop Matt Stevens has been banned from professional rugby for two years after testing positive for cocaine last year.
A sample the 26-year-old gave following Bath's Heineken Cup game against Glasgow in December showed the presence of illegal substances.
Following the positive sample last year, Stevens admitted to having ongoing problems with a "very serious substance".
The European Rugby Cup confirmed the Bath player appeared before an independent judicial committee in Glasgow today to establish whether he had committed an anti-doping violation under the Heineken Cup ant-doping programme 2008/09.
After considering the evidence, and in light of Steven's admissions, the committee determined that a violation had indeed occurred and the player's sample had contained benzoylecgonine and methylecgonine, which are metabolites of cocaine.
A statement from the ERC added: "This was Mr Stevens' first anti-doping rule violation and the judicial committee accordingly imposed the prescribed sanction of a two-year period of ineligibility from all rugby playing and rugby related activities dated from January 19th 2009, up to and including January 18th 2011.
England coach Martin Johnson, speaking prior to this year's Six Nations championship, expressed his disappointment in Steven's failed drug test and admitted it would be up to the player to work his way back into the national team following his ban.
In a statement this afternoon he added: "I have said all through this episode that there is no place in sport or society for illegal drug use.
"Matt chose to take a banned substance and will now have to accept the consequences. He will not be involved in rugby for two years and for a professional sportsman that will be a very tough experience.
"Matt has admitted that he has a problem and is seeking help. We support him in that but all rugby players must understand that they are responsible for their actions, and that includes lifestyle choices."