AFL wary despite drugs drop

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 06 Juni 2014 | 18.48

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ONLY 15 AFL players recorded positive illicit drug tests in 2013, but four players are now on two strikes.

The AFL released the results of its illicit drugs program on Friday, which showed a dramatic decrease in positive tests, down from 26 in 2012.

All 15 failed tests were for stimulants, such as cocaine and amphetamines, and one positive was the second strike for one player, whose other strike was in a prior year.

The league conducted 1998 tests in 2013, in what AFL football operations boss Mark Evans said was a "smarter" and more targeted approach.

Fewer than 15 players self-reported last year, also down on 2012 figures which the league will not detail explicitly.

In June last year, the league tightened self-reporting rules to allow players only one instance of self-reporting drugs use in his career, a move that came after widespread industry concern about players' behaviour, particularly in the off-season.

The AFL's chief medical officer Dr Peter Harcourt said holidays, the Christmas break and bye periods showed spikes in drug use.

Mark Evans says the AFL are taking a smarter approach to drug testing. Picture: Colleen Petch Source: News Limited

"The problems we are confronting are players socialising, and illicit drug use in the community is going up — so I don't take any comfort in these numbers," Harcourt said.

"Usually it is when guys go home, catch up with friends and have a few drinks (that drug use occurs).

"We even get the stories that they are resistant (to drug use) at first but then have a few more drinks, they use an illicit drug when their judgment is impaired."

In addition to more targeted testing, Evans said other changes to the code implemented last year were also having a positive effect.

"We also built in the ability for us to have conversations with clubs and provide de-identified data to their CEO and key people in the football departments and their boards.

Harcourt said the league had worked hard to make sure players understood how changes to the policy would affect them.

"There is a lot more target testing going on — monitoring individuals making sure they understand their accountability and vulnerability with the testing changes has probably been the big thing in the past 12 months," he said.

But Evans said the AFL took a realistic outlook on the downward trend shown in 2013 numbers.

"We know that over time this will go up and down and we will need to respond by changing our strategies," he said.

"I don't think focusing on any number — good or bad — is the way to go.

Harcourt said there had never been the reported wave of self-reporting, as was widely speculated last year.

"It is less than our detections — no one has notified more than once; we have never actually seen gaining in the notifications — in the press there was discussions around it, but we didn't see it.

Players volunteer to be subject to AFL's three-strikes illicit drugs policy, which is totally separate from the anti-doping code. and players who test positive for an illicit drug on matchday that is also banned under the WADA code would be subject to anti-doping rules.

AFL DRUG TESTING

YEAR TESTS FAILS

2005 472 19

2006 486 9

2007 1152 14

2008 1220 12

2009 1568 14

2010 1654 6

2011 1489 6

2012 1979 26

2013 1998 15


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