• Top Bay club rugby player banned following anti-doping charges

Top Bay club rugby player banned following anti-doping charges

A top Hawke’s Bay premier club rugby player and captain has been banned from the game for two years following a New Zealand Rugby Judicial Committee hearing into anti-doping charges brought by Drug Free Sport New Zealand (DFSNZ).

The charges were brought against Napier Old Boys Marist loose forward Chris Johnston.

Johnston was suspended for two years after he admitted two violations of the Sports Anti-Doping Rules (possession and attempted use of a prohibited substance) when he bought Clenbuterol online in September 2014.

He claimed the substance was not used but accepted it was his responsibility to consider anti-doping rules before making the purchase.

The Committee backdated the two-year suspension by 12 months to 9 October 2017, to account for the delay in proceedings and Johnston’s timely admission.

Similar charges were brought against Southland’s Blake Roff who purchased Clenbuterol in December 2014. He was also suspended for two years.

The charges against both players stem from the same MedSafe investigation into the operation of the website NZ Clenbuterol in 2014 and 2015 that has resulted in bans for several rugby players and other athletes since 2017.