Drug bans/player contracts

[Archie89]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...td/8242926.stm

On the back of the Paddy Kenny ban, does anybody know if players’ contracts can have a clause for things like this stating if they are responsible for getting a ban, especially a long term one, that they don't get paid or get less pay since all they can do is train and not play? I know they will lose out on bonuses, appearance money etc but I wonder if any contracts have this written in?

I was just thinking it's a hell of a lot of money if a player gets banned for say a year through his own fault. I would hate Hibs to waste a years wages on someone daft enough to do this.

For what it's worth, I think 9 months is a bit harsh for taking something like that. Although having said that, I've taken part in amature sport myself where drug testing was in place and I never took a thing just in case, so if I was a professional I'd be treble checking everything that passed my lips!

I do think they should be hammered for obvious performance enhancing drugs and "social" drugs mind you.

What do folk think about Kenny's ban and drug bans in general?

[PiemanP]

9 months for an over the counter drug?

I dont know the full details, but if the court found he wasnt using it to enhance his performance in any way then 9 months seems a huge ban.

I fully support the banning of players for a long long time if they are caught with the likes of steroids or illegal 'social' drugs, but this case seems very harsh.

[speedy_gonzales]

There are some over the counter drugs that have trace elements/ingredients found in other not-so-innocent drugs. Although Paddy here is probably innocent from doing anything sinister, he did fail to declare the medicine to his club docs, doing so would have prevented any of this. The ban is probably more to do with raising awareness amongst the pro footballers and clubs than has to do with punishing him!
At my work, we have to declare anything from an aspirin onward, if we don't and it comes up in a test, we are out the door, no questions asked!

[jdships]

Modern day playing contracts cover every eventuality re a players
" behaviour "
OK if it came to the crunch some clauses could/would be challenged in a court of law.
I know of a number of players who use a "Vic Inhaler" before a match to clear the nasal passages . Using this prescription aid used to be frowned on by rowing authorities and was only cleared after several appeals.
No place in sport surely for the likes of steroids or illegal 'social' drugs, but this case seems very harsh.

Is it to send out the "right" message ?

[Woody1985]

That ex-chelsea player is wishing he never took a patsy now eh. That must be the most expensive line in history. 17 million €

[Godsahibby]

I think there is more to this than is being released in the media. Kenny would have known fine well exactly what he was not allowed to take, professionals are given a list at the start of every season detailing what is safe and not safe.

[J-C]

The drug was Ephedrine, which is banned world wide, it caused the death of two NFL players around 3 years ago. It's a weight loss drug that raises your metebolism to extreme levels and therefore puts pressure on the heart. Taken properly it is very safe but unfortunately some people were abusing it and after the 2 deaths the IOC banned it world wide.

He'll probably say he bought over the counter goods and didn't know it was in what he took, unfortunately every over the counter supplements have the ingredients on them, so you can't make mistakes.

[blackpoolhibs]

Listening to talksport this morning, and Alan Brazil is saying the ban is way over the top. He is not even allowed to train with a professional club. They did have someone phone in though, who said he must have had shed loads of cough medicine for him to have had so much ephedrine in his system, whether he bought it from the chemist or not.

[BigKev]

Footballers should always consult the club doctor before taking any medicines whether over the counter or not.

There is lots of paraphernalia kicking about even at a decent juvenile level warning of the dangers of some over the counter drugs and they shouldn't be taken without doctors advice.

There's more to this than meets the eye methinks.

[J-C]

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Listening to talksport this morning, and Alan Brazil is saying the ban is way over the top. He is not even allowed to train with a professional club. They did have someone phone in though, who said he must have had shed loads of cough medicine for him to have had so much ephedrine in his system, whether he bought it from the chemist or not.

I'm a personal trainer and I've never heard of ephedrine in cough medicine, it's a stimulant to raise your metabolism, I've used a few times prior to the ban coming into place and I can tell you it's like taking 10 espresso's all at the same time. It's used to help shift weght so no reason to put it in cough medicine, if it is there it would be in minute traces, so you'd have to take boxes of the stuff to get a positive reading.

[blackpoolhibs]

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I'm a personal trainer and I've never heard of ephedrine in cough medicine, it's a stimulant to raise your metabolism, I've used a few times prior to the ban coming into place and I can tell you it's like taking 10 espresso's all at the same time. It's used to help shift weght so no reason to put it in cough medicine, if it is there it would be in minute traces, so you'd have to take boxes of the stuff to get a positive reading.

I think this is the main issue, we all know Paddy Kenny struggles with his weight, and this is why i'd imagine he has taken it. He's been caught, the punishment does seem harsh, but he knew the consequences before he decided to take it. Either that, or he had a hell of a cold.

[NORTHERNHIBBY]

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Listening to talksport this morning, and Alan Brazil is saying the ban is way over the top. He is not even allowed to train with a professional club. They did have someone phone in though, who said he must have had shed loads of cough medicine for him to have had so much ephedrine in his system, whether he bought it from the chemist or not.

Politically Alan Brazil is slightly to the right of Ghengis Khan, and when you see the state he has got himself into I would hesitate before taking him serious. His line of thought is always rallying against any kind of authority and adhering to rules. I can't believe that a professional footballer can do this by accident. Just like Rio Ferdinand who " missed" a test as he " forgot". I don't buy it. It is a bit like players who can't behave and always cause trouble. The rules for a professional footballer are well known. My take is that when they get big wages, Kenny is maybe on 10k a week?, that does not just mean that you need to perform well on a Saturday and the odd midweek. It should mean that you live 7 days a week in a manner that keeps you in good shape to be at the top of your game.

[JimBHibees]

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I think there is more to this than is being released in the media. Kenny would have known fine well exactly what he was not allowed to take, professionals are given a list at the start of every season detailing what is safe and not safe.

Tend to agree with that.

[Archie89]

[QUOTE=NORTHERNHIBBY;2166033]Politically Alan Brazil is slightly to the right of Ghengis Khan, and when you see the state he has got himself into I would hesitate before taking him serious. His line of thought is always rallying against any kind of authority and adhering to rules. I can't believe that a professional footballer can do this by accident. Just like Rio Ferdinand who " missed" a test as he " forgot". I don't buy it. It is a bit like players who can't behave and always cause trouble. The rules for a professional footballer are well known. My take is that when they get big wages, Kenny is maybe on 10k a week?, that does not just mean that you need to perform well on a Saturday and the odd midweek. It should mean that you live 7 days a week in a manner that keeps you in good shape to be at the top of your game.[/QUOTE]

completely agree with this, like I said originally if I were lucky or good enough to be a proffesional sportsman I wouldn't take anything to chance. However, if that's the only job you've had and you've never had a ***** job like mine then I guess you would start taking things for granted.

[hibsbollah]

I remember when it was Chinese and Eastern Europe sportspeople who got caught for doping, and the response of the British sporting pundits was 'flog 'em and ban 'em for life. Now they seem to be falling over themselves to pedal pathetic excuses for British atheletes (in Paddy Kennys case the term should be used loosely) when they get caught.

Double standards.

[Archie89]

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At my work, we have to declare anything from an aspirin onward, if we don't and it comes up in a test, we are out the door, no questions asked!

out of interest/noseyness and if you don't mind me asking, what kind of job do you have?

[J-C]

I competed in natural bodybuilding as an amateur, and we had a list of drugs banned by the IOC, if we were unsure about any supplements, we would ask the people running the federation if it was ok or not.

Now pro footballers or whatever sport they do have doctors and food specialist working with them on a professional level, it's almost impossible to take something illegal unless you've bought it yourself without their knowledge. Dwain Chambers is a perfect example of this, he denied knowledge of what he was taking and blamed someone else, he knew the risks, got caught and was duly banned.

[Woody1985]

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The drug was Ephedrine, which is banned world wide, it caused the death of two NFL players around 3 years ago. It's a weight loss drug that raises your metebolism to extreme levels and therefore puts pressure on the heart. Taken properly it is very safe but unfortunately some people were abusing it and after the 2 deaths the IOC banned it world wide.

He'll probably say he bought over the counter goods and didn't know it was in what he took, unfortunately every over the counter supplements have the ingredients on them, so you can't make mistakes.

I know a couple of guys who have started taking this at amatuer level. I think it goes under the name of T5 and can be bought in body building shops. Apparently it's not just handed over to you so you should be careful if you ever decide to go looking for it.

[JimBHibees]

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I know a couple of guys who have started taking this at amatuer level. I think it goes under the name of T5 and can be bought in body building shops. Apparently it's not just handed over to you so you should be careful if you ever decide to go looking for it.

That sounds absolutely nuts to be taking banned and potentially dangersous drugs at amateur level, dear oh dear.

[J-C]

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I know a couple of guys who have started taking this at amatuer level. I think it goes under the name of T5 and can be bought in body building shops. Apparently it's not just handed over to you so you should be careful if you ever decide to go looking for it.

I used it before it was banned, it comes from the Ephidra plant root and was considered a herbal aid.
If taken in the correct dosage is can boost the metabolism when training and help fat loss, similar to taking a couple of double espresso's before hitting the gym. Unfortunately it can be abused and if exceeding the dosage can put a strain on your heart and lead to cardiac arrest, as was the case with a couple of NFL linemen a few years back, hence the ban.

[speedy_gonzales]

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out of interest/noseyness and if you don't mind me asking, what kind of job do you have?

Nothing interesting, work on the railway. Network Rail and it's contractors operate an absolute zero tolerence on drugs. We have lower alcohol limits than commercial airline pilots FFS!
We have regular pi$$ tests, if even a paracetamol/aspirin shows up that hasn't been declared, then you might as well pick up your p45.
No drink to be consumed within 12 hours of your shift starting etc.

That's not to say some guys take the risk, but it's exactly that, a risk!

[Archie89]

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Nothing interesting, work on the railway. Network Rail and it's contractors operate an absolute zero tolerence on drugs. We have lower alcohol limits than commercial airline pilots FFS!
We have regular pi$$ tests, if even a paracetamol/aspirin shows up that hasn't been declared, then you might as well pick up your p45.
No drink to be consumed within 12 hours of your shift starting etc.

That's not to say some guys take the risk, but it's exactly that, a risk!

Sounds a bit over the top but I wouldnae be taking the risk!