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Professional Rugby gets clean bill of health
I always assumed that the doping regime for rugby players was to bulk up at amateur level and then enjoy the benefits through your pro career without actually having to dope as a pro. For the top clubs, it's well worth telling young hopefuls to come back when they've put on 10kg of lean mass rather than taking them on in their undoped state and having to build them up while they're in the sights of the anti-doping police. If a few of them get popped on the way, it's no great loss to the clubs and they can keep pretending that elite level players don't dope.
gbj_tester-
This is what I've heard/been told too. There was a telling interview with the Exeter player called up for England a couple of weeks ago, the first thing Eddie Jones asked him every time he saw him was 'how much do you weigh', as he was constantly pressuring him to bulk up.
I'd be very surprised if doping wasn't prevalent in top level rugby with the requirement for endurance, large muscle mass and constant recovery from injuries/wear and tear.
Currid
“Professional Rugby gets clean bill of health”
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/feb/15/professional-rugby-england-clean-bill-of-health-rfu
So 302 Premiership tests in 2016/17. There are 12 Premiership Clubs each with a 25 man squad. So basically in a year it’s the equivalent of everyone being tested once. What’s the old cycling adage? You only get caught if you’re stupid. If you only get tested once a year you’d have to be really, really stupid.