Extremely damaging': Players' association boss blasts video leaks

Georgina Robinson
By Georgina Robinson
18 January 2019 — 5:12pm
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The Rugby Union Players' Association (RUPA) has blasted the recent string of leaked videos for their potential threat to athletes' mental health as Kurtley Beale escaped sanction over his involvement in a second video.

RUPA chief executive Prataal Raj warned of the "extremely damaging" flow-on effects of the release of two old videos that appear to show Beale in the company of people using what appear to be illicit drugs.

Bad look: Kurtley Beale escaped sanction despite a second video appearing to show him in the presence of illicit drugs.
Bad look: Kurtley Beale escaped sanction despite a second video appearing to show him in the presence of illicit drugs. CREDIT:AAP, NINE NEWS

Raj said players faced uncertainty and fear over what may or may not be released in the future, a precarious position that could have untold mental and emotional side effects.

"It’s wrong that third parties look to profit off private material, whether the content contains professional sports people or not," Raj said.

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"The high-profile nature of athletes’ professions places them under greater scrutiny than most other members of society. The immense pressure that the release, actual or threatened, of content such as this can have on athletes and their families is unhealthy, and potentially extremely damaging for their wellbeing.

The immense pressure that the release, actual or threatened, of content such as this can have on athletes and their families is unhealthy, and potentially extremely damaging for their wellbeing.

RUPA chief executive Prataal Raj
"RUPA will continue to educate and remind all players (both on entry to the professional ranks and on an on-going basis) around the risks associated with appearing in content that then may then appear online and in the media, and importantly will continue to prioritise players’ welfare if they’ve been affected by this behaviour."

Beale, who was in New Zealand filming a commercial for a personal sponsor, had a telephone conversation with Rugby Australia's Head of Integrity Gerard McEvilly on Friday but escaped punishment.

It was Beale and McEvilly's second conversation this week after the 83-Test playmaker was first captured in a video taken by former Roosters player Corey Norman that showed him laughing at an older man who appeared to be using drugs.

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RA stood by their decision not to take any disciplinary action against the Wallabies star as the videos are three and four years old and do not show Beale undertaking any illegal activity.

"These videos serve as a warning to every professional rugby player in Australia of the risks associated with placing themselves in compromising situations, particularly in environments where illicit drugs may be present," RA chief Raelene Castle said.

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"Kurtley returned from a brief trip to New Zealand yesterday and has spoken with Rugby Australia’s Integrity Unit in relation to the second video. Following this conversation, Rugby Australia has determined not to proceed with any formal disciplinary action over Kurtley’s appearance in the videos.

"These videos were recorded a number of years ago, and Kurtley has again stressed his regret at placing himself at significant risk and for the damage the videos have caused to the image of both himself and the sport."

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Crucially, the videos do not appear to have upset his sponsors, including Jaguar Land Rover, who were understood to be standing by him on Friday.

Nevertheless it has been a far from ideal start to the year for a sport in need of a circuit breaker.

With a World Cup on the horizon and the coaching dramas and poor results that dogged the Wallabies just beginning to disappear in the rearview mirror, Beale's party cameos, no matter how old, are a very bad look at a vulnerable time.

On the back of the Dylan Napa videos, the source of which remains unknown, the Beale films will have struck fear into the hearts of many athletes. Their off-season exploits, presumably behind them, may not be now.

Rugby is in the process of modernising its drug-testing regime, looking to move to a program of hair-follicle tests that can reveal a player's drug activity from the previous three months.

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The Herald revealed on Friday that RA had been discussing the change with RUPA for at least the past 12 months as part of their collective bargaining agreement (CBA) talks.

While no agreement has been locked in, it is understood both organisations are keen for the tests to go ahead and that the Beale dramas will have no bearing on the potential trial.

Under RA’s illicit drugs policy, as agreed to in the CBA, if players test positive they are given a first warning, meaning the club and others are not notified. A second strike results in an automatic suspension.

Wallabies James Slipper and Karmichael Hunt have both fallen foul of the policy, and RA's Code of Conduct, in recent years.

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Rugby Australia set to implement hair-follicle drug tests as Beale flies back to Australia

Tom Decent
By Tom Decent
17 January 2019 — 10:00pm
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Rugby Australia is considering introducing mandatory hair-follicle tests that could uncover players taking illegal substances up to three months before being tested.

While the idea of keeping a three-month drug record of players is understood to have been discussed at RA for some time, the governing body is keen to introduce the testing this year.

Feeling the pinch: Wallabies star Kurtley Beale has returned early from a holiday to answer questions surrounding a video which shows him in the presence of a group of men passing around a plate with white powder.
Feeling the pinch: Wallabies star Kurtley Beale has returned early from a holiday to answer questions surrounding a video which shows him in the presence of a group of men passing around a plate with white powder.CREDIT:AAP

The news comes as Wallaby Kurtley Beale was forced to return early from a holiday in New Zealand to answer questions surrounding another video which shows him in the presence of a group of men passing around a plate containing a white powder.

The 83-Test playmaker will have to face RA’s integrity unit for the second time in a week after the leaked video appeared online. Beale had already apologised to RA boss Raelene Castle for the embarrassment caused earlier this week after a tape surfaced showing him laughing at an elderly man snorting a white substance off a plate handed to him by NRL player Corey Norman.

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The video is understood to have been taken in 2016,and Beale did not receive any sanctions.

The Herald can reveal that RA has been discussing the idea of hair-follicle tests with the Rugby Union Players’ Association since late 2017, during CBA negotiations.

While no agreement has been locked in yet, it is understood both RA and RUPA are keen for the tests to go ahead and that the Beale news had no bearing on the potential trial.

Under RA’s illicit drugs policy, as agreed to in the CBA, if players test positive they are given a first warning, meaning the club and others are not notified. A second strike results in an automatic suspension.

However, a new program featuring hair tests is set be trialled throughout the year, with a view to it being formally adopted in the next CBA pending agreement by RA and RUPA.

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Hair testing could reveal a player’s drug activity from the previous three months. The ability to detect what drugs, how much and specific dates on which they were taken is all possible and there is far more insight provided than a normal urine sample.

The Herald also understands not all professional players across the country have been briefed on the proposed tests.

If RA does come to an agreement with RUPA about the tests, they will be used as more of a method to help with player welfare. RA would rather try and help a player through a potential drug problem by identifying it early rather than using it as a means to immediately rub them out of the game.

Because the hair-follicle tests would only be used this season as a trial, it is understood players would not receive a strike if they if they tested positive to an illicit substance.

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If the hair tests are working and doing what they are designed to do, RA would more than likely try and incorporate them into a new CBA and an amendment to the illicit drugs policy.

If the green light is given, RA is set to follow in the footsteps of AFL and Cricket Australia who already have hair-follicle testing policies for their athletes.

The Beale headlines have been far from ideal for Australian rugby with less than a month to go before the start of the Super Rugby season.

He will have to answer questions as to why on two separate occasions, reportedly in 2015 after the Rugby World Cup and then again in 2016, he was associating with individuals allegedly partaking in illicit substance use.

RA did not provide any further comment on the matter on Thursday.

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Beale is still expected to line up in round one for the NSW Waratahs against the Hurricanes on February 16.
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