Three Welsh club rugby players banned for drugs use
- Published
Ystalyfera RFC is a member club of the Welsh Rugby Union
A Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) Championship player has been banned for four years for using a banned steroid.
Swansea valley club Ystalyfera RFC player Jesse Patton will not be allowed to play again until November 2023.
UK Anti-Doping (Ukad) also revealed that two Welsh Premiership players tested positive for cocaine.
Ebbw Vale lock Lance Randall has been banned from all sport for two years, while Aberavon prop Mike Burgess was handed the same length of ban.
Patton was tested at a training session for third-tier Ystalyfera in September 2019 and tested positive for metendienone, which is classified as an anabolic androgenic steroid.
Patton had claimed that the drug's presence was "unintentional".
The panel appointed by Ukad to look into the case found against Patton and he has the right to appeal against the decision.
Former Dragons academy player Randall tested positive for cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine on 26 October 2019 following a match between Ebbw Vale and Llanelli. His ban will expire at midnight on 25 October 2021.
Aberavon prop Burgess also tested positive for cocaine in a match against Bargoed on 20 October 2018, with his two-year ban ending at midnight on 19 October 2020