Irish boss casts doubts on fears of doping culture

Joe Schmidt has challenged claims there may be a widespread problem with either legal supplement use or illegal drug-taking among rugby players in Ireland.

The issue of drugs in rugby has come to prominence with the publication of a book by former French prop Laurent Benezech and the subsequent focus on the matter by journalist Paul Kimmage.

“I think someone has written a book and a few other people, probably on the back of that, decided to highlight a few things,” said Schmidt yesterday. “But I would question the amount of evidence. One thing I am very aware of is how often they come into camp and get tested. We never know when they [drug testers] are coming in or who they are going to test.