By STEVE MASCORD
PROP Ryan Bailey missed most of his debut season with Toronto due to something much more serious than a knee injury, it transpires.
The news on Thursday night that the 33-year-old had refused to take a drugs test on May 9 due to fears water given to him was unsealed – and had beaten the charge – came as a shock to British rugby league because few even knew the incident at taken place.
Bailey, who played four internationals each for England and Great Britain, had been listed as a long-term injury with the expansion team, which finished atop League One in 2017. Instead, he was stood down awaiting his appeal against a four-year suspension.
An expert has described him as the first athlete to beat a charge by the UK Anti-Doping Authority before a tribunal.
Psychological testimony was part of his defence against a sanction that would have ended his career. He submitted to a test in the middle of the following week after the training-field incident at Lamport Stadium and passed.
But the affair shows that in the lower reaches of British rugby league, and in a city like Toronto where a sport and franchise is brand new, a big story can successfully be kept quite for months on end.
It’s a far cry from the centre of rugby league, the NRL, where Bailey’s continued absence from matches and appearances before tribunals would have set of alarm bells very quickly for a ravenous media.
It would not have been a secret for long in Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Wollongong, Newcastle or Townsville – or even Melbourne. Manchester or Leeds? One would hope not…
Bailey missed his first home game for Toronto in early May due to visa problems.
Reflecting on the case, the tribunal chairman Robert Engleheart QC said: “Having heard Mr Bailey give evidence we do not for one moment think that he is a cheat or was trying to cover up drug taking. Indeed, we note that a few days later Mr Bailey did in fact undergo a drug test (which was negative) without any problem.”
The panel comprised Englehart, Dr Terry Crystal and Mr Colin Murdock. Because of the peculiarities of the Wolfpack, Bailey was tested by the Canadian anti-doping body but tried in the UK because that is where is competition is based.
Bailey’s counsel, Daniel Saoul, successfully argued there was no fault on negligence on the part of his client.
UKAD issued a statement which read: “Mr Bailey, a rugby league player, was charged with ‘Evading, Refusing or Failing to Submit to Sample Collection’ pursuant to Article 2.3 of the UK Anti-Doping Rules.
“On 30 May 2017, Mr Bailey was informed that he was required to provide a sample for the purposes of testing by the Canadian anti-doping agency, Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES).
“Mr Bailey, who was present at Lamport Stadium in Toronto having completed a training session with Toronto Wolfpack, was adamant that the water he had drunk from the CCES Doping Control Officer (DCO) might have been contaminated and therefore, he would not provide a sample to the DCO.
“The NADP Tribunal consisting of Mr Robert Englehart QC (Chair), Dr Terry Crystal and Mr Colin Murdock were comfortably satisfied that the athlete had committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation, however in the truly exceptional circumstances of his case, it was found that Mr Bailey bears No Fault or Negligence so that the otherwise applicable period of Ineligibility is eliminated.”
Sports lawyer David Seligman told the Daily Mail: “This was a landmark case, in which a number of sensitive issues had to be decided by the National Anti-Doping Panel.
“On the one hand the panel must uphold the integrity of Rugby League, but on the other hand this was a situation where Mr Bailey had genuinely was not at fault for refusing to provide a sample for testing.”
In a media statement, Toronto director of rugby Brian Noble said: ““The correct verdict has been returned. On behalf of the Wolfpack I’d like to thank the Tribunal for their professionalism and time in dealing with this complex case.”
“As an organisation we have a duty of care to Ryan both as a player and as an employee. It was important to support Ryan through this difficult personal process, and help him emerge with what we believe is a fair outcome.”
