I remember the Leah Betts story in the paper and her dad(bless him) going round schools teaching the dangers/evils of ecstasy.

Now i'm no defender of drugs but it was just plain lies, the amount of deaths from actually taking ecstasy are in the single figures every year + the deaths are usually a result of either dehydration or hyponatremia not the drug itself.

maybe gaz hock should be made to go and do some voluntary work in colombia where the west's appetite for cocaine causes all manner of problems, from the hundreds of gallons of gasoline that run into the rivers from processing factories to the fuelling of a bloody civil war and to the destruction of subsistence farming by the US army's spraying of herbicides

but in the name of those without sin not casting the first stone i highly doubt that the white stuff has not lined the noses of warrington players, and people writing on this forum too, so i say let him back training as long as he does something good in terms of raising awareness about not taking cocaine, which iirc i think he already has

Playing RL is a job, if i was caught either possessing it, taking it, or it showing up on a test in my job i would be sacked.

He's lucky it's only 2 years, I'm not completely holier than thou as when i was a teenager i had Cannabis/Speed and Ecstasy and i put that down to the invincible nature and naivety of being a teenager, when i started working/turned 18 i turned to just alcohol and hammered it for 3 years then gave up every drug including caffeine for 9 years 3 of which were job related, now i eat chocolate have a cup of tea or a can of Pepsi and the occasional (event) beer in moderation but i don't take drugs because i know that
a) it's not good for me
b) I'll lose my job

Hock knew what he was doing was wrong and he knew the consequences of being caught so now he should just face up to it and wait until the punishment has been served at the end of 2 years and not a day before.

ahem

rlhttps://forums.rlfans.com/viewtopic.php?f

So much for the family image of RL. Yes kids, take cocaine no problem, we will always welcome you back with open arms.

I'm on the fence. One one side, Hock has been out of the game for almost 2 years and lost lots of money, added to this is the fact he is barely literate and not the sharpest.

On the other side, cocaine is a performance enhancing drug (about the same as a cup of coffee) and is illegal. The fact this is known and so was the penalty then the 2 year ban without parole is fair.

However, the varying shades of illegality in drugs is frustrating. Cocaine isn't really a performance enhancer, so has little impact on sport. Cannabis is illegal, but when legalised has been shown to reduce overall drug use. Alcohol is legal, but is probably one of the most damaging drugs to society out there. Less that 100 years ago drugs like cocaine were available from retail outlets such as Harrods and with chemical concoctions that are highly damaging being imported then I wonder if the more natural drugs are better as legal, controlled and tax revenue rather than criminal pockets.

Anyway, with 2% of the population taking cocaine, do I really think that banning RL players for 2 years would make a difference? Try the test with a legal drug, would banning players from drinking alcohol make YOU drink less?

Back when I played, there were plenty of posters around training which listed what you could and couldn't take from Night Nurse to Cocaine. I then think about players like Cuningham, clearly not stupid but got a suspended 2 year ban because the club "doctor" said it was OK but clearly got some benefit from the drugs and continued to play. If only all clubs could employ quacks and get away with this?

that cunningham situation is pretty unique though.

back on the irony debate, is it ironic that her mother was a drugs worker and her father a copper?

You agree with my summary of ecstasy ?

i do apart from the rare cases of anaphalactic (sic) shock that do occasionally happen and kill, your right, dehydration or the use of other substances on top are the main cause. more people die from peanut allergies than ecstasy! don't mean to say i advise people to take it.

on a more general note, for those of you who dont follow the ufc this has been revealed today sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/new ... id=6274345

on a more general note, for those of you who dont follow the ufc this has been revealed today sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/new ... id=6274345

If his name was Joe Smith and he came from and played for Barrow no-one would give a toss.

Yes they would give a toss (just tweeking the debate slightly off topic...do you think Championship players get treated the same as SL players in disciplinary matters... NO THEY DON'T. They get much tougher sentences....back on topic now..)

Take your persecution complex, and begger off
He's broken the laws of the game.
He's been given a sentence.
He should serve every day of it. End of
If the Pies want to let him back into training sessions, then that's their funeral. It just doesn't send out a great message to young/vulnerable people, who hold Hock in high esteem.

if it was Joe Smith from barrow his club would have probably sacked him.