Payto & Panda: ARU may start testing for sleeping pills; where was Izzy in MLB photo?

RUGBY fans were in disbelief this week after the code missed a golden opportunity to grab some free promotion from Major League Baseball.

Israel Folau’s absence from the MLB shot was noted on social media.

AUSTRALIA’S rugby players could be forced to undergo drug testing for sleeping pills.

This follows the NRL’s decision to put the tablets on their illicit drugs list.

In the latest revelation, the NZRU confirmed yesterday that All Blacks stars Cory Jane and Israel Dagg were under the influence of sleeping pills during their infamous night out during the 2011 World Cup.

This is on the back of the Kiwi league team reportedly using sleeping pills inappropriately during their World Cup campaign last year.

The NZRU is now investigating the use of pills – which athletes mix with energy drinks to achieve a “legal high” when they expect to be tested for alcohol and illicit substances.

The NRL has recently taken a zero tolerance approach to the pills unless they are being used for authorised purposes.

Now Australia’s rugby officials are keen to find out if the practice is wide-spread among its players.

The ARU told us: “Australian Rugby has had preliminary discussions with the Rugby Union Players Association on the potential for research-based testing for sleeping tablets. These discussions are ongoing.”

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WHERE’S Izzy? That was the question flying around today after a photograph of Sydney’s biggest sporting names with visiting baseballers yesterday became more about who wasn’t in the snap than who was.

Namely, where was Israel Folau alongside SBW, Alessandro Del Piero and Adam Goodes as a representative of the Waratahs and rugby union?

Given the picture ran on back pages and news bulletins - and even made the LA Times - it was immediately seen as a huge lost opportunity for rugby.

Others views on social media weren’t so mild, with one satirist posting the image and the caption: “Rugby Union has announced it’s officially given up.”

Behind the scenes, numerous rugby officials were fuming that Folau wasn’t in the million-dollar image.

So what happened?

Folau was invited several weeks ago by organisers, and the Waratahs were enthusiastic to be involved.

Israel Folau’s absence from the MLB shot was noted on social media.

On Monday night SBW, Del Piero and Goodes were also locked in but the problem was the baseballers - $34m Dodgers man Clayton Kershaw and Arizona’s Paul Goldschmidt - were not. The two rival clubs were apparently reluctant to pose up their biggest stars together.

Throughout Tuesday the photograph looked as if it would not happen, which led to Folau agreeing to “prior sponsors commitments” on his day off, according to his manager Isaac Moses. The prior commitment clashed with the 4pm call-time for the photo.

When the shoot was confirmed on Tuesday night, the Waratahs were unable to contact Folau and organisers declined the offer of NSW captain Dave Dennis or another Waratah as a replacement.

“We are very disappointed we weren’t able to be involved,” a Waratahs spokesman said.

A source close to the baseball promotion said: “It was all about the best of the best”.

Though an Adam Ashley-Cooper or Kurtley Beale might go close to fitting the bill, that stance is understandable.

Angry rugby sources said despite all the confusion, the red button should have been pushed on Wednesday and Folau withdrawn from his other commitments to take a place in the photo.

Interestingly, however, Folau wasn’t the only absentee.

Test captain Michael Clarke also pulled out to film a TV commercial, and it is understood SBW was only made available due to the fact he’s suspended and not with the Roosters in Brisbane.

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EASTERN Suburbs are paying Waratahs enforcer Jacques Potgieter $500 a week even though he’ll likely never play for them in the Shute Shield.

Potgieter confirmed on Monday he had joined Easts, having been the only NSW player unattached to a club side.

Easts may reap some publicity from the deal, but Potgieter will head straight to Japan at the conclusion of the Super Rugby season as part of his negotiated contract with the Tahs, and therefore is highly unlikely to be seen running around Sydney’s suburban grounds.

Jacques Potgieter trained in an Eastern Suburbs jersey this week.

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FORMER Waratahs coach Chris Hickey is poised to land a gig in Japan’s Top League.

Hickey has stayed off the radar since leaving NSW at the end of 2011, but would be a valuable acquisition for Japanese rugby, particularly in luring Super Rugby and Shute Shield players to the lucrative competition.

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THE Major League Baseball does have some rugby connections.

Craig Shipley, who was Australia’s first MLB player and is now an assistant general manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, was a promising rugby winger at school back in the 1980s.

Shipley played at Epping Boys High with future Wallabies Brett Papworth and Ian Williams, and their team played a Waratahs Shield final on the SCG. “I had some pace, so when we got the ball out wide, us three guys could score some tries,” Shipley said.

Williams was also a promising baseballer and played for junior Aussie squads.

Papworth told us: “Shippers was a very good player, a great athlete. He was very committed to baseball obviously so it was great to watch him go on and succeed.”

Did they win? “No, I think Matraville got us actually.”

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BRAD Thorn has declared that he hopes to continue playing next year, past his 40th birthday.

To give you an idea of his longevity, Thorn was playing first grade rugby league before the Super League war, prior to rugby turning professional, and before OJ Simpson fled LA cops in his white Ford Bronco.

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THE 145kg younger brother of Will Skelton has been included in the NSW Colts side for the national under-20s championships in Canberra starting Saturday.

Cameron Skelton will play for NSW alongside Angus Pulver, son of ARU boss Bill Pulver, and Jack McCalman, cousin of Wallabies backrower Ben McCalman.

This follows the NRL’s decision to put the tablets on their illicit drugs list.

In the latest revelation, the NZRU confirmed yesterday that All Blacks stars Cory Jane and Israel Dagg were under the influence of sleeping pills during their infamous night out during the 2011 World Cup.

This is on the back of the Kiwi league team reportedly using sleeping pills inappropriately during their World Cup campaign last year.

The NZRU is now investigating the use of pills – which athletes mix with energy drinks to achieve a “legal high” when they expect to be tested for alcohol and illicit substances.

The NRL has recently taken a zero tolerance approach to the pills unless they are being used for authorised purposes.

Now Australia’s rugby officials are keen to find out if the practice is wide-spread among its players.

The ARU told us: “Australian Rugby has had preliminary discussions with the Rugby Union Players Association on the potential for research-based testing for sleeping tablets. These discussions are ongoing.”

***

Eastern Suburbs are paying Waratahs enforcer Jacques Potgieter $500 a week even though he’ll likely never play for them in the Shute Shield.

Potgieter confirmed on Monday he’d joined Easts, having been the only NSW player unattached to a club side.

Easts may reap some publicity from the deal, but Potgieter will head straight to Japan at the conclusion of the Super Rugby season as part of his negotiated contract with the Tahs, and therefore is unlikely to be seen running around Sydney’s suburban grounds.

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Former Waratahs coach Chris Hickey is poised to land a gig in Japan’s Top League.