Former St Kilda player Sam Gilbert has been handed a two year drug ban while playing with Sandringham
Former St Kilda player Sam Gilbert has tested positive to a banned substance while playing with VFL club Sandringham. He was a playing assistant coach at the time.
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Former St Kilda player Sam Gilbert has been slapped with a two-year suspension for testing positive to cocaine on game day last year.
Gilbert, 33, returned the positive test the day VFL football returned to the Saints’ Moorabbin base (RSEA Park) on a Sunday afternoon in May last year.
The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) acknowledged the AFL’s decision to impose a 24-month ban on Gilbert, which expires on June 9 next year.
Gilbert played 208 games for the Saints, including their three Grand Finals in 2009-10, but was delisted after the 2018 season.
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The defender chose to sign with St Kilda’s VFL affiliate, Sandringham Zebras, as a playing-assistant coach in 2019. He had no remaining ties to St Kilda when the incident occurred.
The Saints weren’t immediately notified about Gilbert’s infraction and his suspension came as news for some at the club yesterday.
Gilbert starred with 24 disposals, five tackles, a goal and 118 KFC SuperCoach points in Sandringham’s two-point win against Frankston just moments before he failed the random drug test.
The ASADA sanctions website added Gilbert to its list of violations. It stated that Gilbert had the presence of ‘Benzoylecgonine (metabolite of cocaine)’ in his system.
“Mr Gilbert, a player in the Victorian Football League, returned an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) from an in-competition doping control test on 5 May 2019,” ASADA said in a statement.
“His sample was analysed at the Australian Sports Drug Testing Laboratory, part of the National Measurement Institute, which detected the presence of Benzoylecgonine (a metabolite of Cocaine).
“The AFL imposed a two-year ban on Mr Gilbert commencing on 6 June 2019.”
Gilbert played another four VFL matches for Sandringham following his test on May 5, and only started serving his suspension after his final game.
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Gilbert stood down from both his playing and coaching positions and he has not returned to the VFL club since.
ASADA provided additional information on the banned substance. It stated:
“Generally, cocaine produces an intense ‘rush’ with users feeling a sense of euphoria, alertness, arousal, and increased confidence.
“Many users find the drug addictive and may face a number of short and long term health problems including an irregular heartbeat, chest pain, kidney failure, and seizures or stroke.”
Originally published as Former St Kilda player Sam Gilbert has been handed a two year drug ban while playing with Sandringham
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