James Segeyaro fights for his name, in T-shirt and shorts

NRL player James Segeyaro has told anti-doping authorities he did not attempt to deliberately “cheat the system”.

Former Brisbane Broncos player James Segeyaro leaves the ASADA meeting with cap in hand alongside his lawyer Tim Fuller Picture: AAP

James Segeyaro has told anti-doping authorities he did not attempt to deliberately “cheat the system” as the former Broncos hooker fights to clear his name and save his NRL career.

Segeyaro underwent a three-and-a-half hour grilling from two investigators from the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority on Thursday in the first step to fighting a possible doping ban after returning an ­adverse analytical finding for ­Ligandrol.

He fronted the meeting in Brisbane’s CBD dressed not in a suit and tie but a black AC/DC T-shirt and shorts.

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But despite his lawyer’s instruction to remove his cap, there was nothing sloppy about Segeyaro’s testimony as he delivered an “honest” and “detailed” account of the reasons for his positive result last month which triggered a provisional suspension.

Segeyaro, who turns 29 on Sunday, is facing a four-year ban if the ASADA inquiry recommends a doping rule violation to the NRL’s anti-doping tribunal, but his legal representative Tim Fuller is adamant the NRL veteran is not a drug cheat.

“James maintains his innocence with the investigators, 100 per cent,” said Fuller. “James made it clear he was not trying to circumvent or cheat the system.

“He did not knowingly ingest any prohibited substance, including Ligandrol, and his defence will centre on that.”

The Courier-Mail