Player handed three-year ban by RFU with immediate effect

Saturday, 16 August 2025 at 08:06

byRugby Rucker

Luke Sharpley’s rugby career has come to a screeching halt after he was slapped with a three-year ban from all sport for trafficking prohibited substances.

The former player’s downfall began in 2023, when he was handed an 18-month prison sentence (suspended for 24 months) at Northampton Crown Court after being found guilty of dealing cocaine and cannabis.

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Both of these drugs are on the banned list for athletes, and Sharpley’s involvement in their distribution led to anti-doping violations.

Following the court case, UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) launched an investigation into Sharpley’s activities. After interviewing him, the agency issued a provisional suspension, with the Rugby Football Union (RFU) formally charging him for trafficking prohibited substances.

Sharpley didn’t contest the charges, and by admitting his violations within 20 days of the charge, he managed to reduce his ban from four years to three, as per the rules.

With the time spent under provisional suspension taken into account, Sharpley’s three-year ban will officially run from July 23, 2024, to July 22, 2027.

Martin Johnson and Jonny Wilkinson Reveal the Toughest Opponent They Ever Faced

Jonny Wikinson and Martin Johnson have both opened up about the toughest players they respectively faced in their illustrious playing careers.

The 2003 World Cup-winners, along with three of their teammates from that triumph in Sydney, snubbed a number of top stars.

Jonny Wilkinson: Christophe Dominici (France)

Dominici played 67 times for his country and won the French championship five times with Stade Français before retiring in 2008. In recent years he had worked as a pundit for French radio and TV before his death in 2020.

WILKINSON SAID: “His opportunism, his flair, his game reading, his sheer explosivity to really change a game is something that sticks in my memory.”

DID YOU KNOW? Dominci appeared in three World Cups for his country in 1999, 2003 and 2007, scoring eight tries over that time.

Lawrence Dallaglio: George Smith (Australia)

The scourge of the Lions at the age of 20 and more than 100 caps to his name for the Wallabies before he was 30. An absolute pest and nuisance at the breakdown.

DALLAGLIO SAID: "The pioneering, definitive breakdown specialist in the professional era who combined dexterity and ferocity to slow down and steal opposition ball. There were more strings to his bow, though, because he had good hands and could kick. Incredible longevity too."

Jason Robinson: Jonah Lomu (New Zealand)

Has one man ever done more to popularise the game of rugby than Jonah? When he burst onto the scene at the 1995 World Cup, it was like a meteor landing from outer space.

ROBINSON SAID: “He was built like a forward. When you play nearly seven years in rugby league and 10 in rugby union, but he was completely different. He didn’t just traumatize players, he traumatized teams. He was about 18 stone, he could run as fast as any winger and he had a sidestep.”

Martin Johnson: Jonah Lomu (New Zealand)

JOHNSON SAID: “A guy like Jonah Lomu could do things that nobody could do and change games. Nobody else on the field would have scored that try and they went on to win the game. But even he needed his teammates… sometimes he didn’t.”

Phil Vickery: Richie McCaw (New Zealand)

Lifting the 2011 World Cup in his backyard was a fitting tribute to one of the greatest ever All Blacks, but he went on to secure true legendary status as he continued for four more years, breaking record after record and uniquely hoisting the Webb Ellis trophy for a second time.

VICKERY SAID: "Played against him a few times for England.We spent our whole week just preparing to play against him, let alone the other guys. I wish I had the chance to play with him."

DID YOU KNOW? McCaw was appointed a member of New Zealand's highest honour, the Order of New Zealand, in the 2016 New Year Honours