South African Doctor claims steroid use by Rugby playing schoolboys is commonplace.

Of the banned substances, anabolic androgens ("steroids") are the most widely publicised and relevant to muscle gain. My schoolboy patients inform me they are also the most easily accessible - from gym trainers, under the counter at supplement shops and from school mates. Last week a schoolboy from a prominent rugby-playing school conceded to me that "well over half" of the first-team squad of 30 take anabolic steroids. Steroid use at school has quickly evolved from being surreptitious to ubiquitous. Ironically, these pupils may be tested for recreational drugs but fall through the steroid-detection net because sports dope testing is not routinely performed at schools.

My young patients tell me that most of the products are obtained via a ballooning black market in gyms. Some of the ampoules they have shown me are intended for veterinary use and are imported from Asia and Central America. But, in the now tainted world of school sport, apparently anything justifies a first team jersey, the coach's approval, glowing parental pride and the school's adulation.