The NRL has conducted more than 2000 tests across all 16 clubs since becoming the first governing body to screen for prescription drugs last July, with the initial results suggesting the problem is not widespread.
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The issue became topical after South Sydney players Dylan Walker and Aaron Gray were rushed to hospital after an adverse reaction to painkillers.
Most of the evidence suggesting the misuse of prescription drugs to date has been anecdotal, with the governing body extending its trial until the end of the season to capture a reasonable sample size.
Fairfax Media understands the number of players screened to date is approaching the 2500 mark, with independent tester Laverty Pathology finding only a "small" number where use is problematic.
Rugby league is on alert after a number of incidents in recent years. The New Zealand Rugby League acknowledged, after conducting an investigation, that the misuse of prescription drugs with energy drinks contributed to the Kiwis capitulation in the last World Cup. There was also speculation the Queensland Origin side was adversely affected by the practice during the 2009 series, while Russell Packer openly spoke of his problems with it after being given a lifeline by the Dragons.
The NRL has already been rocked by a tragedy relating to prescription drug misuse. "You can smash as many prescription drugs as you like and you won't get banned or in trouble," the late Ryan Tandy said in the book Sin Bin.
"That's the biggest thing for footballers, because they're still getting a sensation but it's a safe one. I ended up preferring the chilled-out cruisy feeling I'd get on prescription drugs to what I'd experience with coke [cocaine]." The NRL's former chief medical officer believes the issue not widespread.
Ron Muratore conducted his own survey of NRL players, based off a sample of about 850 respondents who were being tested by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority. "I did that for a seasonand-a-half and the incidence of prescription medication was quite small, about four or five per cent. That's considerably less than the general population," Muratore said. "Unless things have changed drastically since, I don't think there's a problem with prescription medication. It's a matter of how they take it."
An NRL spokesman said its testing was for "data-gathering purposes only". "Not to punish players [but] to determine the extent of the problem," he said. "We could then make a determination on whether further action or sanctions were needed to stop their use."
