Bulldogs star Addo-Carr withdraws from playoff match after failing roadside drug test
Canterbury winger Josh Addo-Carr has stood himself down on the eve of the NRL finals after allegedly returning a positive roadside test for cocaine.
The Bulldogsā general manager of football Phil Gould announced the star playerās decision at a snap press conference on Tuesday morning after meeting with club bosses.
The winger will miss at least Sundayās elimination final against Manly, the Dogsā first finals appearance since 2016.
Addo-Carr has told Canterbury officials he did not consume illicit drugs last week, but stood himself down after it was explained to him by Gould that his presence in the team would likely create a media circus.
āWe accept Joshās belief of his innocence and we will support him through the process,ā Gould said.
āJosh has also engaged lawyers in his own personal defence, but that is a matter for him to report on later.
āBut as far as the short term is concerned, he wonāt be considered for selection this week in the best interests of the club.ā
Addo-Carr was pulled over on Friday night while driving in the Sydney suburb of Wentworth Point and allegedly returned a positive test.
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He was then tested a second time, with the sample sent away for further analysis.
Addo-Carr told Bulldogs officials on Saturday morning the test was inconclusive, but he was in the clear as he was able to drive after the test.
It was only when the club received phone calls about the matter on Monday they discovered that the Australia Test star had allegedly returned a positive sample.
Gould said he accepted Addo-Carr did not intentionally mislead the club.
But he indicated on Tuesday that it was possible Addo-Carr would be playing this weekend if he had been clearer in the initial details on Saturday morning.
āUnder the CBA rules, we have no reason to stand him down, nor has the league until that last sample comes back positive,ā Gould said.
āSo with that in keeping, there would be no reason for us to stand him down and go through the normal process.
āJosh has at all times defended his innocence, and said he didnāt take this and didnāt do it.
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āDid he lie to us? Iām convinced in Joshās mind that he didnāt think weād ever hear about this.
āSo he probably didnāt tell me the whole truth of the first positive or what it read. He put that down to being inconclusive.
āSo he hasnāt handled that part well.
āBut do I think he deliberately lied to mislead me? No. Thatās Josh.ā
Canterbury anticipate that it could take up to 10 weeks for the secondary sample to be returned.
Gould suggested that if it came back positive, Addo-Carrās future at the club would fall under the spotlight.
āThatās something we will deal with there,ā Gould added.
āThere are sanctions to that and precedence for that.
āIf it came back positive, Josh would have to explain how it got in his system.
āBecause he is adamant, and I mean vehemently adamant, that he has not taken the drugs.ā
Jeral Skelton appears the likeliest man to come in on the wing for the Bulldogs this weekend, provided he can recover from a minor leg injury as expected.
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