West Coast Eagles' forward Willie Rioli has been hit with a bombshell second drug test, testing positive for a metabolite of cannabis following the elimination final against Essendon on September 5th.
The AFL confirmed the news on Tuesday afternoon, after a sample was taken following the Eagles' final.
The substance that Rioli tested positive for is prohibited in-competition.
Rioli was originally cited for providing a urine substitute on September 11th, following an out-of-competition doping control test.
"The AFL has confirmed that William Rioli of the West Coast Eagles has been notified of a further Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) and a potential violation of the Australian Football Anti-Doping Code (Code) in respect of a test conducted by ASADA on September 5, 2019," the AFL released in a statement.
"The test was conducted following the West Coast Eagles’ elimination final against Essendon.
"The September 5, 2019 sample has tested positive for a metabolite of cannabis, which is an In-Competition Prohibited Substance under the Code.
"On September 11, 2019 Rioli was notified of an Adverse Analytical Finding for Urine Substitution being a Prohibited Method under the Code following an Out-of-Competition doping control test on 20 August 2019.
"The West Coast Eagles have been made aware of this finding and will continue to provide support for Rioli."
The Eagles themselves have released a statement, saying they will support Rioli as he goes through this process.
"The West Coast Eagles have recently been made aware that a sample taken from Willie Rioli has tested positive for a metabolite of cannabis," they said in a statement.
"As stipulated two weeks ago, the club’s primary concern remains the health and wellbeing of Willie. We will continue to support him through this particularly challenging time to assist him while this ongoing investigation runs its course.
"The club will respect the process of the investigation into the circumstances surrounding this case and will co-operate fully with it.
"We expect that these processes will take some months to complete and the club will not be in a position to make further comment until such completion."
