A national team cricketer has failed a drugs test.The Bermuda player was tested in the build-up to next week’s ICC Americas Division One Twenty20 tournament and was subsequently removed from the squad.Bermuda Cricket Board have refused to name the player, or comment on the failed test, which is understood to have been for marijuana, in keeping with an Island-wide policy that has seen all national sport governing bodies, including Bermuda Football Association and the Bermuda Olympic Association, agree not to publicly name offenders who fail a test for recreational drugs.Privately, however, several Board members have confirmed the positive outcome and the player’s identity, which it is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to reveal for a first offence. The player himself also was overheard telling people about the reasons for his removal from the squad and it has quickly become common knowledge among cricket insiders.In accordance with Bermuda Sports Anti Doping Authority regulations, the player in question has been banned from international competition for a year, but is still allowed to compete domestically meaning he would be eligible for Cup Match if selected.That wouldn’t be the case if he had tested positive for a performance enhancing drug, in which event he would have been named publicly because the BADSA is obligated to do so by the World Anti Doping Authority.“The policy is that if it’s not a performance enhancing drug then we don’t name the person,” said BSADA cheif executive Cathy Belvedere. “That approach was initially decided when the Bermuda Council for Drug Free Sport was established and that was through a memorandum of understanding between the National Sport Governing Bodies and the BCDS.“It was reinstated a couple of years ago and the NSGBs at the time still upheld the need to do that (not name the offender). We’re working under a public health model, and it really is about education, prevention, detection and rehabilitation. When you’re doing that, then really you’re not going to nail somebody to the wall, you want to get them the help that they need or the education that they need to make good decisions. Because the hope is you give them a second chance and they will make a better choice the next time around.”Belvedere also said that the Island’s sports governing bodies were worried that naming a player who had failed a test for drugs such as marijuana or cocaine could have far reaching consequences for the offender.“The other side of that is, if we were to do that (name them), then people could end up losing their jobs, they could end up being put out of their house, it has all other kinds of social issues,” she said.“And if we were going to do it, then the expectation would be that everyone in the community would have to do the same thing. There are lots of other people who are also working in similar arenas, and even when you think of the police . . . we don’t see in the newspaper every person that they arrest that has one little bit of marijuana or is found with miniscule amount of drugs.”According to Belvedere the player could still appeal the outcome of the test, but has yet to do so.“The individual has the right to appeal the decision and the sanction and things like that,” she said. “I’m not saying that it is being appealed, but we are within the 10-14 days when it could be appealed.“There’s no B sample in the domestic process, but they can appeal the process itself, they can appeal the outcome of the result. If they felt the process wasn’t done to the right standard, or if they felt there was a reason that the positive find could result from something else. There are food things that people can be found positive for, and even over the counter drugs.”A first offence only brings a year-long international ban, which might be a small price to pay given the lack of international cricket Bermuda are likely to play over the next 12 months. And whether the player should be allowed to play domestically, or not, doesn’t seem to be covered by the BCB’s own rules and regulations.While refusing to comment on the most recent positive drugs test not the first among the Island’s cricketers the Board did provide a copy of their ‘drug free policy’ which states: “All athletes, athlete support personnel and persons under the jurisdiction of the association, shall be bound by the provisions of the WADA Code, and the rules and procedural guidelines of WADA and of its local affiliate, the Bermuda Sports Anti Doping Authority (BSADA).“Further, the acceptance for membership of this association at any and all levels athletes, support personnel and other persons shall imply acceptance by those persons, of their being bound and subject to the Anti-Doping Rules of the International Cricket Council and the BSADA.”