Owen Trout's cannabis ban is already served as he prepares for NRL move
England forward Owen Trout has already served a one-month ban after testing positive for cannabis, according to BBC Sport. The 27-year-old is also heading to Australia, with NRL side Sharks signing him from Leigh Leopards this off-season, the quiet spell between seasons.
The positive test came after Trout's Super League match against Wakefield on 20 March. Super League is the top rugby league competition in Britain. The test found carboxy-THC, a substance the body produces as it breaks down THC, the main active ingredient in cannabis.
Cannabis is not banned all the time. Under the 2026 World Anti-Doping Agency list of prohibited substances, THC is only banned in competition, which means around matches. Anti-doping rules are set out in the agency's list, and cannabinoids sit in a section known as S8.
UK Anti-Doping, the body that runs drug testing in Britain, told Trout of the result and a provisional suspension on 22 May. A provisional suspension is a temporary ban that applies while the case is decided. Trout has admitted that he smoked a cannabis joint and ate a cannabis gummy in the week before the test.
He was formally charged on 20 July. Trout admitted the charge and completed an approved Substance of Abuse treatment programme. His ban was judged to have been fully served between 22 May and 21 June, so he is not currently suspended.
Trout is a forward, which in rugby league means one of the bigger players who carry the ball into contact and fight for ground. He won his only England cap so far against Australia last year, in the first Ashes Test at Wembley Stadium. That match was the start of a series between the two nations, and his debut came in front of a home crowd in London.
For Trout, the next chapter is a move to the NRL, which is widely seen as the strongest league competition in the world. Leaving Leigh for Sharks means a new club, a new country and a new start after a difficult year. Anyone watching his career from here will be looking at how he performs on the field, rather than off it.
