24 Oct 2009

England manager says cheating won't go away

7:23 am on 24 October 2009

The England team manager Martin Johnson believes cheating in rugby union is inevitable because it is human nature to do whatever it takes to win.

The sport was rocked by the recent 'Bloodgate' scandal in which Harlequins director of rugby Dean Richards told one of his stars to fake a blood injury during a European Cup match to allow another player to come back on as a substitute.

Johnson told the Global Sport Summit in London the pressure to win is always there and that's self-induced and people want to be competitive.

Johnson does not believe that the financial rewards of success in the relatively new era of professional rugby are a greater incentive to cheat.