Booze and Rugby go together like Gin and Tonic

25 high-level N.Z Rugby players have sought professional help for alcohol and drug issues in the past five years.

This information comes from no better source than the New Zealand Rugby Union. 

Some of those that have gone through treatment we know like Guildford, Cowan etc the rest remain nameless – including three All Blacks. 

Many of those players that needed help went through The Instep Programme.  

An Instep report says the number of rugby players seeking assistance is higher in professional rugby circles that any other corporate sector. 

Factors cited by Neil Sorenson from The N.Z Rugby Players Union for the high rate of help being sought include; the intensity of the high performance culture, constant public scrutiny, extreme expectations that come with being an All Black and high incomes combined with a lot of free time. 

All Black mental skills coach Gilbert Enoka’s spin is "A lot of (drinking) is related to the high pressure environment." 

Both Sorenson and Enoka forget we have other sportsmen competing at a far higher level  of sporting pressure than rugby.  

For example why don’t we hear about All Whites on the booze, getting pissed and in trouble?   

The English first and second football divisions operate under a pressure cooker of intensity, public scrutiny and earning wages that dwarf the All Blacks.   

Show me a list of the Kiwi soccer players driven to the booze?  

The difference between the two footballing codes is: ‘The Culture’  

Getting pissed is the norm in rugby – it’s not in other sports.