Former Bury doctor suspended after breach of FA anti-doping regulations

A former Bury doctor has been suspended from all football-related activity for four years for a breach of the Football Association’s anti-doping regulations.

Dr Andrew Johnson admitted he tampered with doping control by providing fraudulent information to an anti-doping organisation – namely the FA and/or UK Anti-Doping – in relation to an application for a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) on behalf of a player.

The FA said in a statement that the suspension was effective immediately and will run until the end of January 13, 2024.

Johnson had sought a reduction in the sanction under Regulation 72 of the FA’s anti-doping regulations, which concerns the prompt admission of a rule violation when confronted with one.

However, an independent regulatory commission decided that this was not appropriate in this case.

Johnson admitted deliberately back-dating a form which was part of a retrospective TUE application sent by a player to UKAD in April 2019.

In seeking a reduction to his sanction, his case was that he had co-operated fully with authorities and promptly admitted wrongdoing.

The commission, however, said it saw “a high degree of fault” and added: “This was a deliberately dishonest act by a professional man in a position of responsibility.”

The commission concluded: “We informed the parties at the end of the hearing on January 14, 2020 that we were imposing a four-year suspension with no reduction under Regulation 72, starting on that day.”