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I don't think the FA were left with much choice this week after a premiership footballer was suspended after failing a drugs test. UK Sport got exactly what they needed to reinsforce there point. I don't understand what the issue is myself. Being a footballer is a privlige, therefore they simply have to appriciate that although they may see it as an intrusion of privacy. They are being paid thousands of pounds a week, millions a year, to what so many millions of people would do for free. So there inconviniance is something i have no time for. The FA shouldn't of taken so long to agree to the regulations anyway. I think its fortunate that they are asking for the cream of our footballers to partake and not all of them.
As for Sepp Blatters comments, It still bewilders me how he is in charge of world football. They guy doesn't have a clue.

If correct this is good news although the devil will be in the detail. It will be interesting to see how solid the FA's resolve is when some of our top footballers begin to miss tests.

The issue is not with the FA, it's with the regulations that are simply wrong.

They are treaating athletes in all sports like prisoners. There was a perfectly good working model already in place for years with regards to testing procedures, THAT was never the problem.

The real problem is moving technology, that is the only reason that w still have competitors gettign away with it.

Poster No. 1 - The footballer in question was Paddy Kenny, a goalkeeper from a Championship side.

But you're right about Blatter ;^)

Is there such a thing as grassroots football in England? Don't see too much evidence of it in the Premier League, with all these foreign players, managers and owners. You'd be better off spending all the money on drug-testing....

Hackerjack has the nub of it, the rest of the world must be laughing at the British, with our over-reliance on petty rules and regulations when we let the big misdemeanors go unpunished.

I do have some sympathy for the Premier League footballers because in this day and age it's difficult to trust one organisation to have a database of where they will all be at a specific time, of a specific day, all year round. Despite what they're paid I don't think it's fair that they have to divulge family holiday plans in the close season in order to keep some jobsworth happy. And let's face it, it won't be too long before there's a newspaper headline that a laptop was stolen from a WADA member of staff with all the details on.

It just seems typical of British regulations to attempt to go that little bit too far in order to appear to be leading the rest of the world. They still haven't realised that the rest of the world actually think we're anally retentive.

It's a system that has been working effectively in Olympic sport for a number of years and will be managed by UK Sport (on behalf of WADA) in this country.

UK Sport have improved their communications with sportsmen significantly in the past couple of years and the system allows those subject to testing to update their whereabouts online, by text or by telephone. This is all about ensuring those sportsmen and women understand that the system is there to protect them from those who may want to win by unfair means. In a sport where the rewards are so high I can't believe that there will never be a problem - that view would be totally naive.

What angers me about the proposal is that it's "a selection" of players who are selected, including "some" England players.

The criteria for picking players should be fair to everyone. For example:
* All internationals
* All top flight players
* All professional players who have played in the top flight
* All players earning more than £x
* All professional players.

It shouldn't be left to WADA, the FA or anyone else to cherry pick random players, or on a potentially politically motivated basis.

I don't see why football should have to enforce these drug test rules. It will always be the usual sports who have drug problems, becuas there is no skill element in these sports: athletics, swimming, cycling and weightlifting. I suppose it would be un-PC to only target these sports, so everyone else has to suffer. As for Paddy Kenny, I didn't realise lard was a banned substance.