Sandor Earl has been banned from playing in the NRL until 2017 after being handed a four-year suspension for breaching the league’s anti-doping policy. 

The NRL announced on Wednesday the former Canberra, Penrith and Sydney Roosters winger was guilty of six violations, including use and possession of growth hormone CJC-1295.

After a five-hour hearing in front of the NRL’s anti-doping tribunal last month, the league also found Earl was trafficking, or attempting to move, a number of other performance-enhancing drugs.

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The 26-year-old’s ban is backdated to when he was stood down by the NRL on 29 August, 2013 and he has 21 days to appeal the ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

NRL head of integrity Nick Weeks said the league was committed to eliminating performance-enhancing drugs.

“We want our game to provide a fair and safe environment for players and that means taking all reasonable steps to eradicate performance enhancing drugs from rugby league,” he said.

Earl pleaded with the anti-doping tribunal – chaired by former High Court judge Ian Callinan – last month to be allowed to revive his career next season after he was stood down from playing while at the Raiders in 2013, following his admission that he used performance-enhancing drugs to treat a shoulder injury.

The former Raider is the only NRL player to appear before an anti-doping hearing over allegations arising from the 18-month ASADA investigation.