Blair believes the MacLeod drug scandal was badly handled

Published on Wednesday 3 December 2008 09:08

SCOTLAND captain Mike Blair can't wait to welcome Scott MacLeod back into the international fold after the big second row was cleared of any drugs mis-use.

MacLeod, from Llanelli Scarlets, was suspended in October after tests showed he had produced high levels of testosterone but investigators now believe this was caused by alcohol.

Blair fumed: "I have really felt for Scott over the last six weeks or so. I'm really pleased that everything has been cleared. It's a really unfortunate situation for him because he did nothing wrong.

"It is for us in Scotland to help him through this because his image has been tainted a bit.

"It is really hard on Scott. I don't know who to point the finger at because Scott, without doing anything wrong, has missed six weeks of international and club rugby as well as his pay.

"His reputation took a battering but he has been cleared and I look forward to catching up with him."

Blair said the Scotland squad had kept in touch with the 21 times capped ace throughout his ordeal.

"Scott is a really popular guy. It's difficult to say that everyone is relieved because we know he did nothing wrong but there is relief that this episode has passed."

Meanwhile, Blair has warned against believing his Edinburgh club's Friday night Heineken European Cup opponents, London Wasps, might suffer through having players involved in a high intensity Test against New Zealand just six days earlier. Seven Wasps players were involved in that England v. All Blacks encounter which came at the end of a demanding month also featuring clashes with Pacific Islands, Australia and South Africa.

But Blair said: "You can't read too much into having a Test the week before a club game. With England's results not going too well they might get a bit of a release going back to club rugby.

"I certainly felt that way a few years ago when the Scotland stuff wasn't going well.

"Then, going back to the club was a help. I'd imagine the England lads might be of a similar mindset."

One game Blair missed out on this season was the August friendly in which Edinburgh defeated Wasps. Again, though, he is wary of getting carried away.

"We performed well but a warm up game is very different to a European tie."