Addo-Carr reveals financial cost of false-positive drugs test

Josh Addo-Carr has declared he has “still got so much to give” to Parramatta after it emerged he has lost almost $400,000 in endorsement deals since providing a false-positive result for cocaine at a random police roadside test.

Addo-Carr fronted the Eels board on Monday to provide his version of events, just hours after this masthead revealed that a second oral fluid test had come back negative, meaning there would be no further police action against him.

The 31-year-old arrived at the meeting clutching a copy of God’s Word – Your Journey To Freedom, a book described as a “bible specifically prepared for the incarcerated”.

The club is discussing whether to rip up his $450,000 per-annum contract or allow the premiership-winning winger to fulfil it. A final decision is expected later this week.

“I have always been committed to the Parramatta Eels and nothing has changed,” Addo-Carr said in a statement provided to this masthead.

“I turned up today with a book that has changed my life and this is a chance to put into practice what I’ve learnt. I feel like I’ve still got so much to give this club and community.

“I appreciate the Eels giving me an opportunity to provide my version of events and I hope I get another chance to pull on the blue and gold.”

Parramatta have continued to pay Addo-Carr’s wages since the roadside test on September 11, but the incident has still proven costly for the veteran winger. “The Foxx” would have been an almost certain selection for the Kangaroos’ World Cup campaign, given he was an incumbent Test star and the lack of specialist wing options in coach Kevin Walters’ side.

He has paid a hefty financial price, too. Several existing or prospective sponsors – including JAC Motors, P&O Cruises, Rexona, Nike, DoorDash, Weighplate and television series Rivals: Sport vs. Sport – cut ties with Addo-Carr immediately after it was reported he had allegedly failed his initial roadside drugs test.

Considered one of the most charismatic and marketable figures in the NRL, Addo-Carr had been earning almost as much off the field as on it, with his various endorsements worth an estimated $400,000.

Addo-Carr isn’t the first NRL player to provide a false positive for drugs at a random police roadside test. Former NSW playmaker Josh Reynolds, while playing for the Wests Tigers in 2020, also made headlines after allegedly providing a positive test. Subsequent tests revealed Reynolds had provided a false positive and therefore had no case to answer.

Reynolds said that his and Addo-Carr’s experiences were a timely reminder for the public not to rush to judgement.

“I definitely know how Foxx would be feeling,” Reynolds said. “Unfortunately you’re guilty before [the second test] comes out. It sucks for him … I definitely feel for him and hope people realise it’s not what everyone says.

“Mine, I was shocked. I was coming home from a game and I got pulled over in my Tigers gear. I know it sounds crazy, but you have a bit of a laugh. I was, ‘I just got off Suncorp Stadium, that would have been a quick party!’”

Addo-Carr’s lawyer, Elias Tabchouri, said the drug-testing system was imperfect.

“Unfortunately, it’s a common occurrence that people will test positive on the roadside, but when the oral fluid is properly tested in the lab – as it did in Josh’s case – it comes back with nil for drugs detected in their system,” Tabchouri said.

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