Geoff Toovey slams bizarre claims Manly were secretly doped in 2011

Manly Sea Eagles player Michael Robertson (left), Jamie Lyon (middle) and Brett Stewart celebrate winning the 2011 NRL Grand Final. Photo / Getty Images

Geoff Toovey has rubbished claims by a discredited supplements salesman that members of the 2011 Manly side were secretly doped with a substance similar to EPO.

Darren Hibbert claims he added an ingredient called Inositol, known as ITPP, to players' drinks after the State of Origin series, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Manly finished second on the NRL table before beating the New Zealand Warriors in the grand final.

Hibbert provided a statement to Channel Nine and The Australian newspaper making the claims: "In 2011 I created a mix that was used by the Manly players. I added an ingredient . I started adding it after the State of Origin series. The effect was quite a simple one - it was similar to EPO - it made the players unstoppable."

Toovey, who was Manly's assistant coach in 2011, responded to the allegations on NRL360 by saying: "The bloke is missing a few brain cells. He's not all there. Our head trainers would not let him near anything the players were going to take. He was there in regards to ... he used to bring in a vitamin or a supplement that one of the players was allergic to, the general stuff. But that's a minor thing, that has been cleared by the league. There's no dramas there. He wouldn't be allowed anywhere near anything that the players were drinking."