Hugh McGahan: Common sense is still the best prescription around

The players need to take some responsibility for what they do and what they put into their bodies.

As the game questions what more could be done to deal with the problem of prescription drug use by players, I have a suggestion - expect adults to behave like adults.

The Rabbitohs this week called on the NRL to recognise they had an issue with prescription drugs following the hospitalisation of two of their players, Dylan Walker and Aaron Gray, even suggesting hair is tested for signs of the drugs in the players' systems.

The NRL and clubs already do so much in the area of education and welfare. Sometimes the players need to take some responsibility for what they do and what they put into their bodies.

Players can't be monitored 24/7, and neither should they be. They need to make good choices and, sadly, too often they don't.

How many times does something like this need to happen before they wake up and realise what they are doing is extremely dangerous? Does someone need to die, because reports suggest these two nearly did?

Both the Kiwis and All Blacks had an issue with sleeping pills and energy drinks at their last World Cups, which I found staggering.

Yes, they are young men and we all make mistakes but professional sportsmen play their lives out in public.

They are under incredible pressure and everything they do is under scrutiny, so they need to make good choices.

A lot of youngsters need to find a release and maybe clubs need to relax their views around alcohol. If players feel their only alternative is taking prescription drugs, then it's creating more of a problem than clamping down on alcohol.

I'm not suggesting drinking binges - on the contrary - but players need to find safe ways to unwind. Some clubs provide a time and place for their players to do this away from the public and in a controlled environment.

When I was still playing, we were constantly reminded that we were representing our clubs or our country but that was as far as it went. We were treated like adults.

We were lucky that we didn't have social media or security cameras watching our every move and, yes, there were occasions when we did some dumb things. But we didn't get ourselves into dangerous situations.

There was an innocence about that era, and I remember the story of former Australian captain John Raper walking down a street wearing nothing more than a tie and bowler hat.

At the time, it was seen as harmless fun but imagine the backlash if something like that happened today. I'm not sure what approach is better.

Former Kiwis team-mate Kevin Tamati knew he couldn't drink because, if he did, he sometimes had anger issues. I still don't think he drinks and, to me, that is an adult making an adult decision. You have to know your limits and Kevin did.

The advice my wife and I have given to our sons, who have gone on to play sport, is to be careful and to pick your friends wisely.

They need to recognise who the good people are and the ones who aren't.

We have tried to treat them like adults and they have, on the whole, made good decisions.