Wakefield's former Great Britain hooker Terry Newton has been suspended by the UK Anti-Doping agency after testing positive for a prohibited substance, the Super League club announced on Wednesday.

The 31-year-old former Leeds and Wigan forward, who joined the Wildcats from Bradford in the off-season, was tested during pre-season training in November.

Newton played in two of Wakefield's opening matches of this year's Super League - he missed one game with a bicep tear - but has been suspended with immediate effect by the Yorkshire club.

"Wakefield Trinity Wildcats have confirmed that Terry Newton has been provisionally suspended by the UK Anti-Doping Agency (UKAD) after testing positive for a prohibited substance on 24th November 2009," said a club statement.

"Neither Wakefield Trinity Wildcats nor Terry Newton will be making any further comment on the issue until further notice."

England's Rugby Football League, who revealed they had been informed by UKAD on Monday of the positive test, issued a statement saying: "Rugby League operates a robust in and out-of-competition testing programme of both urine and blood and its anti-doping regulations have been fully WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) code compliant since 2005.

"This means that players can be tested following a game or subjected to testing without prior notice.

"Since 2005 a total of 1,922 tests have taken place at all levels of the game," the statement added.

It also said that according to UK Sport figures, rugby league players were tested 508 times for prohibited substances from April 1 2008 to March 31 2009.

This is the third highest of all UK major sports behind football and athletics.

"The RFL is committed to the principles of drug-free sport and works with UK Sport and UKAD to regularly educate and inform players through its '100 percent ME' campaign about the dangers of drugs and consequences of taking drugs or breaching the anti-doping regulations," the governing body added.

Super League leaders Wakefield, who've won all three of their games so far this season, don't play this weekend.

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