SURREY County Cricket Club and the ECB have vowed to increase drug testing and education following the findings of the inquest into the death of cricketer Tom Maynard.
Promising batsman Maynard was 23 when he died in the early hours of June 18, after being electrocuted on a railway line and later hit by a train.
An inquest on Tuesday recorded a verdict of accidental death, but noted Maynard, who was driving a car pulled over by police in the hours before his death, was four-times over the drink -drive limit and also had the Class-A drugs cocaine and ecstasy in his system.
Surrey have revealed following the inquest that since Maynard's death they have stepped up their anti-drug policy.
They said in a statement: "Surrey CCC began its own investigations into conduct at the end of last season and introduced a team-wide anti-drug policy which all players and management are required to abide by.
"Working in partnership with ECB and PCA further recommendations have been initiated."
The ECB have decided to implement out of competition drugs testing, to include recreational drugs as well as performance-enhancing substances, in addition to their current anti-doping programme which involves around 200 tests being carried out on county players every year.
"While the ECB accepts that recreational drug use is a part of modern society, we do not condone it and will take all reasonable steps to prevent its use within the game," a statement read. "We also believe we have a responsibility to educate all our players and are committed to supporting any player who needs help in this area.
"The ECB Board has recently agreed to develop an out of competition testing programme to encompass recreational drugs, in co-operation with the PCA.
"These measures will supplement ECB's existing anti-doping programme which involves in and out of competition testing through UK Anti-Doping in compliance with the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Code and financial support which ECB provides to PCA for player education and support programmes."
The death of Maynard hit all at Surrey hard, with batsman Jason Roy getting a tattoo in honour of the talented Welshman, who he regarded as one of his best friends.
Following the inquest, Maynard's family released a statement about their "devastating" loss. It read: "The only people who would judge Tom on the findings of the inquest are people who didn't know him.
"He made choices that night that tragically cost him his life but his devastated family and friends will love and miss him unconditionally, always.
"He was a very special person and his death leaves a huge hole in all our lives."
