NEW Zealand rugby players frequently drink themselves into oblivion, suffering memory blackouts from booze as often as once a week, according to research findings by fitness expert, Ken Quarrie, from Otago University, New Zealand.

Researchers tested 257 male and 91 female players with an average age of about 20.

Almost half the male players questioned had 10 or more drinks in a typical session while 35 per cent of the women consumed five or six drinks.

A total of 23 per cent of the men and 15 per cent of the women said that had drunk to the point where they suffered memory black outs at least as often as once a month. For almost 5 per cent of the men this occurred weekly.

Injuries related to drinking were reported by 14 per cent of male and eight per cent of female players.