Tune received probenecid, which can be used as a masking agent, while undergoing hospital treatment for an infected knee last year.

IRB rules say a player caught with probenecid in his system faces a mandatory two-year ban, but Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) chief excutive Jeff Miller discounted such a punishment in Tune's case.

"He shouldn't be, no way in the world," said Miller. "There's no cover-up at all and I don't see how there could be.

"Ben's the victim in all of this. This happened 18 months ago."

The Reds star was withdrawn from four Super 12 matches after officials discovered that he had been prescribed probenecid while spending a night in hospital for an infected knee.

The QRU ran undisclosed testing on Tune's urine at a Sydney laboratory while preventing him from playing.

But QRU chief executive Jeff Miller insisted the Australian Sports Drug Agency and the Australian Rugby Union were notified of the situation.

"There was no obligation to tell the International Rugby Board because the ARU is responsible for administering the anti-doping policy for domestic matches," said Miller.

"The IRB considers the Super 12 to be a domestic competition. The proper authorities were advised.

"Only the media were not told the full story but that was to protect the player's right to privacy."