In 1985 he was wrongfully accused of taking stimulants before the final of the Dulux British Open Snooker Championship by South African Silvino Francisco.

Francisco was subsequently fined by the world governing body of snooker, the WPBSA, for the comments.

[4] The WPBSA, accepted that the accusation was false and it is on record that Stevens has never failed a drugs test in the history of his career.

Shortly after the comments were made public, Stevens admitted to an addiction to cocaine in his personal life.

These events were widely broadcast in the media and White wanted to make the apology public to prevent them from being repeated.