Player punishment stays with NRL clubs

NRL clubs will remain empowered with the responsibility for punishing their own
players for off-field indiscretions despite the controversy generated by the early
season spate of alcohol-fuelled incidents.
In a vote of confidence for the status quo following a meeting of club delegates,
the players association and the league, clubs will remain the first port of call
when it comes to keeping their players in line.
The NRL will intervene only when it feels the punishment is inadequate.
"Everyone accepts that we should keep working to a consistent approach in terms of
penalties but it is equally important to recognise that we are dealing with a very
inconsistent range of circumstances," NRL chief executive David Gallop said on
Thursday.
"There was clear agreement that the responsibility and indeed the ability to deal
with issues in the first instance rests with the club and that an independent
tribunal would be impractical.
"The NRL wishes to be involved only when the penalty of the club is manifestly
inadequate and there is a need to protect the reputation of the game."
Influential figures in the game such as veteran coach Wayne Bennett called for the
responsibility for punishing players to be taken out of the hands of the clubs,
given that they stand to lose the most when it comes to standing down a player.
The NRL has already had to step in twice this season to hand down punishments, most
notably in the case of Manly fullback Brett Stewart following his drunken antics at
the club's season launch.
Stewart is to face sexual assault charges at Manly Local Court next month but the
club initially said it would be happy to see him keep playing pending the result of
the court case.
The NRL intervened and banned Stewart for four matches, not in relation to the
assault charges but for bringing the game into disrepute with his intoxication
earlier in the evening.
Just two days earlier Stewart and his brother Glenn had officially launched the NRL
season, Brett Stewart along with Greg Inglis the faces of the game's advertising
campaign that later had to be re-edited to remove Stewart's image.
Despite the game being dragged through the mud over the incident, the delegates at
Thursday's meeting - which included club chief executives Steve Noyce, Shane
Richardson and Todd Greenberg - decided against calling for an independent tribunal
to administer future incidents.
"The disappointing thing remains that most players are worthy ambassadors for the
game and it is clear that they are disappointed in the actions of a small handful,"
Gallop said.
"We discussed a number of options today that may assist clubs and players in better
understanding the sort of penalties and codes that are being enforced."