SPECIAL 64 PAGE SEASON PREVIEW ISSUE OF RLW - NOT YOU AGAIN!

By Steve Mascord.

As NRL teams prepare to line up against players they sacked for misbehaviour, Canberra chief executive Don Furner has warned clubs may soon wash their hands of disciplining their stars and leave it to the League.

Todd Carney (Canberra to Sydney Roosters), Greg Bird (Cronulla to Gold Coast) and Brett Seymour (Cronulla to Warriors) are back in the premiership after short absences following their dismissals for off-field transgressions.

And now their former clubs are asking questions about the system which potentially punishes them for taking the moral high ground.

“Maybe down the track clubs will leave it to the new committee the League has formed to police this issue – that is a possibility,’’ Furner tells RLW.

“To be honest, I didn’t know anything about this body until I read about it in the paper. It was news to me. I’m not sure how it operates.

“I do believe the clubs are in the best position to assess what action is appropriate given a player’s history and background – and I know that’s what the NRL thinks too.’’

On December 8, the NRL announced that a committee comprising Michael Buettner, Graham Annesley and Mark O’Neill would run the rule over how clubs have dealt with off-field misdemeanours.

With the help of an investigator, Gail Clifford, the body has already looked into a number of incidents including one which saw Australia back-rower Paul Gallen issued with a criminal infringement notice for offence public conduct.

But Sharks CEO Richard Fisk says there are “massive ambiguities’’ in the system. “The clubs originally all agreed they were in the best position to police the behaviour of players,’’ Fisk says.

“But then there were inconsistencies that arose with the way each club dealt with things – which is why this committee has been formed.

“But there aren’t enough guidelines out there about how this affects us. There needs to be a lot more clarity.’’

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