Storm defends powder penalty
MELBOURNE and the NRL have hit out at claims they went soft on the Storm players implicated in the white powder scandal as it emerged star fiveeighth Cameron Munster had been warned to clean up his act or face the sack.
Munster is on his last chance, with Storm chief executive Justin Rodski confirming the Queensland and Australian star needed to heed the warning or face the prospect of having his contract torn up.
He, Brandon Smith and Chris Lewis will miss the opening round next season after they were handed one-game bans by the NRL on Tuesday as well as fines totalling $49,000, having been caught on video with white powder.
The trio were sanctioned by their club. As well as being removed from the leadership group, Munster – who will enter a rehabilitation facility for a four-week program to help him deal with alcohol – received a suspended $100,000 fine and was put on a booze ban for 12 months.
Smith and Lewis received suspended fines of $50,000 and $10,000 from Storm and will have additional behavioural conditions as part of their ongoing stay at the club.
The reaction to the sanctions was mixed – a News Corp poll suggested more than 60 per cent of people believed the penalties were not hard enough.
There was also an outcry on social media over comparison to the treatment meted out to Warriors start Reece Walsh, who was suspended for two matches after he was arrested by police and charged with possession after being found with a bag of cocaine.
While Walsh admitted using cocaine, the Storm players claimed they were too intoxicated to remember what had happened, and the NRL and Melbourne were prevented from drug testing them because they were filmed while on their off-season.
As a result, there was no way for the club or the NRL integrity unit to determine the white powder. It is understood the Storm was frustrated by its inability to sort out the matter.
As it is, it will be without Munster, Smith and Lewis for round 1. “This is not a farce, it’s a serious situation the club is dealing with and has imposed significant sanctions on each of the players,” Rodski said.
“The club is not permitted to drug test the players. Drug testing is done by the NRL, that is part of the players’ (agreement) in association with the RLPA.
“We’ve put together what we believe are important significant actions and sanctions for the players. It’s not spin.
“It is clear that through excessive consumption of alcohol and intoxication the players have limited memory of what did or didn’t happen in that hotel room.”
NRL chief Andrew Abdo said: “We have a video and that is all we have. We have acted on that evidence. There is a difference between that and other matters where police are involved and there is a charge.”