Graham says sorry to team

Captain James Graham has apologised to Canterbury teammates for his role in the ugly scenes that marred the conclusion to the controversial Good Friday NRL clash with South Sydney.

Graham yesterday took the early guilty plea option on his contrary conduct charge over his heated clash with referee Gerard Sutton after he awarded the matchwinning penalty to Souths.

The English prop will miss four NRL games after also taking the early plea on a dangerous contact charge for his tackle on Adam Reynolds that led to the penalty.

Graham’s agitated response to Sutton was accompanied by a tirade from teammate David Klemmer who subsequently copped a contrary conduct charge and three match ban.

And, when the match ended soon after, angry Bulldogs fans threw plastic bottles at the match officials as they left the field.

Bulldogs star Josh Morris said a contrite Graham had learned a harsh lesson and had addressed the team about it at their video session on Tuesday.

“He apologised for what happened and if the same situation happened again I’m sure he would react differently,” Morris said.

“Obviously frustration got the better of us there and the way we reacted probably wasn’t the best.

“We need to know how to handle ourselves in those moments a little bit better and I think this was a learning curve.

“He is a very sincere bloke and I think everyone knows the type of bloke that he is and the competitor that he is and he let that get the better of him. — AAP