Canterbury pair Corey Harawira-Naera and Jayden Okunbor will not be welcome at Canterbury training as the Bulldogs and NRL investigate the schoolgirl scandal.
Harawira-Naera and Okunbor have been stood down by the Bulldogs, after chief executive Andrew Hill confirmed they were being investigated for bringing teenage girls back to their hotel after a school visit.
The alleged incident occurred on a pre-season trip to Port Macquarie last month for a trial match and was brought to the club’s attention last Friday.
Hill also confirmed the pair would not be training or involved at the club while the investigation continues, after being handed breach notices by the NRL.
“I can confirm that the breaches do relate to players bringing young females of a consensual age back to the team hotel,” chief executive Andrew Hill said.
“While neither player is the subject of a current police investigation, these are very concerning matters that the club is treating seriously.
“The conduct not only breaches the club’s code of conduct, it is not reflective of the standards and values we have tried to instil into our players.
“We have been very conscious through our review of these allegations over the past few days to do everything we could to protect the identity and welfare of the girls involved.”
The issue could not have come at a worse time for the club, even after they attempted to get on the front foot by taking it to the NRL’s integrity unit.
The Bulldogs have battled to fix their tarnished image after the Mad Monday affair from 2018, which included Adam Elliott and Asipeli Fine pleading guilty to wilful and obscene exposure.
The club are also without a major sponsor, and the Sydney Morning Herald reported on Wednesday morning the drama had cost the club a $2-million deal with restaurant chain Rashays.
“After the past few months, where our players have received some deserved recognition for their community and charity work this is a very disappointing situation,” Hill said.
“It is not the behaviours or values of this football club. It’s why we’ve taken a strong stance and an immediate action.”
The matter will also overshadow the NRL’s season opener between the Bulldogs and Parramatta.
The loss of Harawira-Naera in particular is a brutal blow for Canterbury, given he is a New Zealand Test representative and was the NRL’s leading offloader last year.
“It’s got its challenges, that’s for sure,” coach Dean Pay said.
“There are opportunities for the other boys. We will be prepared, we will be ready.
“We’ve got a game to play. That’s what we’ll be ready for.”