Tyrone Roberts, a once NRL prospect who trained with the Wests Tigers and was a part of the clubs' academy, has been suspended for 18 games.
A promising playmaker, Roberts earned a train and trial deal with the Tigers back in 2021, ahead of the 2022 NRL season, after coming through the Tigers academy, in which he was able to learn from the likes of Adam Doueihi, Luke Brooks and Daine Laurie.
Fast forward to the present day, and Roberts has been dealt an 18-game suspension by NSWRL after he was found guilty of serious striking charges and a careless high tackle.
Now playing on the New South Wales south coast for Warilla-Lake South Gorillas, the incident occurred last month when he took on Jamberoo.
As the competition he competes in, 'Group 7', only runs for 18 games, the suspension is set to last until the midway point of the 2024 season. This means it is an effective year-long ban.
"It's no secret that it was not a great scene there. That's why it was referred straight to the NSWRL judiciary," Group 7 operations manager Ashton Sims said via News Corp.
"Warilla were respectful and Tyrone was remorseful in there. He knows he did wrong, and that incident isn't indicative of the true fabric of the Warilla Gorillas."
Around halfway into the second half, Robert hit Jamberoos' player Jayden Morgan with a high tackle. This was followed by the two exchanging words and Roberts making a wild swinging action towards Morgan.
"I spoke to Tyrone. He knows what he did was wrong, and he's held himself accountable," Sims continued.
"He's made a commitment to seek some help and we're going to help him with that. If he's committed to bettering himself, he will have the full support of the club.
"Hopefully he learns from this."