South Sydney Rabbitohs lock forward Cameron Murray will not return in the 2024 NRL season after failing in his bid for a downgrade at the NRL judiciary.
Murray was charged with a Grade 2 careless high tackle for a shot on Newcastle Knights second-rower Tyson Frizell during Saturday evening's Round 25 clash.
That charge landed him with a two-match ban should he have taken the early guilty plea, however, a failure at the panel will see the suspension increased to three matches.
It means Murray's season is over, although the club captain may still be eligible to play in the opening round of the 2025 NRL season when Wayne Bennett takes charge of the club for the first time in his second stint as head coach.
That comes with players likely to be selected for representative duty if not for suspension able to count those matches as part of their suspension.
Murray is a walk up member of the Australian Test team, who will have at least two, and potentially three Tests during the off-season if they make the final of the Pacific Championships series.
That means the Rabbitohs' captain and his club will likely write to the NRL asking to have the third match of his suspension served as a Kangaroos game.
The Rabbitohs have had a difficult 2024 season and currently sit in 15th place on the table with matches against top-four sides the Penrith Panthers and Sydney Roosters to close their campaign.
