Star playmaker Corey Norman has been stood down by Parramatta following his drugs conviction.
The Eels said in a statement on Wednesday night Norman won’t play in the club’s NRL clash with Penrith on Sunday.
“The Parramatta Eels have stood down Corey Norman from the club’s Round 19 game against the Penrith Panthers on Sunday,” the statement read.
“Corey today pleaded guilty in a Sydney court to one charge of drug possession and one charge of possessing a restricted substance.
“In each matter, Corey has had a conviction recorded and been fined $400; he now has 28 days to lodge any appeal to the sentence.
“The club will meet with the NRL this week to review the matter, before Corey meets with the Eels’ disciplinary committee next week.”
Norman pleaded guilty to charges of possessing a prohibited drug and possessing a prescribed restricted substance and was fined $800 when he appeared at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.
It continues a string of off-field stories that have plagued the Eels this year, including Semi Radradra’s controversial Fijian trip, the ongoing issues with former skipper Kieran Foran and Norman’s various exploits.
Norman was caught trying to enter the Star Casino in possession of a container filled with MDMA pills during May, and the fallout from that event has been horrific. It was later revealed he had dined out with James Segeyaro and bikie figures that night and the police had issued both players consorting warnings.
That offence in itself carried a jail term, although under section 93x of New South Wales law a person must be given a warning by the police, with the maximum sentence being three years.
This all comes after Norman was allegedly involved in a snapchat sex tape scandal with Segeyaro, although no vision of the alleged incident has surfaced, with reports of an individual shopping the footage around to media outlets for $150,000.
It is likely that when the NRL integrity unit investigates he will be suspended for matches as the season nears the end, even though the Eels are unlikely to make the finals after their salary cap points deduction, just another issue for the club to handle.
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