NRL 2023: Inside the punishments NRL clubs use on players in the wake of Canterbury Bulldogs saga

From the uncomfortable to the embarrassing and brutally humbling, these are the unique disciplinary techniques rugby league players are forced to endure for stepping out of line.

AFL Bomber Damien Cupido and Sea Eagle John Hopoate (cap) during a wrestling drill.

Ben Walker had a sandpit named after him.

It was a nasty and not-so subtle dig at the former NRL journeyman’s defence.

The four-metre square of hot sand sat outside the Cowboys home ground in Townsville in 2004.

It was where former North Queensland coach Graham Murray sent his players to fix their sloppy defence or missed tackle rate.

Down-up, down-up, the players would be forced to make tackle after tackle in the soft sand.

Wayne Bennett had a sandpit for the Broncos during the early 2000s, too.

It was still there in 2010, when Ivan Henjak took charge.

One day, Ben Te’o hit teammate Lagi Setu so hard with his shoulder, the young forward’s body crumbled and his face was covered in sand.

The Canterbury Bulldogs are under fire for how they have dealt with a player who failed to arrive at training on time.

The sandpit named after Ben Walker, outside the Cowboys’ old stadium in Townsville. Picture: Cameron Laird

The penalty was a four-minute wrestle session, commonly referred to as “Shark Bait” by other clubs, who have implemented the practice in the past.

The Dogs player was made to wrestle teammates non-stop.

Undoubtedly, the Dogs will need to review their intentions, which was to lift the standards of a losing culture.

Particularly, when a player seeks time away from the game.

But what fans can’t be naive to is how almost every club in the game has their wacky, embarrassing and confronting forms of punishment for failing to adhere to clubhouse rules.

The Broncos’ sandpit was notorious. Picture: David Kapernick

At the mighty Penrith Panthers, punished players roll a dice.

Every number has a consequence. One might be to eat the hottest of bird’s eye chillies.

Number two might be that the punished player must take a selfie with his shirt off and embarrassingly post it to his social media channels. Or they can pay a $200 fine.

The Storm have used a chocolate wheel to punish nonconforming players.

The wheel has gruelling physical tests including a rowing or boxing session, while other results could lead to a player bleaching or shaving their hair, or making the Gatorade drinks for the team.

Former Melbourne captain Cameron Smith’s 200th game in 2011 is memorable, but not for the milestone. The star hooker was late for training and forced to spin the wheel, landing on the dreaded “bleach hair” spot, meaning he sported a blond mop as Melbourne beat Cronulla.

The Storm’s infamous punishment wheel.

Not even a cap could hide Cameron Smith’s blond hair before his 200th game.

Cameron Munster had the bleached look last year. Picture: Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)

Brandon Smith looked like an extra from the Barbie movie. Picture: Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

Over the years, the wheel has gone on to claim some highest-profile victims, including Cameron Munster and Brandon Smith.

The Knights have a penalty which includes the entire team, including the coaching staff, being forced to wake at 5am in the middle of winter and jump into the Merewether Baths.

Other clubs force slackening players to train for 90-minutes on the field, before running four laps of an oval in under five-minutes. It routinely leads to the player being physically ill.

Other clubs simply send the player that turned up late to training home.

No questions asked. Go home.

The punishment of being cut loose from their teammates.

Their failure to buy-in to the team, their lack of respect to the cause, is viewed by coaches as embarrassment enough, for being late.

Originally published as NRL 2023: Inside the punishments NRL clubs use on players in the wake of Canterbury Bulldogs saga