James Graham cops 12 match ban for biting Billy Slater's ear during the 2012 grand final

Video: BULLDOGS prop James Graham has been sensationally banned for 12 matches, found guilty of biting Billy Slater

BULLDOGS prop James Graham was so adamant he did not bite Billy Slater's ear that he was protesting his innocence to coach Des Hasler as he walked into the dressing room after the grand final.

The Bulldogs prop received a 12-match suspension from the NRL judiciary Thursday night after the panel of former players Michael Buettner, Royce Ayliffe and Mal Cochrane took no more than 10 minutes to find him guilty.

A shattered Graham stared blankly ahead after the ban was handed down. Hasler was visibly angry.

Bulldogs chief executive Todd Greenberg was equally stunned with the severity of the suspension.

"James came to both Des and myself in the dressing room straight after the grand final and protested his innocence," Greenberg told The Daily Telegraph late last night. "He did that from the moment after the game. That's why we didn't take the early guilty plea.

"That's why we didn't ask for leniency. We simply came here and spoke the truth on his part. And he's now extremely shattered by the result.

"We had no spin, no angle, no secret."

From the moment Graham appeared to latch on to Slater's ear in Mike Tyson-like fashion during a brawl in Sunday's decider, most in the game considered him guilty.

Yet he was genuinely bewildered at the mere suggestion from NRL prosecutor Peter Kite that he had committed one of the grubbiest acts on a football field.

"It is a false one," Graham insisted. "At no stage did I have the thought of biting his ear or any part of his body. I've played over 250 first-grade matches and the game since I was seven years old and I have never bit anyone. I can't understand why I would choose an NRL grand final to do it. If I did, I would see the teeth marks. I can't see any bite marks in the photos."

Pressed on whether there was any possibility of him biting him, intentionally or otherwise, Graham said: "I consider myself an honest player - I did not bite him intentionally or by accident."

While several damning camera angles and photographs of the incident were submitted, Graham's barrister Nick Ghabar laid down several layers of evidence in an attempt to clear the English import's name.

That included expert opinion from his dentist and the curious scene of the Bulldogs prop removing a plate that had a fake lower anterior right lateral incisor.

His former coach at St Helens, ABC Radio commentator Daniel Anderson, was called as a character witness.

Billy Slater ear

But the fundamental part of Graham's defence was that there was "no evidence of an actual bite".

"The last time I took a bite of something it was with my mouth open, not closed," Graham said.

He also explained how he didn't consider himself to be much of a fighter, and two incidents involving Souths captain Sam Burgess and Manly captain Jason King from earlier in the season showed he preferred to get in a "clinch" position to avoid being punched.

Asked if that was also the case when he got in close with the Storm fullback, Graham replied: "I've got in to stop any punches hitting me ... until everything had calmed down."

Ghabar also argued that it could not be proved that the blood and marks visible on Slater's left ear were definitely because of a Graham bite.

He said it could've been because of the initial altercation with Bulldogs replacement David Stagg.

Because Graham's dentist said that the prop had several broken and sharp teeth, Ghabar said that "perhaps sharp teeth came into contact with (Slater's ear) without an actual bite".

Yet every twist and turn of the evidence failed to convince the three-man panel.

There was a touch of comedy before the hearing.

Inspired by The Daily Telegraph's back page this week, an Englishman wearing a Hannibal Lecter mask abused an ashen-faced Graham as he walked into Rugby League Central. "You won't be biting anyone after tonight," he shouted.

While most in the game were mystified at Graham's decision to plead not guilty, the word out of the Bulldogs late yesterday was that coach Hasler and his coaching staff had devised a "brilliant" strategy to dodge the charge.

What angered the Bulldogs most was the penalty.

While Kite had suggested a 10- to 12-week ban, Ghabar believed the suspensions of Titans fullback (four matches) and Bulldogs forward Brad Morrin (eight weeks) meant he warranted less.