DRAGONS lock Jack de Belin's rugby league career hangs in the balance after his federal court action against the NRL ended in defeat on Friday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In a case that had huge implications for the game and de Belin, Justice Melissa Perry ruled in the NRL's favour, with costs, saying the governing body had successfully "established a clear and present danger to their legitimate interests."
The 28-year-old was stood down by the NRL in February after he was charged with aggravated sexual assault of a 19-year-old woman in a Wollongong apartment in December.
He is one of the first players sanctioned under the NRL's new no-fault stand-down policy that stipulates players facing charges carrying 11 years imprisonment or more can not play until their court process has concluded.
"I am very disappointed by the decision," de Belin said in a statement
"I have been stood down from my employment as a professional rugby league player because an allegation has been made against me. I am innocent and I will continue to vigorously defend the single charge made against me.
"I have worked hard to build my career and I have now been stood down at the height of it, without any certainty around the timeframe to return.
"I am told it could be well into next year. This is very difficult for me, and also my family."
ARLC chairman Peter Beattie said it was a difficult situation.
"This is not a time for celebration, we'd have preferred not to have been in court on this matter," Beattie said.