Corey Norman has been stood down by Parramatta for the club’s round 19 NRL game this weekend after the Eels star pleaded guilty to one charge of drug possession and one charge of possessing a restricted substance.
Norman, who made a brief appearance in a Sydney court on Wednesday when he was convicted on both counts, will miss the match against Penrith on Sunday.
The Eels said in a statement the club would meet with the NRL this week to discuss the matter, before Norman front the club’s disciplinary committee next week.
When Norman was caught with drugs in his pockets at a Sydney casino in May, another person, who is known to police, told security the MDMA and diazepam belonged to him and not the Parramatta star.
But that didn’t save Norman from being hit with two drug charges over the incident, to which he pleaded guilty during a brief appearance at Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.
He was fined $800 in total and ordered to pay legal costs over the possessing a prohibited drug and possessing a prescribed restricted substance charges, which were laid after he revealed his illicit cache to security guards during a random check at The Star.
Norman and three friends had first gone to the casino about 7.40pm on the night of 20 May. About an hour later they went for dinner at a nearby restaurant.
The men spent about two hours at the restaurant in what they thought was a private room. But there was CCTV.
“During this dinner, one of the males produces a small white plastic container and hands it to another male before it is in turn handed to the accused who puts the container in his pocket,” court documents revealed Wednesday said.
The group then returned to the casino and a security guard quizzed Norman after finding the 17 tablets of Diazepam.
“Medication for my muscles,” he replied, according to the court documents.
Another packet of drugs was found and forensic testing revealing it to be 0.21 grams of MDMA at a purity of 78%.
“Whilst the accused is spoken to by staff, another male approaches and claims that the container bearing the aforementioned drugs belongs to him,” court documents state.
His barrister, Murugan Thangaraj SC, highlighted that Norman did not consume the substances, and has never returned a positive drugs test.
“There is no doubt about his remorse,” Thangaraj said.
Norman’s legal team asked the court not to record a conviction, but the magistrate refused the request after a brief appearance at Downing Centre court in Sydney.
Norman has continued to play for the Eels since the incident, most recently starring in last Friday’s win over the Sydney Roosters, but, with his contract set to expire at the end of the current season, his conviction casts doubt on his future at the Parramatta club.
The court appearance is just the latest of a string of controversial moments to hit the Eels this season, and comes in the same week that two sex tapes allegedly featuring Norman were reportedly shopped around media outlets.
Norman’s involvement in the videos is currently under investigation by the Eels, who will report back with their findings to the NRL’s integrity unit.
