Australian Rugby League Commission chairman John Grant has told Andrew Fifita he needs to start "behaving like an adult" and stop threatening to leave the NRL.
The Cronulla powerhouse is furious with the NRL after his Clive Churchill medal snub and his exclusion from the Kangaroos' Four Nations squad, and is reportedly considering offers to play in either the English Super League or French rugby next year.
Grant said he would be "very disappointed" if Fifita quit the NRL but warned his future was in his own hands.
"He doesn't need to do that. I don't know why there'd be any contemplation of that," Grant told reporters in Brisbane on Friday.
"What Andrew needs to do is what he's been asked to do, which is behave like an adult.
"Andrew's a great player, we want him in our game, but you've got to be a certain individual - particularly this rankle is all about selection for the Kangaroos and not being available for selection.
"We're very purposefully making the Kangaroos the elite rugby league team in Australia, it's a global team and we're going to get not the best players but the best men.
"That's what Mal Meninga's 100 per cent committed to and what we as a game are 100 per cent committed to and Andrew can be that.
"Andrew just needs to improve, frankly, off the field - it's as simple as that."
Fifita is still being investigated by the NRL's integrity unit over his public support of convicted one-punch killer Kieran Loveridge, a childhood friend of the 27-year-old prop forward.
He said earlier this month he felt the NRL was trying to "make a fool" out of him and was actively looking at options to play overseas.
Grant said there was no need for him to meet personally with Fifita but said the commission's stance on the matter needed to be clear.
"Todd (Greenberg)'s having these discussions directly," he said.
"(But) I'd be really surprised if he doesn't know this. I'm not in the day-to-day so I don't know what's gone on but it's impossible to believe that Andrew, through his club or coach or Mal Meninga or the NRL, doesn't clearly know what's expected of him.
"The game made Andrew unavailable for the Kangaroos and that's really disappointing for everyone... but just look at this Kangaroos side and have a look at the stories of redemption in this Kangaroos side. Andrew can be a Kangaroo."
