Canberra is on the brink of sacking yet another NRL star, with AWOL centre Blake Ferguson stood down by the Raiders after failing to turn up to training.
Seemingly following the same path out of the nation's capital taken by good friend Josh Dugan and Todd Carney before him, Ferguson left the Raiders with little choice on Wednesday - his departure from the club now a matter of when and not if.
Ferguson's future was taken out of the Raiders' hands last week when the club sacked coach David Furner.
The move triggered an option in the NSW Origin representative's contract allowing him to walk away from the final two years of his deal.
Attempts by Raiders chief executive officer Don Furner to contact Ferguson in Sydney on Tuesday and Wednesday were unsuccessful, after he failed to turn up to training.
"We have been left with little choice but to stand Blake down from all playing and training duties, until we find out both why he has missed scheduled training commitments and why he has been drinking whilst injured, which is a clear breach of the club's rules," Furner said in a statement put out by the club.
"Blake will be given the opportunity to explain his actions, and following that he may also be required to front the board to show cause."
A date for the proposed board meeting has not yet been determined.
It is believed Ferguson wants out of Canberra to be closer to family and friends in Sydney, and he has already been linked to both Cronulla and Canterbury.
Speculation he could join the Bulldogs will only intensify following Canterbury's decision to release Ben Barba to join Brisbane in 2014.
It is understood Ferguson has advised the Raiders to contact him through his uncle Anthony Mundine, but they have had no success in doing so.
The Raiders' decision to stand down Ferguson comes just hours after interim coach Andrew Dunemann spoke out about the 23-year-old's failure to front for training.
Asked if the whole saga was becoming ridiculous, Dunemann replied: "Yeah it is, but like I said the board are handling it and I'll leave it to them."
A circus?
"I think so," Dunemann said.
The Raiders are at least well versed in dealing with problem players, with Dugan sacked in March after a series of off-field indiscretions.
One of those was skipping a recovery session, with he and Ferguson infamously choosing to drink upon a rooftop in stead.
The Raiders stood by Ferguson, and again while he underwent counselling under the guidance of Mundine to deal with alcohol-related issues.
That came after he was charged with indecent assault following an alleged incident at a Cronulla nightspot in June - when he and Dugan had been out celebrating their selection in the NSW team for Origin II.
Ferguson eventually returned, but played just one more game against the Sydney Roosters in round 22 prior to being stood down on Wednesday.
Carney was sacked by the Raiders in August 2008 following a series of off-field indiscretions.
The Raiders meanwhile are fighting for their finals lives, needing to beat the Warriors and then the Sharks in Canberra to have any chance of finishing in the top eight.
