Cowboys star Valentine Holmes has been handed a breach notice by the NRL following an investigation into a social media post last weekend.
The Integrity Unit deemed Holmes had breached the NRL’s Code of Conduct after he was pictured with a white bag in his mouth in an Instagram post on Sunday.
The NRL released a statement on Wednesday that said: “It is alleged Holmes engaged in conduct which has brought the game and his club into disrepute by publicly associating the game with illegal drugs”.
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Holmes has five business days to respond to the breach notice. No sanction has been proposed but he is likely to face a fine, suspension or both.
9News Sydney’s Michael Chammas told Nine’s 100% Footy on Monday that Holmes faces “a hefty fine at least and the potential to face a couple of games of suspension”.
“There’s been similar incidents in the past with Melbourne Storm and Brandon Smith and Cameron Munster, they served two-game bans for an incident a couple of years ago on Mad Monday,” Chammas said.
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Holmes was left out of the Prime Minister’s XIII squad to take on Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister’s XIII in the wake of his Instagram post.
The 28-year-old has played 19 Tests for the Kangaroos scoring 19 tries, and played a starring role in last year’s Rugby League World Cup win.
