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South Sydney Rabbitohs drop George Burgess for smashing car window

Australian rugby league was hit with a second off-field scandal in as many days yesterday as Rabbitohs forward George Burgess was suspended after being charged with wilful damage of property.

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South Sydney Rabbitohs drop George Burgess for smashing car window.

Australian rugby league was hit with a second off-field scandal in as many days yesterday as Rabbitohs forward George Burgess was suspended after being charged with wilful damage of property.

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The table-topping South Sydney Rabbitohs said the Englishman had admitted his guilt in the incident, in the early hours of Monday after a game.

The club said he had been fined A$10,000 (HK$75,000) and suspended for two matches, and will also pay for the cost of the damage, undergo an anger-management programme and do 50 hours of community work.

"George accepts he's done the wrong thing and that there has to be a price," club chief executive Shane Richardson said. "For someone on his contract level, it is a big price to pay, and he still has to deal with the issue in court.

"We will support him because he has faced up to what he has done and because this isn't reflective of his general behaviour at the club," Richardson added.

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Queensland police said they charged a 21-year-old man after a sign was rammed through the window of a car. Burgess is due to appear before Cairns Magistrates Court on July 10.

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