Sharks great Paul Gallen says the NRL shouldn't be "gagging" players after Cronulla forward Toby Rudolph copped a formal warning over comments made in a post-match interview.
Rudolf was asked on Fox League what he had planned for Sunday night after Cronulla beat the Dragons in Round One.
"Probably about 1000 beers. Go to Northies [pub], try and pull something. Anything will do," Rudolf said.
"No, honestly, it's all about recovery these days. I'll be going straight home, straight to the ice bath and staying very, very quiet."
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo said Rudolf's "pull something" comment was an inappropriate reference to women.
"I was very disappointed with Toby's comments, they were inappropriate and should not have been said," Abdo told AAP.
"We are going to issue Toby with a formal warning and I know the club are going to counsel him so there is not a repeat."
However, the NRL's move against Rudolph has Gallen fuming, arguing the NRL shouldn't be trying to muffle "harmless" moments of character from the game's stars.
"That's overstepping the mark," Gallen told Wide World of Sports Radio on 2GB. "I think it's sad. I think it's sad that people are going to complain about what he said.
"You could tell he was joking. He actually said straight away, 'Nah it's all about recovery, I'll be recovering for the next game'.
"I can't believe there were complaints about that, seriously?! Where did Toby Rudolph overstep the mark? A single bloke (joking that he was going to pick someone up).
"The amount of journalists that say 'We get nothing out of this bloke'. Well you (finally) get something out of this bloke and you can him for it. We're going to gag him basically.
"Now we get (a character in the game), we're going to gag him. He didn't hurt anyone."
Rudolf's flippant comment could not have come at a worse time; the evening before Women's March 4 Justice events were carried out across Australia, in response to the rape allegations that have engulfed Federal Parliament.
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