Footy Great says extreme punishments are ‘standard procedure’ in every NRL team as footy star sues Bulldogs for allegedly forcing 35 of his teammates to assault him

Top Footy commentator Braith Anasta has slammed Bulldogs star Jackson Topine for launching legal proceedings against the NRL club over an alleged punishment he says every team in the competition uses.

Topine, 22, claims he was unfairly targeted after arriving late for a training session last July at Belmore, where he was forced to endure a wrestling session involving up to 35 teammates during which he been “attacked”.

The Auckland-born star also believes she was subjected to “unlawful corporal punishment”, humiliation, anxiety, fear and “deprivation of liberty”.

His lawsuit alleges that disciplinary measures allegedly carried out on the orders of head coach Travis Touma amounted to “battery” and left him with “psychiatric injuries” and “physical and mental impairments.”

Topine is reportedly seeking $4 million in compensation, with the case to be heard in the NSW Supreme Court.

Topine (pictured with his girlfriend Holly Leppard) believes he was subjected to “unlawful corporal punishment”, humiliation, anxiety, fear and “deprivation of liberty” during a session of punitive struggle last July.

The alleged incident left Topine so physically broken that he could no longer stand or walk without assistance.

Speaking on NRL 360 on Wednesday evening, Anasta was in disbelief at Topine’s stance.

‘It’s crazy. I can’t understand, this guy trained late, so when you train late you have tough discipline,” he said.

“You are taught not to let your teammates down, because if you show up late in the game, you cost your team dearly. It happens every day with every club and every player.

“You get punished for that, all the players know if you come late to practice you get punished. That day the Bulldogs were wrestling, so the punishment was wrestling.

“If they were doing fitness this is what it would have been, these are the standards that are set.”

Anasta also urged the “NRL ‘to get involved in this and they need to back the Bulldogs'”.

“Because if all the players who suffered the same thing as Jackson Topine (at the time) sued their respective clubs, we would have trials and litigation at every club,” he added.

The 22-year-old (pictured playing for the Bulldogs) was allegedly forced to grapple with teammates one after the other for 30 seconds at a time – with other players reportedly told not to let go when he showed signs of distress.

Topine (pictured against the Broncos) has not played rugby since the alleged incident

Former Rep star (pictured with Holly Leppard) seeks $4million

“This is a concern as this should not be allowed and the NRL needs to support the Bulldogs.”

Anasta – who is also a high-profile player agent – later confirmed he had personally contacted the Rugby League Players Association over the matter, hoping the organization would side with the Bulldogs.

“The RLPA needs to be very careful about this because they could be supporting a player who could potentially derail the game,” he said.

“Honestly, if they continue to support players in these actions that are basic and happen every session, then all of a sudden the game could be really in trouble.”

Topine – who captained the New South Wales and Australian schoolboys teams and was considered one of Belmore’s brightest young talents – has not played rugby since the alleged punishment.

He played in 16 NRL matches for the Bulldogs from 2021 to 2023, scoring one try, and also represented the Maori All Stars in 2021.