Incoming NRL head of football Brian Canavan will consider increasing the number of demerit points needed to miss marquee matches or imposing fines for minor judiciary offences in a move which could prevent another player suffering the same fate as Cronulla's Wade Graham after he was ruled out of Origin II for a grade one careless high tackle.

Graham, who was to make his State of Origin debut for NSW next Wednesday night, had his childhood dream shattered after being suspended by the NRL tribunal for a high shot on North Queensland superstar Johnathan Thurston in the Sharks' 13-10 defeat of the premiers on Monday night.

The one-match ban, which was automatically imposed because Graham had carry-over points and loading from a previous high tackle on Thurston in last year's finals series, has sparked debate about whether different penalties should apply for representative fixtures and play-offs as those for regular-season games and was discussed at a meeting of NRL club CEOs on Thursday.



Some of the alternatives include a fines system, increasing the carry-over points reduction per match, as well as increasing the demerit points required to miss marquee matches such as Origin, Tests and finals games.