In the second Napa video, which was circulated on Saturday, the Queensland forward bizarrely performs sexual acts on himself while another former teammate shadow boxes in the corner. The Herald has been told the Napa videos were posted “four to five years” ago on a private WhatsApp group involving other players. The Dragons issued a statement on Monday night, saying the Norman footage was filmed a number of years ago and the recruit would not face any sanctions from the club nor NRL. "The St George Illawarra Dragons have been made aware of a video circulating on social media of Corey Norman from several years ago," it read. "The Dragons informed the NRL Integrity Unit on Monday afternoon. The Integrity Unit have since confirmed they have previously been made aware of the footage and dealt with it accordingly at the time."

Loading Napa played 121 matches for the Roosters from 2013-18, including last year’s grand final win over the Melbourne Storm, before being moved on during the off-season to the Bulldogs. They have never said it publicly, but the Roosters had been concerned for some time about Napa’s loose off-field behaviour. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs are in the foetal position. They were just starting to placate angry sponsors and members following the club’s Mad Monday shenanigans in which players were photographed, by News Corp, standing on tables in the nude while singing Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline. Now chief executive Andrew Hill faces a fresh crisis involving a new signing who is yet to play a match.

Napa has told the Bulldogs he knows who took the videos but won’t divulge the person’s identity. It’s been speculated that a former teammate is responsible for releasing the videos, although Napa hasn’t confirmed that with the Bulldogs. One NRL fansite has been openly boasting on its Facebook page about releasing more videos while players on the WhatsApp group are nervous that damning videos and images of themselves could be leaked publicly. The Roosters say none of their current squad are involved in the scandal. While Napa’s lawyers have spoken to NSW Police about the matter, no formal investigation is underway.

Loading Federal revenge porn laws involving the non-consensual release of intimate images were strengthened in August last year. Those found guilty of the offence face a maximum jail sentence of seven years. Under NSW law, they face three years. While Napa appears on one hand to be the victim of a covert plot to trash his reputation, his utter stupidity in being filmed in the first place could still see him heavily sanctioned by the club or the NRL. Under the NRL’s code of conduct, players are forbidden from uploading or distributing “obscene or sexually explicit” material on social media. What could limit any possible sanction is that the audience that sees it is limited. Napa’s former Roosters teammate, Mitchell Pearce, was banned for eight matches and fined $125,000 for his infamous drunken encounter on Australia Day in which he jokingly had simulated sex with a poodle.

The NRL came down hard on Pearce because of the widespread coverage the incident - and video - received around the world. Because he wasn't naked, it could be broadcast. The three videos involving Napa are so sexually explicit they simply can’t be shown. It’s a similar situation to the one involving former Parramatta star Norman, who in 2016 was filmed having consensual sex with a woman. Either way, the so-called “Big Papi Tapes” are yet another off-field distraction for a code that continues to lurch from one crisis to the next. Many fans will argue there’s nothing to see here. It was consensual. It was private. Whoever released the video on social media is a grub. But we’re not talking about “Big Papi” if he’s not starring in his own homemade videos in the first place. In 2017, during collective bargaining agreement negotiations, the Rugby League Players Association demanded a 29 per cent share of total game revenue because it wanted to be genuine “partners” in the game.

The RLPA insisted it would clean up player misbehaviour because their actions would directly hurt their back pockets. We humbly ask the RLPA: how's that going for you? A small fraction of the game's 500-or-so players didn’t get the memo. An off-season of players being charged with assaulting women both sexually and physically, assaulting cab drivers, being banned from licensed premises for fighting, highlights that in bold type. On Monday, South Sydney star Greg Inglis was placed on a good behaviour bond but escaped conviction after he was caught drink driving and speeding on the outskirts of Lithgow the day after playing at the Koori Knockout in Dubbo on October 1. It emerged in court that Inglis had received a character reference from NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg, something that bemused other clubs who felt that support crossed the line.