Does the NRL care if Ben Barba plays rugby league elsewhere?

Ben Barba's immediate playing fate will be determined by the world view of the NRL; if it has none, he could be back on the field next weekend. On Sunday (AEST), Barba was a spectator at St James' Park in Newcastle for Super League Magic Weekend, where new St Helens coach Justin Holbrook admitted the club was close to signing the former Dally M medallist for "a couple of years".

Second chance: Ben Barba is looking to resurrect his career in Britain's Super League, possibly avoiding a 12-match NRL ban handed down after a positive cocaine test in the wake of Cronulla's grand final win. Credit:Getty Images

Barba, currently serving a 12-match recreational drugs suspension in the NRL, told Sky Sports he could make a decision this week. "If the NRL tells us he is suspended, we will observe that suspension," an RFL spokesman told Set Of Six.

At any other time in rugby league history, this would be a straightforward situation – if you're banned in one of the sport's competitions, you're banned from them all and Barba would not be playing his first game for three months. But League Central complicated things by saying the 12-match ban would start when Barba returns to Australia. They apparently didn't consider the rather large possibility of a Super League stint and the RFL has left the whole thing on the NRL's plate.