“Compassion in life is an absolute necessity, and without displaying it, the sport of rugby league may well appear to have lost its own moral compass,” former Titans chairman Paul Broughton wrote in an email following the tragic accident to Newcastle player, Alex McKinnon.

It was an appeal to the NRL to show a public display of sympathy for McKinnon and the Storm’s Jordan McLean, who was suspended for seven matches for the tackle on McKinnon.

The NRL did not respond officially but the email set off a chain of events that led to two Titans players, Greg Bird and Nate Myles, visiting McKinnon in hospital in Melbourne. The pair then held a separate meeting with McLean. On each visit, the two Titans presented the players with a book of signatures offering support.

Broughton, a former first grade coach of Newtown and Balmain and inaugural chief executive of the Gold Coast team, forwarded the email to Titans coach John Cartwright.