Tuesday round-up

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A look at the news from around the NRL this Tuesday 5 March 2019.

Arrests, charges made over videos

Channel 9 reporter Danny Weidler has told 9 News that Panthers player Tyrone May has been arrested and issued two charges in relation to the sex videos which surfaced late last week and over the weekend. NSW Police have since released full detail of the charge on their website.

Late yesterday, NRL.com reported that NRL CEO Todd Greenberg is likely to move quickly on punishments for the latest round of leaked videos, with the May matter likely to be addressed by the end of the week, and possibly the newest tapes as well.

Test triple header confirmed for November

Australia will face Tonga at Eden Park as part of the inaugural RLIF Oceania Cup in November. The triple-header takes place a week after the previously announced Kangaroos-Kiwis clash in Wollongong on October 25.

The November 2 event will feature the Kangaroos-Mate Ma'a clash as well as a match between New Zealand and Great Britain, and Samoa v Fiji.

There's more tour details over at the NRL website.

Russell resigns

Cronulla Group CEO Barry Russell today announced his resignation from the role, the Sharks boss set to step down on April 1 after a tough year. Read the full statement at the Sharks website.

Wildcard weekend?

While cynics may have viewed it as a way to get the drama-filled off-season headlines off the front page, it's real. The NRL is considering a 'Wildcard Weekend' for the 2020 season, effectively adding teams 9 and 10 to the finals by way of a play-off round ahead of the Qualifying & Elimination weekend. The proposal would see teams 7 & 10 and 8 & 9 face off for the right to face teams 5 and 6 the following week.

The concept has come in for some harsh treatment on our forums, where you can also vote in a poll whether you support the concept.

Squads in

It was reasonably quiet, but yesterday the NRL released all sixteen clubs' full squad for the season.

You can get the updated list on our site here.

Storm sponsor

Melbourne News Limited newspaper The Herald Sun reports that the Melbourne Storm have secured a front of jersey sponsor, with online real estate agent Purple Bricks set to take up the prime spot left vacant by Crown Resorts.

The one year deal means all clubs will start the 2019 NRL season with a front of jersey partner after Cronulla confirmed Ace Gutters as their new major sponsor on the weekend.

QRL kickoff imminent

While the NRL season kickoff is still nine days away, the QRL's premier competition, the Intrust Super Cup, is set to kick off this weekend, along with the Under 20 (Colts) and Under 18 (Meninga Cup). We'll bring you the teamlists and officials for Round 1 from tonight, but in the meantime you can check out the season draws for each competition via our Quick Links page.

Meanwhile, season draws for NSWRL competitions are expected for release later this week as the league launches their season, with competitions kicking off March 15.