The Canberra Raiders are already without one hooker in Danny Levi, and thankfully won't be without two after Tom Starling was slapped with a fine for an incident on Sunday.
After back-to-back losses in Queensland to start the season, things couldn't have began worse for Canberra after losing Danny Levi to a suspected broken jaw two minutes into the contest.
It forced Starling, who averages just over 44 minutes per game, into playing the remainder of the match. But while the utility made 54 tackles in 78 minutes, only one draw the ire of the match review committee.
The 24-year-old shot out of marker midway through the first-half to put pressure on Matt Moylan as he went to kick the ball, instead catching the five-eighth mid-air and dragging him to the turf.
While there was no penalty given on-field, the MRC hasn't skipped a beat, and since slapped Starling with a grade one dangerous contact charge.
Luckily, the hooker won't miss a match for the tackle, and will instead pay a $750 with an early guilty plea, or $1,000 if he fails in contesting the charge at the judiciary.
Despite Levi's injury, Starling is expected to remain on the interchange bench in a utility role, with Zac Woolford expected to be recalled after starting 17 consecutive games for Canberra last season.
The Raiders will travel to McDonald Jones Stadium on Sunday to face the Newcastle Knights, with one side destined to go 2-2, while the other slips to a 1-3 start to the season, heaping the pressure on in March.
