Cronulla Sharks forward Toby Rudolf writes an apology regarding the mooning incident as the NRL star's case has been dismissed of the offensive charge.
The incident allegedly occurred during a heated argument.
On January 11, Rudolf had been walking with his two pet dogs near Gunnamatta Bay.
On July 2, the police issued a Court Attendance Notice to Rudolf to attend on August 20 for his offensive behaviour in a public space.
Rudolf had been walking his dogs, Louie and Tallulah.
The Sutherland Shire Council ranger asked Rudolf to put the dogs on a leash.
The ranger had told Rudolf that if he didn't put both dogs on a leash, he would take one of them, leading the Sharks forward to drop his dacks in the ranger's direction.
Rudolf wrote an apology letter, which was handed to the judge at Sutherland Local Court on Thursday, in which he wanted to "take responsibility" for his actions.
“I am not writing this to make excuses for my behaviour; I simply want to give the court context about who I am,” Rudolf wrote.
“I reacted poorly to the situation and allowed my emotions and frustration to influence my behaviour.
“What seemed like a stupid moment at the time has made me reflect seriously on the way I conduct myself and the consequences that can come from making a poor decision.”
Rudolf stated he was "genuinely sorry" and was hopeful the court would consider the incident in January "isolated."
After the judge assessed Rudolf's character references, remorse, and clean record, she gave a reality check.
“You have to be very careful,” she said.
“Think before you act.”
Rudolf has not been penalised or convicted and, after court, has reflected on his actions and what he intends to do in the future.
“I'm not perfect; I'm far from it. It definitely wasn't my finest moment, and I'm looking forward to rectifying my mistakes and walking my dogs on a leash from now on,” he said.
“I treat them with the utmost respect, and I love them dearly, and I treat them like my own.”
Further context was revealed when Rudolf explained why one of the dogs did not have a leash to begin with.
“I rescued Louie from a homeless person who never used to walk him with a leash,” he said.
“He just follows me everywhere; even at training, he'll just wait by my locker until I'm done.”
All he wants to do is to put the situation behind him now.
“I haven't really been in these situations a whole lot … my teammates do see me bare-bottomed, but that usually doesn't leave the locker room,” he said.
“I'll be looking to keep it that way in the future for sure.”
Rudolf has played 13 games in the NRL this season and has not played for the Cronulla Sharks since Round 15, when he suffered a knee ligament injury.
He has recently been playing for the Sharks' feeder club from the NSW Cup, the Newtown Jets.
Rudolf signed a one-year extension with the Sharks earlier this year, turning down more lucrative offers from the Super League.
SACK HIM!!. he is useless anyway and a player who has begged to go to PNG and is not wanted says a lot about Fitzgibbon who hangs on to these ordinary players on big $$$ contracts instead or signing some real talent and speed that can make this team competitive and stop living in a fantasy world thinking that we can compete against the top teams so Yeah Jokers like Rudolph should just be shown the door!
‘Rudolf wrote an apology letter’ No. Rudolph signed an apology letter written by a lawyer.
‘Rudolf stated he was “genuinely sorry” and was hopeful the court would consider the incident in January “isolated.” ‘
I suggest that if he is sorry for having done that, then it is only because of the impact that a “guilty” verdict could have on his career – a new offer from the Sharks or an offer from some other club.
Lucky for him he ended up fronting a judge who seems to have spent her adult life dealing with small children:
“You have to be very careful,” she said. Think before you act.”