South Sydney Rabbitohs winger Tyron Munro could make an earlier than expected return to the field with his lawyer making a formal submission to the NRL to clear him to play.
The 21-year-old has been sidelined since April last year after being accused of assaulting a woman at Sydney Olympic Park in the early hours of the morning.
He has pleaded not guilty to the alleged offences - assault occasioning actual bodily harm (DV) and common assault (DV).
Although Munro continues to train with the Rabbitohs squad, he is not able to take the field due to the NRL's “no fault” stand-down rule.
Munro's lawyer, Elias Tabchouri, told the Daily Telegraph that an application will be lodged to the NRL head office later this week.
The South Sydney rookie took to court last week, after the hearing was pushed back from April, with his subsequent hearing put on hold until February next year.
This delay means Munro could face an entire year on the sidelines unless the NRL uses their discretion to allow him to return to play.
This is understood to be the foundation of his lawyers argument, claiming the delay in his hearing is completely out of his clients control.
The NRL have monitored the case closely by making appearances in court, however now the final decision is set to be made by Geoff Bellew who was recently announced as the game's independent decision maker for off-field incidents.
