Monday, 5 April 2004:
More claims of misconduct by footballers have emerged with police now investigating claims a 22-year-old woman was trapped in a NSW motel room by a number of rugby league players.
Goulburn detectives are examining claims by the woman that she was detained in a room at a motel after a pre-season match in the southern NSW town in February 2001.
Police said they were in the early stages of their inquiries and were still working to determine whether the incident took place.
The woman is understood to have told police the incident involved players from the Wests Tigers team, who were defeated by the Canberra Raiders 22-18 in a pre-season match at Goulburn Workers arena that weekend.
Wests Tigers football manager Steve Lavers recalled the weekend the team travelled to Goulburn, but said he knew nothing about the alleged incident.
"We would obviously view it seriously if it was proven there was a situation," he said.
"But without having any more detail I wouldn't want to comment any more than that."
Lavers said the club would need a formal complaint before it would act on any allegations.
There had been a huge turnover of players in the last three years and it might be beyond the power of the club to penalise players no longer with the NRL side if necessary, he said.
The woman reportedly told police she had consensual sex with one Tigers player in a lane behind a nightclub then went with him to a motel room.
When she entered the darkened room, she heard noises and saw three other players in "various stages of undress," Sydney's Daily Telegraph newspaper said.
She said she was held down on the bed and her mouth was covered to stop her from screaming.
The players then released the woman. No (no) sexual assault took place.
The new allegations come in the wake of publicity over an alleged gang rape by six Bulldogs team members at a Coffs Harbour hotel on February 22.
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© 2004 AAP
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