Young Cronulla Sharks player caught up in NRL cocaine scandal

The Cronulla Sharks have been rocked by another cocaine scandal just 72 hours after chairman Damian Keogh was charged with drug possession.

Holden Cup player Jesse Savage was charged with possessing 1.4g of white powder, believed to be cocaine, after his arrest in the early hours of Sunday morning outside Fusion nightclub in Cronulla.

The highly regarded young footballer suffered a season-ending knee injury in round three of the competition in March.

The incident is another blow to the image of the club, which spent the weekend placating worried sponsors after Keogh's arrest for drugs possession at a pub in Woolloomooloo on Friday night following a long lunch.

The 55-year-old fronted the media on Monday for the first time since his arrest.

"No I don't have a drug problem, people who know me know this isn't me, it's not what I'm about," he said.

"I'm very fortunate to have a great family who are very supportive ... they know who I am and what I stand for."

"It's obviously been a very distressing time personally and for the family; just been bunkering down and trying to register things."

"The club's in great shape and they'll move forward, just see how things go," he said.
"It's been a very challenging weekend but it gives me a greater appreciation of what a lot of our players go through when they have issues."

The former pro-basketballer and Olympic representative is chief executive of cinema chain Hoyts, which did not respond to calls about the arrest yesterday.

Keogh said he stood down as Sharks chairman to distance them from the issue.

This article was originally published on news.com.au