Canterbury Bulldogs captain James Graham apologised for his outburst at referee Gerard Sutton on Friday, which preceded ugly scenes at ANZ Stadium.
The Bulldogs' 18-17 loss to the South Sydney Rabbitohs was marred by Graham and David Klemmer's tirades at referee Sutton - who was forced to award a penalty to South Sydney, after the video referee spotted an indiscretion from the Canterbury skipper.
Lunging at Souths' Adam Reynolds, who was attempting a game-tying field goal, Graham slid into the standing leg of the kicker - which saw the premiers awarded a penalty 10m out, directly in front of the posts.
Bryson Goodwin converted from the tee, effectively sealing victory for South Sydney - but not before Graham and Klemmer vociferously protested the decision to Sutton.
Klemmer was sin-binned and later banned for three games for dissent, while Graham was handed a four-match ban - three for dissent, and another game for dangerous contact on Reynolds.
Michael Lichaa was the third Bulldog to be charged for dissent in the dying stages, but an early guilty plea saw him avoid suspension.
Bulldogs star Josh Morris said Graham was remorseful for his behaviour at the end of the contest, which was followed by misbehaviour from Bulldogs fans - with referee Gavin Morris hit by an object, and sideline official Darren Alchin reportedly suffering a broken shoulder.
"He apologised for what happened and if he the same situation happened again I'm sure he would react differently," Morris said.
"Obviously frustration got the better of us there and the way we reacted probably wasn't the best.
"We need to know how to handle ourselves in those moments a little bit better and I think this was a learning curve.
"James was apologetic and said that as captain it probably wasn't the smartest thing to do.
"He is a very sincere bloke and I think everyone knows the type of bloke that he is and the competitor that he is and he let that get the better of him.
"But he has learnt from that mistake."
Graham's rap sheet also includes biting Melbourne Storm's Billy Slater on the ear in the 2012 Grand Final.