"There is no off-season for poor behaviour."

Former leading referee, administrator and match review committee chief Greg McCallum's Facebook post summed up the reaction of many to Greg Bird urinating near a police car the day after his wedding in Byron Bay.

A photo posted on Instagram of Greg Bird dancing with his bride Becky Rochow. Photo: Instagram account: @birdman_013

Even Bird, who received an infringement from police but faces a much heavier fine from Gold Coast Titans when he fronts the club's disciplinary committee later this week, admitted his actions were "stupid" "dumb" and "embarrassing". With his bride Becky "disappointed" and "upset", a straight-faced Bird told a brief press conference on the Gold Coast in an unintended pun: "It put a dampener on our wedding weekend."

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Seriously, you can't make this stuff up.

While Bird issued a public apology after meeting with Titans chief executive Graham Annesley and insisted he had not urinated directly on the police car after leaving the Beach Hotel where he and his wife had dinner with family and friends, many are tiring of players of the 30-year-old Test forward's standing giving the game a black eye.

Some even compared it to the incident the one that ended Cronulla five-eighth Todd Carney's NRL career earlier this year after a photo of the former NSW five-eighth urinating in his own mouth in a hotel toilet was posted on Twitter and questioned whether Bird's behaviour was worse given it occurred in public and involved a police car.

McCallum, who is now managing director of NSW Leagues Club, told Fairfax Media: "When you have been around the game as long as I have people come up to you, email you, text you and what can you say? It's frustrating. You can't defend it anymore."

NRL officials, who have already had to deal with an offensive tweet from Paul Gallen - the NSW captain and one of Bird's best mates - about their handling of the ASADA investigation, domestic violence cases involving Kirisome Auva'a, Cody Walker and Zane Tetevano and public nuisance charges against Tautau Moga and Sausao Sue, expect the Titans to take firm action against Bird.

Despite criticism of the $50,000 fine (later downgraded to $35,000) the NRL initially imposed on Gallen, ARLC chairman John Grant warned on the weekend that there would be no backing down over player behaviour. "We'll get harder on that rather than easier," Grant told The Australian. "People are guided by the big things so we try to put really big positive stakes in the ground — the vision for the game, what sort of clubs do we want, how do we want them to perform.

"We try to put big stakes in the ground so they are very clear and able to be seen by everybody. Sometimes those big stakes have to be around negative behaviour and need to be strong reactions. People need to take notice."

Annesley, who admitted that Bird's behaviour was "embarrassing" and "unacceptable to the club", said there were a range of options open to the Titans under the terms of his NRL contract but a heavy fine is more likely than the loss of the captaincy he shares with Nate Myles. "We'll continue to talk to the NRL and we'll hold a club disciplinary meeting later this week so we follow due process," Annesley said. "It is to Greg's credit that he has publicly apologised and clarified exactly what took place. That will all be taken into consideration before a decision is being made."

Bird was at pains to point out he had urinated between his own car and the police car and said he didn't become aware of any police involvement until contacted on Monday morning. He then attended Byron Bay police station where he was issued with a criminal infringement notice, police said. 

"After getting married on Saturday night down in Byron Bay, my wife and I caught up with friends and family at the Beach Hotel on the Sunday night for dinner, after which we went to our car parked down near the beach and actually adjacent to a police car," Bird said. "I stupidly and regretfully went to the toilet in between the two cars, in the space and obviously facing away from my family. I know it was a stupid and dumb thing to do but I really want to emphasise the fact that I didn't intend to disrespect anybody and I definitely didn't do it on the car. I would like to apologise to the club and its fans, anyone I may have offended, especially to my wife Becky. It put a dampener on our wedding weekend. I am incredibly embarrassed and disappointed in myself."