Ben Barba's immediate playing fate will be determined by the world view of the NRL; if it has none, he could be back on the field next weekend. On Sunday (AEST), Barba was a spectator at St James' Park in Newcastle for Super League Magic Weekend, where new St Helens coach Justin Holbrook admitted the club was close to signing the former Dally M medallist for "a couple of years".

Barba, currently serving a 12-match recreational drugs suspension in the NRL, told Sky Sports he could make a decision this week. "If the NRL tells us he is suspended, we will observe that suspension," an RFL spokesman told Set Of Six.

At any other time in rugby league history, this would be a straightforward situation - if you're banned in one of the sport's competitions, you're banned from them all and Barba would not be playing his first game for three months. But League Central complicated things by saying the 12-match ban would start when Barba returns to Australia. They apparently didn't consider the rather large possibility of a Super League stint and the RFL has left the whole thing on the NRL's plate.

Maroons marooned

Origin continues to be where the normal rules don't, or may not, apply. Queensland seem to seriously believe they can leave Anthony Milford out of their 17 but still stand him down from round 12 in case Johnathan Thurston doesn't come through. "Given Johnathan's standing in the team, we've got to give him every chance," said coach Kevin Walters on ABC. "It would be unrealistic, if Anthony was our man, for him to play on Saturday night then back-up again on Wednesday."

Broncos coach Wayne Bennett has quite rightly mocked this idea; if the Maroons can do it once, both teams will henceforth be demanding to stand down players who end up twiddling their thumbs the following Wednesday. Walters wants to give Thurston until Sunday to prove he has overcome his shoulder injury.

Jarrod Mullen goes from Newcastle to Newcastle

Also spotted in Tyneside was banned Newcastle Knights halfback Jarrod Mullen. Officially, the man who has begun serving a four-year doping ban was holidaying with his agent, Steve Gillis, but Magic Weekend has become a horse trading exercise and some British clubs believed there was some scenario under which the 30-year-old will become available.

Mullen has three more days to lodge an appeal, and there was even scuttlebutt among league scenesters about what the appeal would entail; something about one substance only being illegal if combined with another. Unlike the situation with Barba, Mullen's ban is watertight and worldwide unless he can get it overturned.

Beanie success

Blues great Andrew Johns yesterday ridiculed Korbin Sims' candidacy for the Queensland State of Origin side, saying: "I thought Gerringong was in NSW." Johns said on Channel Nine: "His brothers are eligible for NSW, his sister plays for NSW. Was he born in the flat out the back?" Even Ashton Sims has ridiculed Korbin's decision. Korbin played junior age group rep footy for the Maroons.

Meanwhile, the Beanies For Brain Cancer Charity, which was pushed by the NRL over the weekend, raised $1.1 million. Speaking about the founder of the charity, his former teammate Mark Hughes, Adam Macdougall said: "I don't have too many heroes but he's my hero."

Boxing clever over player re-signings

If you're going to announce some player re-signings and want the news to get out quickly, why not have the undisputed world boxing champion in cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions (retired) Tweet about it? Evander Holyfield telling the world on Twitter that Wigan had re-signed Liam Farrell, Joel Tomkins, Taulima Tautai was the most bizarre rugby league event of the weekend.

It all started when the iconic pugilist accidentally used Wigan's handle in a Tweet last week. "There had been a bit of banter between him and fans and the club since," a club spokesman explained. "We arranged to send him a shirt and when [football manager] Kris Radlinski completed the re-signings, he wanted to get it out quickly. He said 'why not get Evander to announce it?'."

Hit with a feather

In a recent Discord, we brought you the story of Toronto Wolfpack prop Jake Emmett, who punched an opponent on the way to the sin bin in the Canadian team's first home game. When the referee increased the sentence to a send-off, he clapped sarcastically and then high-fived spectators on the way to the sheds. How long do you think a fellow who did that would be suspended? Twelve weeks? Ten? Eight? Try ??? two matches.

Now, I was outraged - surely it is a grievous undermining of the authority of all match officials to commit a violent infringement after you've already been dealt with. But in 1985, Kevin Tamati and Greg Dowling copped only a week each for their sideline stoush. And in 2011, Glenn Stewart copped three weeks and Adam Blair five for something similar. Something is awry, surely.