Suspended Sharks player Greg Bird faces being rubbed out of the NRL for life if allegations that he glassed his girlfriend on Sunday morning and assaulted another woman earlier this year are proved in court.

The Sharks yesterday stood down Bird indefinitely from club duties after the NSW and Australian representative was charged with two counts of assault relating to an incident in his Cronulla unit in which his partner, Katie Milligan, suffered a fractured eye socket and possible loss of sight.

Police also told the court that they were investigating another allegation that he assaulted Milligan on a previous occasion.

Cronulla chief executive Tony Zappia said it was "highly unlikely" Bird would play for the club again this season - if at all, given the hardline stance the Sharks and the NRL have taken over other recent incidents.

The game's latest off-field knock comes just weeks after Canberra sacked halfback Todd Carney over repeated alcohol-related incidents, with NRL chief executive David Gallop threatening to deregister his contract if he signed with a club for next season. In this case, Gallop threatened to come down even harder on Bird, maintaining he could be banned for life if he is convicted.

"Certainly, if these allegations are proven, then we are certainly into the territory of looking at not only his future at that club but his future in the game," Gallop said.

The Sharks stopped short of sacking Bird because the 24-year-old has maintained his innocence, even though the club tore up the contract of their former hooker Tevita Latu after he assaulted a woman. Latu punched 19-year-old bikini model Brooke Penington in the face, breaking her nose, during an altercation at a Cronulla service station in May, 2006. But Gallop said the two situations differed because "a full admission was made" in Latu's case.

"If that happens, then clubs are able to act more quickly than in situations where the version of events are in dispute," he said.

Gallop said he fully supported the Sharks' stance in standing down Bird until the facts were known - with Bird due in court again on October 8, three days after the grand final.

"Obviously these are very serious allegations … I certainly support the action of the Sharks in standing the player down," Gallop said. "It's certainly disappointing in terms of the series of allegations that have been made and it's now a matter for the courts to sort out."

Zappia, with whom Bird spoke on Sunday afternoon from hospital where the Test star was visiting Milligan before being charged, said the club was still trying to gather all of the facts and was awaiting more information from police.

When contacted on Sunday, Bird told the Herald : "There is nothing going on. I've been out all day. Enjoy your Sunday."

Asked what Bird had said to him, Zappia said: "Pretty much that there was an incident at his unit involving some guests that were staying there and he wasn't involved."

After issuing a statement on Sunday night - before the charges were laid - denying any wrongdoing by Bird, Zappia admitted that the evidence presented by police in court yesterday painted an alarmingly different scenario.

"They're reasonably different," he said. "But obviously the matter is a legal matter. It is a bit of a kick in the teeth. Luckily I've still got my teeth."

Zappia also confirmed the club had been aware that police were investigating an allegation that Bird had assaulted a woman in a nightclub during the pre-season but did not hear any more and assumed he had been cleared.

Officials could not have imagined a more unsavoury incident than this - coming after the NRL had worked hard to ensure women have a strong presence in the game in the wake of the rape allegations against Bulldogs players in Coffs Harbour in 2004.

Asked whether the charges against Bird would undermine the work being done by the NRL, Gallop said: "The work is still receiving endorsement as recently as today from experts in the field, and we need to continue with that work. It's certainly been regarded as something that the league's done well in terms of education, but an episode like this is damaging."