Barnett was sent off for striking Smith on the jaw with a raised elbow and referred straight to the judiciary.

His legal counsel, Nick Ghabar, argued at Tuesday night's hearing the contact was careless and warranted a four-game ban.

NRL prosecutor Lachlan Gyles argued the judiciary should suspend Barnett for eight games if the incident was deemed reckless, and longer if it was considered intentional.

At one point during the hearing, judiciary chairman Geoff Bellew told the panel: "You should ignore any reports in the media about what the player has said."

Bellew was presumably referring to a report in the Daily Telegraph on Tuesday in which Barnett was extensively quoted about the incident and why he felt it occurred.

Veteran rugby league administrator John Quayle, a former Knights board member, provided a reference in which he described Barnett as a player who played in a "tough and aggressive" manner but always had "respect" for the game.

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