Look at what's happened. We'll start with the most recent, involving Stuart and the extraordinary reference to an opposition player he made at a post-match media conference last Saturday night.

Asked about an incident in which Penrith's Jaeman Salmon lashed out with his boot as he was being tackled and connected with Canberra's Tom Starling, Raiders coach Stuart replied: "Where Salmon kicked Tommy, it ain't on, and I've had history with that kid [Salmon].

"I know that kid very well. He was a weak-gutted dog as a kid and he hasn't changed now.

"He's a weak-gutted dog person now."

Such an attack by a coach on a player's character was unprecedented and led to it becoming the biggest story in the game since the pride jersey drama at Manly two weeks ago, which came right on top of Wests Tigers being robbed of victory in bizarre circumstances against North Queensland.

This is why you hear the game of league being described as that which keeps on giving.

The story went on that the reason behind Stuart's spray went all the way back to an incident involving his son and Salmon when they were kids playing in the same junior league team over a decade ago.

The NRL investigated Saturday night's incident and it was reported Stuart had provided its Integrity Unit with background detail regarding the history. The Panthers defended their player's character and the Salmon family called on the NRL to take action against Stuart. The public that was following the story was left to try to join the dots based on scant information related to the history appearing in the media.

To me, this was a straight-forward case for the NRL to judge on. Whatever history there was behind it went way outside of the NRL domain and so wasn't theirs to take into account.

These were separate issues. What was said on Saturday night was what mattered.

Stuart, who had a history of being fined for controversial post-match comments, usually criticising match officials and not remotely approaching the degree of this offence, was banned from coaching for a week and fined $25,000.

I don't see how the penalty could've been any less. It could've even been more. But the fact is that as it stands it's a pretty big whack. It was an unprecedented penalty to match an unprecedented transgression.

But, as I said at the top, and despite it being a major controversy, this was just the latest in a series of coaching dramas, shocks and downright weird occurrences to happen in the NRL coaching space in 2022.

Don't forget, three coaches had lost their jobs by the halfway mark of the season. Trent Barrett quit as Canterbury coach on May 16. Clearly, considering the team's abysmal form, he was not going to survive. Nathan Brown (Warriors) and Michael Maguire (Wests Tigers) were each sacked on the same day - June 7. And then it really got interesting!

The Tigers decided Penrith assistant coach Cameron Ciraldo was their man - and offered him a five-year contract! For a basically unproven rookie with six games as an interim first-grade coach of the Panthers in 2018!

A big enough shock in itself, right? But then, in arguably an even bigger shock, he knocked them back! And then 71-year-old Tim Sheens, who coached the Tigers to a premiership win in 2005, was sacked in 2012 and returned to the club from England this year in a non-coaching role, ends up being appointed coach for 2023-24, during which time he will helping to prepare his assistant - Benji Marshall - to take over in 2025.

The Tigers said they were looking for a development coach as they courted Ciraldo, who has had a thorough grounding under Ivan Cleary at Penrith. So they went from trying to find a development coach to getting veteran Sheens to develop a coach.

The Warriors were knocked back by their first choice as Brown's replacement as well - Kristian Woolf, an Aussie who has had great success in the English Super League - and have since signed Andrew Webster, another of Penrith's assistants.

Canterbury installed Mick Potter, a former Bulldogs player who, like Sheens, was once sacked as Tigers coach but unlike Sheens didn't win a premiership there first (and three at Canberra before that), as interim coach and he's doing well. But the word is they're poised to sign Ciraldo long-term.

Newcastle's Adam O'Brien and Gold Coast's Justin Holbrook remain under pressure to hold their jobs. If they survive into next season, they'll want to produce in a hurry then.

Recently, after another loss by the struggling Knights, O'Brien's comments at the post-match media conference included that he had been "involved in four grand finals" (all as an assistant coach, three with Melbourne and one at Sydney Roosters) and "you don't unlearn that knowledge".

Two days later he called a media conference to clarify his comments because he felt he hadn't articulated himself well and may have come across looking like "an egomaniac".

Meanwhile, one coach you mightn't blame for being an egomaniac since he's won a record seven premierships in charge - Wayne Bennett - isn't coaching in the NRL this year as he prepares to take new club the Dolphins into the competition next year. Yet, despite his obvious appeal, he still hasn't been able to land that genuine marquee player signing the club craves.

Need I go on?

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