It has not been an ideal start to the year for the Raiders winger. Before the 2022 season had even begun, the 32-year-old faced a one-week ban for drink-driving late last year.

The Raiders pleaded with the NRL to allow him to serve the suspension by missing the Maori All Stars' game against the Indigenous All Stars last month, but the club was denied.

The NRL said the All Stars game could not count to serve suspensions as the offence was an off-field incident.

Then NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo gave the same exemption to Melbourne's Brandon Smith and New Zealand's Reece Walsh for their bans which, like Rapana's suspension, were the result of off-field indiscretions.

The double standard had Rapana and coach Ricky Stuart fuming, especially when the Raider's participation in the representative fixture ended up earning him a two-game ban for a grade-one shoulder charge.

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Now the NRL has overhauled the judiciary and match review committee system, "aimed at making the processes simpler to understand and more consistent for participants" and Rapana has drawn the short straw again.

As of Thursday when round one of the 2022 season officially kicked off, the old points system, including carryover points, was "retired and made simpler" in favour of clear-cut fines and suspensions.

The overhaul also has a new standard that "all grade-one offences will carry a fine except for a reckless high tackles".

That means if Rapana had committed his grade-one shoulder charge offence in round one of the NRL season instead of the All Stars clash in pre-season, he would have escaped with a $1500 fine with an early plea - no ban at all.

The added complication, however, is that the language of the new system announcement brings into question whether Rapana and the Raiders have means to appeal his two-game ban with another exemption plea.

"Every player will begin 2022 with a clean slate with player records reset on a rolling 12-month period since their last offence," the NRL statement reads.

"Players serving suspensions from last season will be required to complete their existing suspensions."

The timing of Rapana's offence in the All Stars game in February 2022 puts him in no-man's land between last season, the new year "clean slate" and the new NRL season.

An NRL spokesperson confirmed: "The new judiciary code and penalties took effect on Thursday.

"The All Stars match was played under the previous code. All players serving suspensions prior to the changes are still required to complete their existing suspensions."

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