Speaking for the first time since being hit with an unprecedented seven-day suspension, Stuart apologised to his players, praised the team and coaches for winning without him, and thanked his friends and the Raiders for their support during his ban.

And while Stuart doesn't expect, or want, sympathy when his coaching ban lifts, when asked about the death of mate Paul Green he said he hoped it would be a trigger for change in the way rugby league deals with mental health.

He reflected on the shock passing of Green last week - a man he played against and coached at the Sydney Roosters - and said it highlighted the need for rugby league to rally around coaches and players.

Stuart was locked out of the Raiders' Braddon headquarters at 4pm on Tuesday last week and banned from speaking to his players and coaching staff for seven days.

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The NRL took a strong stance against Stuart after he personally attacked Jaeman Salmon and labelled him a "weak-gutted dog" in his post-match press conference after losing to the Penrith Panthers.

A remorseful Stuart apologised for mixing personal emotions with his role as an NRL coach. He spoke to NRL chief executive and ARL Commission chairman Peter V'Landys about his actions and accepted the punishment.

It was the first time in almost a decade Stuart had not been on the sidelines as an NRL coach, instead staying in his lounge room and watching in unusual anonymity.

There were no cameras to capture his excitement and frustrations as the Raiders held on to beat the St George-Illawarra Dragons to stay in contention for a top-eight berth.

"It was just a funny feeling," Stuart said of watching from home. "Exciting towards the back end of the game [as the Raiders held on], but a funny feeling.

"I just sat back and watched it, got a different perspective of it.

"It's hard to switch off [for the game] and it was hard to switch off for the week, but I stayed away from coaching. We've got a number of systems and processes in place and the coaches did a really good job.

"Our leaders were wonderful and it's great we got the win and we continue on our journey."

The Raiders need to win all three remaining games to be any hope of playing in the finals. Stuart wasn't back at work in time to pick the squad for the clash against the Newcastle Knights this week, but he is confident they can march on for another week.

"It was the camaraderie last week and mateship. I apologise to them for the unwarranted attention I caused to the team last week, the leaders gathered around and led very well.

"The senior players were wonderful and the coaches [Brett White, Andrew McFadden and Mick Crawley] jumped into gear and got us an important win."

Stuart was cut off from the NRL world during his suspension. Talking to Raiders staff or players about tactics or game plans would have been a breach of the conditions imposed by the NRL.

The NRL said the punishment was necessary to enforce standards for leaders in the game, condemning Stuart's hostility as "completely unacceptable".

Stuart accepted the ban and $25,000 fine without complaint, saying he was embarrassed to have lashed out the way he did.

Asked how he found the experience of effectively being cut off from the rugby league world for the first time since starting his career as a player in the 1980s, Stuart said: "I'm just looking forward to getting back to work.

"One thing I found is that I'm very fortunate to have a great family and how many good mates I've got.

"So many old mates have gotten around me and made it a lot easier. It's a unique situation to be in, but I'm looking forward to getting back into it.

"The club has been wonderful. Don [Furner] who is my boss is also a close mate. He knows me better than most people and he got it. I can't thank him enough for his support and his level of care. I appreciated it."

The rugby league was rocked when news emerged of Green's death. The former Sharks, Eels, Roosters, Cowboys and Broncos player, and North Queensland's premiership-winning coach was just 49 years old.

Stuart went head to head with Green as players in the 1990s and then coached Green at the Roosters in 2001-02.

"It was really sad. I've spoken to his mother and reached out to her, but it was very surreal," Stuart said.

"It was one of those moments you think, 'no, it can't be right'. What people don't understand is that you just never know what individuals are feeling. It's a real lesson for people.

"People keep saying coaching is a tough gig, that it's volatile, emotionally draining. People always want to talk about how tough it is, but people have to start believing it, start understanding that there is a lot of pressure. So many people are empty when they say it's tough.

"People have to start acting on it because of what happened [to Green] last week and what we're seeing in the game at the moment is becoming too common."

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