The Canberra Raiders have quashed rumours circulating on social media that David Furner is on the verge of stepping down as coach of the NRL team.
The heat on Furner increased over the weekend after the Raiders slumped to one of their worst losses in history, going down 40-0 to Wests Tigers at Canberra Stadium for their fifth defeat from the past six games.
Anonymous tweets emerged a day later on Twitter suggesting Furner, who is contracted until the end of the 2014 season, was going to either step down or be asked to step down by the Canberra board on Monday.
Not for the first time this year, Canberra insisted they were standing by their embattled coach.
“It’s news to me,” Raiders chief executive and David’s brother Don Furner told Fairfax of the rumours.
“They (the Raiders) are going to Newcastle (ahead of Saturday’s NRL clash against the Knights) a bit early to nut out what they’re doing wrong, get away from Canberra and try and get to a camp situation.”
Raiders chairman John McIntyre was expected to make a formal comment later on Monday.
Furner’s tenure at the club has been under a cloud since the beginning of the season, but has intensified over the past month following the Raiders’ slump in form, which has come amid a series of long-term injuries to key players.
They’re currently sitting second-last on the ladder with four wins and eight losses.