Greg Bird "wasn't the best" when news of his drug charges broke, according to close friend Paul Gallen.
Gallen has kept close contact with his NSW and Kangaroos teammate having gone through a similar ordeal during Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority's prolonged investigation into the Sharks. Gallen said Bird was coming to terms with the unwanted attention.
"It can be a pretty lonely place when something like this happens because you feel very stranded and everyone has such access to you via social media and the media so it can become a really daunting place to be in," Gallen said.
"I've spoken to him a few times. He is all right. Originally he wasn't the best. I spoke to him late last week and he seems to be doing better. I don't know the situation; I haven't even asked him about it. I don't want to know. All I wanted him to know was that I was there supporting him."
Bird is one of five current Titans to be hit with drug charges. The ex-Sharks player was charged with two counts of supplying cocaine. Gallen's teammate Wade Graham has already called on the NRL to offer support to Titans players after members of Cronulla's squad battled with psychological issues and felt they were left to fend for themselves by the NRL as the uncertainty dragged on. Bird is due in court on March 9.
"It's hard," Gallen said. "Someone asked me how I dealt with it and I don't know. I really don't know. The last two years have been a blur. I couldn't tell you how I dealt with it. I hope he has good people around him. I know he does with his wife and family. They'll support him through it. Fingers crossed he gets through it OK.
"Everyone wants to get it resolved quickly but there is a process that you've got to go through."
Gallen will end his NRL exile when he plays his first top grade game since his drug ban for the Sharks against Canberra on Sunday. The Sharks skipper, who celebrated the birth of his third child with wife Anne last week, hasn't played since Cronulla's round 23 loss to Melbourne. It's been the longest break he has had from the game since 2007 with the end of his season's generally filled with representative duty.
"I said to myself in the last couple of weeks I'm not going to talk about what went on," Gallen said. "I'm trying to get over it. It hasn't been easy to get over. The less I talk about it, the easier it'll be.
"I just have to worry about playing footy and giving the team the final message [before Sunday's game].
"It's been a long break. I can't help that. I just have to get on with it."
