Jason Taumalolo and Tautau Moga have been fined $2500 by the North Queensland Cowboys for allegedly throwing eggs at cars in Townsville.

Test star Taumalolo, fringe first-grader Moga and three other players with the club were charged with two counts of wilful damage for the incident last Wednesday night and will face court on October 11.

A club statement said the five players would pay for any damage to the cars and Taumalolo said he did not want to set a bad example for children who idolise him.

“I’ve taken the time to apologise for what I did on Wednesday night to my teammates,” he said.

“And now that our internal process is complete, I would like to apologise to those who were affected by the incident as well as the wider community, the fans and the members of this great club.

“I know a lot of kids look up to me and I just don’t want them to think it’s the right thing.”

Last week, coach Paul Green asked for the incident to be kept in context because after all, “we’re talking about an egging here”.

But on Monday he said the players were “extremely remorseful for their involvement”.

“They know that they acted improperly and that they have hurt not only the people directly affected, but also the club’s members, supporters and partners,” he said.

“We’ve taken the matter seriously as the players’ actions were out of step with both the values of the NRL and the club.”

Taumalolo will line up for the Cowboys when they face off against Brisbane in a semi-final in Townsville on Friday night.