In a surprising move, the Australian rugby union fired star winger Lote Tuqiri last Wednesday and the officials have declined to reveal the reasons behind it.

The announcement came in a three-line statement released by the Australian Rugby Union (ARU). Tuqiri’s contract with the league “has been terminated effective today.” The statement stressed that it was “a standard employment matter” and that other specifics will not be released for now.

A leading newspaper in Australia reported that Tuqiri, one of the highest paid rugby players in the country, was fired due to an ongoing investigation on an incident that is not related to the sport.

Rumors had been spreading the past few days that he’ll be leaving the team with other players such as Peter Hynes, Lachie Turner and Drew Mitchell getting more preferential treatment than him. He stressed earlier this year that he has no plans of leaving the team considering that he signed a contract until 2011.

Another speculation arose after one newspaper revealed that Tuqiri was issued with a “final warning letter” two years ago after an alleged drinking session with his fellow Australian rugby team players. If the star player broke the rule one more time then he would have gotten the boot.