Kiwis forwards Jesse Bromwich and Kevin Proctor have been axed from the Kiwis for the Rugby League World Cup after being caught up in rugby league's latest drugs scandal.
The pair were allegedly caught on CCTV purchasing and snorting cocaine in Canberra in the early hours following the Kiwis 30-12 Anzac test loss to Australia.
Bromwich had already relinquished the Kiwis captaincy and copped a two match suspension from his NRL club, the Melbourne Storm, while Proctor stood down as co-captain of the Gold Coast Titans.
Now, the pair's punishments have continued, with New Zealand Rugby League announcing that neither would be selected for the World Cup which starts in late October.
"I've made the decision, with the backing of the NZRL, that Jesse Bromwich and Kevin Proctor will not be considered for the upcoming World Cup campaign," said Kiwis coach David Kidwell.
"We have values to uphold, and I can't express enough that they have broken my trust, and their teammates' trust. No-one is bigger than the team" said Kidwell.
New Zealand Rugby League are 100 per cent behind this decision," said chief executive Alex Hayton.
"We will work to try and remedy and build our trust back with the public."
Bromwich and Proctor were remorseful when informed of the decision by Kidwell, but understood and accepted the decision.
"We're going into a World Cup campaign and I want everyone to understand that we have values to uphold," said Kidwell.
Kidwell said that the severity of the punishment is a message to the other players in the Kiwis camp.
"This is what we're trying to build here, the integrity of the jersey - We expect you to hold up those values."
New Zealand faces Samoa, Scotland and Tonga in pool play at the World Cup.