HOW Josh Dugan shut Paul Gallen up, why John Grant won’t shut up, and could Wanderer take over the Sky Blues?
HOW Josh Dugan shut Paul Gallen up, why John Grant won’t shut up, Cronulla want Barba back and could Wanderer take over the Sky Blues?
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SAINT
WE’VE never even heard of snowboard halfpipe but wasn’t it magnificent to watch proud young Aussie Scotty James win his bronze medal at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
SINNER
WAKE-UP Gladys Berejiklian and Stuart Ayres. If Allianz Stadium is as outdated, unsafe and dangerous as the spin doctors are telling us, surely the venue should be immediately shut down.
SPOTTED
IMMORTAL Andrew Johns getting a photo with John Sattler at the George Piggins tribute dinner last weekend. “Up in Cessnock and Kurri Kurri where I came from, he’s a god,” Joey said. “I even got nervous asking him for a picture.”
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SPOTTED II
NEW chair Lynne Anderson has wasted no time getting to know all the staff at Canterbury Bulldogs. She spent a day with CEO Andrew Hill on Monday then returned to address the players and coaching staff the following day.
SPOTTED III
NATHAN Brown and premiership-winning Knights prop Matt Parsons played junior footy together at St George in the early ‘90s. They caught up again last weekend at Danny Buderus’ 40th birthday party.
SPOTTED IV
PIGGY Riddell has given footy fans an action replay of the most famous try celebration in the NRL. Last weekend Piggy played in a legends curtain-raiser in Wollongong before the Hull versus Wigan game. He scored a try, hopped over the fence and clapped himself.
SHOOSH
WHICH NRL star apparently failed a drug check during the World Cup but escaped official sanctioning because it was an in-house test?
SHOOSH II
WHICH rugby league multimedia personality has been approached to become the face of Ladbrokes sports betting agency?
SHOOSH III
WHICH NRL club chief executive has become something of a massive know-all? He just never stopped interrupting the CEOs conference at Moore Park on Tuesday with irrelevant nonsense, according to those inside the room.
SHOOSH IV
HE kept it very quiet but we can reveal ex-ARL boss John Quayle turned 70 last week and celebrated with dinner in the Hunter Valley.
DUGES PUTS THE SQUEEZE ON GAL
THE toughest man in rugby league has finally met his match.
Sharks skipper Paul Gallen was beaten in a wrestle on Friday by new recruit, Kangaroos centre Josh Dugan, before stunned teammates.
It started when Gallen was joking that Dugan had never won a premiership. So the former St George Illawarra and Canberra Raiders star challenged him to a wrestle.
It lasted for a couple of minutes before Dugan used a manoeuvre that forced the 35-year-old front-rower and unbeaten heavyweight boxer to tap out. And didn’t the players just give it to him.
“He got me fair and square,” Gallen reluctantly admitted. “No excuses.”
AYRES OPENS WALLET
SPORTS minister Stuart Ayres is not just a stadium builder but a huge horse racing fan. He opened the Inglis complex at Warwick Farm last week and also paid $40,000 for a Holy Roman Emperor-Cannolina filly at the Classic Yearling Sale.
ARNIE’S BACK
TWO weeks ago we tipped Sydney FC’s Graham Arnold would coach the Socceroos after the World Cup. The deal is done. Arnie’s going to Russia for the Cup in June to watch the Aussies and will start straight after the tournament. So who will replace him with the plum job at Sydney FC? We hear Tony Popevic‘s on the radar. He coached arch rivals the Western Sydney Wanderers for five years but was once a Sky Blues assistant.
SPARE US THE DRIVEL
GUESTS at John Grant’s $200-a-head farewell dinner could be in for a long and torturous night. The retiring independent commission chairman is renowned for delivering longwinded speeches at the best of times.
So alarm bells should be ringing for his dinner guests after selected journalists were given a sneak preview of his NRL Annual Report commentary last week.
Chairmen usually take two or three pages to outline their highlights and achievements.
Not Johnny Grant. He’s written a whopping 18 pages of drivel aimed at convincing himself that the commission wasn’t a divisive failure during his time at the helm.
If he goes over the same exercise at the farewell function, the event will roll into breakfast.
NO HOT SEAT FEARS FOR VONNY
YVONNE Sampson will be in the hosting chair for her debut on NRL 360 on Monday night.
Regular host, Ben Ikin, is in Canberra at the Ricky Stuart Foundation charity golf day.
“I’ve been a massive fan of NRL 360 since it started in 2013,” Sampson said. “The first time I met Ben I was driving through Brisbane and saw him walking in the street.
“When I spotted him, I pulled over and bailed him up to tell him how much I loved the show.”
And we asked Vonny how she would cope with my tempestuous colleague Paul Kent: “Well, I used to work with Gus at Nine,” she said. “Kenty isn’t as tough as he looks. He’s called me to make sure that I feel comfortable. Under that tough exterior he really does have a heart of gold.”
BARBA A SHIRE DESIRE
THE Cronulla Sharks board has given coach Shane Flanagan the green light to get grand final hero Ben Barba back to the Shire. Chairman Dino Mezzatesta said the board would rubber stamp the signing if he chooses to quit St Helens in the English Super League to return home.
TITANS TOP-EIGHT FIRMERS
THE signing of Bryce Cartwright at the Titans has had a huge effect on NRL betting markets. Since he quit Penrith, the TAB has taken bets of $5000 at $5 and $5000 at $4.50 for Gold Coast to make the top eight and play finals footy for the only the second time in eight years. There has also been a huge plunge on Gareth Widdop to be the leading pointscorer.
The Dragon has been backed from $15 in to $5.50. He is on the equal second line of betting with Panther Nathan Clearly. Canberra’s Jarrod Croker is a $4 favourite.
HAPPY TO BUILD A RELATIONSHIP
WE told you last week of the Group 6 rugby league club in need of a sponsor or would have to fold. The good people at G.J. Gardner Homes read the item and contacted the Moss Vale Dragons last Monday and agreed to be major sponsor.
Originally published as HOW Josh Dugan shut Paul Gallen up, why John Grant won’t shut up, and could Wanderer take over the Sky Blues?
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