Former Sydney Rooster and England player Adrian Morley on his NRL stint and biggest on-field regret
It was the personal challenge that triggered one of the most notorious and infamous moments in rugby league history – and instead it left former Roosters and English prop Adrian Morley crying like a schoolboy.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
It was the personal challenge that triggered one of the most notorious and infamous moments in rugby league history – and instead it left him crying like a schoolboy.
England great Adrian Morley has opened up like never before on his savage swinging arm on Kangaroos prop Robbie Kearns in the opening seconds of the first Test at Wigan in 2003.
And Morley revealed to Dean Ritchie the motivation behind his rash attack.
“I wanted to put on the biggest shot I had ever put on in my life,” Morley said.
Kearns was knocked out instantly, with referee Steve Ganson stunning the 24,614 Greater Manchester crowd by sending Morley off.
Morley admitted he was in a rage and frenzy before kick-off. Back in Australia holidaying with family, Morley recalled the flashpoint tackle and what set-off his moment of insanity.
His comments should set-up another spicy Ashes series in England later this year.
Morley, 47, also discussed the premature end to his NRL tenure after kneeing Canterbury’s Corey Hughes while revealing Warriors forward Richard Villasanti inspired his Roosters to the 2002 premiership.
KO’D KEARNS
Morley recalled the moment that rocked international rugby league – and the ramifications.
“I felt I was the dominant alpha forward on the planet. I was on top of my game and that was probably my finest year as a player,” Morley said.
“Every game I played I felt I dominated my opponents.
“In my head, I feared no one and could intimidate people.
“I never felt like that before or after. That year … I was the man.
“If you’ve got a skill or an edge, why not use it? It was something (then Roosters coach) Ricky Stuart expected of me.
“I enjoyed it, knowing that opposition players would look out the corner of their eye when they saw me and run the other way.
“I knew the Ashes series was coming up so I made it my goal to go at all the possible and probable Kangaroo players that season and felt like I got the upper-hand.”
The ultraconfident Morley wanted to assert his authority in the Test series.
“When I got back to the UK, I wanted to prove to my English teammates that we can handle these Aussies and I will lead by example,” he said.
“I wanted to put on the biggest shot I had ever put on in my life.
“I got fired up for games anyway, but this Test match was delayed for 20 minutes to get all the people into the ground. So when kick-off came, I was in a frenzy and rage.
“Robbie got the ball and sidestepped, and I put my arm out.
“It went horribly wrong. Obviously I made contact but I don’t remember it. When Robbie stayed down I thought, ‘I might be in a bit of trouble here.’
“It was the infamous red card, which was heartbreaking.”
Dressing room cameras caught Morley in tears after the send-off.
“I couldn’t hold in my emotions in the dressing rooms – I was crying my eyes out because of the magnitude of the game,” Morley said.
“To get sent off in the first minute, I was absolutely shattered.
“I was crying like a schoolboy. I remember (former player) Kevin Sinfield was in the squad and saw me on the big screen at the ground.
“He came into the change rooms and told me to move because I was being filmed.
“After the second Test, when were beaten in Hull, I thought, ‘If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.’
So I joined a few of the Aussies for a beer and made a point of seeing ‘Kearnsy’ and said, ‘What happens on the pitch, stays on the pitch’.
“I remember there was an international (judiciary) tribunal with two representatives from England and one from Australia.
“The English argued I’d already served a game because I was sent off in the first minute but the Aussie said I would have copped six games if it was in the NRL.
“The English rep said, ‘This isn’t the NRL, it’s a Test match. And we’re in the UK’. I did get a record fine of 2000 pounds but they let me play in the second and third Tests.
“I certainly wouldn’t have done it if I had my time again but that’s how we used to play the game – very aggressively.
“If we had held on for the win, I wouldn’t have felt half as bad but the Aussies scored in the final few minutes to win (22-18).”
ASHES ARE BACK
Mal Meninga’s squad will head to England later this season for the first three-Test series since 2003 with the Kangaroos’ appearance hoping to spark a lethargic English rugby league.
“It will be absolutely huge,” Morley said. “Growing up for me, rugby league was the Ashes. It was Great Britain back then, not England, and it was on the calendar every two years.
“It’s the oldest and fiercest rivalry in rugby league. I can’t believe it’s been more than 20 years since the last three Test series.
“That’s way too long and you can tell that by the ticket sales back home in the UK. It has sparked everyone’s interest.
“England have done well in recent years with home series wins over Tonga and Samoa but this is big – Australia is classed the best team in the world and quite rightly so.
“There’s nothing like going up against the best on home soil.
“I can’t wait, it’s going to be amazing.”
NIGGLING COREY
Morley controversially ended his tenure in Australia as a suspended player after kneeing Canterbury hooker Corey Hughes in July, 2006.
“It was hugely disappointing and regretful,” he said.
“I got sent off, and quite rightly so, but that was the end of my Roosters and NRL career, which put a dampener on my whole six years at the club.
“I had already agreed to go back to the UK and we’d had a really flat year and weren’t going to make the play-offs.
“There were six games left and we were playing the Bulldogs.
“We had built up a great rivalry with them with a lot of needling and niggle between the two sides and Corey Hughes was one of the chief culprits.
“I was really frustrated at that time and I actually went in to ‘chin’ him but he went down to play the ball and I ended up kneeing him.
“It happened in a split second and I did it without thinking. I got a seven-week ban.
“It wasn’t a great finish.”
WHITE LINE FEVER
Morley harboured that aggressive and fiery northern English streak.
“Let’s face it, rugby league is a brutal sport so if you play in the forwards and you’ve got a reputation … I felt that I had to spark up and try to be the enforcer every game,” he said.
“I would say there was a certain white line fever, definitely.
“In the first two-thirds of my career, I struggled with getting fired up and then overstepping the line.
“When I went back to the UK and was asked to captain the Warrington Wolves, I realised I can’t be getting sent off or suspended if I was captain.
“I made a conscious decision to get rid of the rash challenges and I’m very proud to say that I didn’t get sent off for the rest of my career.
“I was still intimidating and tough but tweaked it and handled things a lot better later in my career.”
BONDI BONANZA
Salford-born Morley joined the Roosters in 2001 – via initial contact with then head coach Graham Murray – and spent six seasons at Bondi, playing 113 NRL matches.
He contested three successful grand finals under Stuart, winning the 2002 grand final over the Warriors.
Forever a Rooster legend, Morley was due to have dinner on Wednesday with former teammates Brad Fittler, Ryan Cross, Bryan Fletcher, Luke Ricketson, Anthony Minichiello, Shannon Hegarty and Craig Wing.
“I was only a young man when I arrived and wasn’t used to living away from home, let alone on the other side of the world with no family around,” he said. “But the beauty of rugby league is that you walk straight into 25 best mates.
“It was a great time, not just in my rugby league career but also in my life. I did a lot of growing up here and had some great experiences in Sydney.”
VILLASANTI VILIFIED
In a shocking 2002 grand final moment, with the game evenly poised, Villasanti charged headfirst into a tackled Brad Fittler, who sustained a nasty head wound.
Morley said it was the turning point.
“The game was in the balance when Villasanti stuck his head on our captain and talisman, Brad Fittler. It was a great headbutt, by the way,” Morley said.
“But it really triggered us and our aggression. After that moment, I didn’t think we were ever going to lose that grand final.
“It was pretty bad, there’s no two-ways-about it.
“I’d like to think we would look after any of our teammates but this was our leader and best player – that was an added incentive to spark up and get a bit of retribution.
“I knew rugby league was big in Australia but I didn’t realise how big until we made that grand final. Everywhere you looked there was red, white and blue.
“I loved the build-up and the razzamatazz was amazing.
“I remember before the game, I read the program which listed all the English players who had played in a grand final and also won a grand final.
“There were only half a dozen players on each list so I knew I was joining an elite bunch of Englishmen.
“We celebrated in style with an end-of-season trip to Arlie Beach. It was a great few days. When you win something like that you have a bond for life.”
SUPER STRUGGLE
England’s Super League has laboured over the past decade, prompting speculation the NRL may try to take control of the competition.
“Even though the product is still great, clubs are struggling financially,” Morley said.
“The money received from TV deals and the distribution from Super League has gone down while the TV deals, club distributions and salary cap in Australia have been going up.
“In Super League, the salary cap has been the same for the best part of 20 years and clubs are getting less money now than they ever have.
“In ten years, the money the clubs are getting has halved.
“You shouldn’t really need a rich owner to prop up the club so I think they have lost some faith in Super League.
“The NRL realises they need a strong English competition so if they can invest or make it more commercially viable then that would be great.
“It’s a bit of a mess at the minute but fingers crossed we can get it sorted.”
TAKE THE EDGE OFF
Morley stressed rule-makers have taken the edge off rugby league.
“I don’t want to sound like a dinosaur – and I’m all for protecting head knocks and the game needs to be safe for kids,” he said.
“But it has gone too far in terms of being sin-binned or sent off for things that you wouldn’t have in previous years.
“They went a little bit too far in Super League a year or two ago and games were getting ruined. It was 12 players against 11.
“If you have someone sent off, it’s very hard to win a match. But they saw some sense and it hasn’t been as scrutinised for head shots or late tackles.
“I won’t want to go back to the 1970s or ‘80s where it was really brutal but the new rules have taken the edge off the enjoyment and spectacle.
“You need confrontation – that’s what makes our game fantastic.”
LIFE TODAY
Morley is now working back in Salford with Rugby League Cares, England’s equivalent to Family of League, while also supporting and checking on the welfare of players and ex-players.
“One of my roles is being a point of call for the English lads who are playing overseas. I make sure everything is okay and that Rugby Leagues Cares is there for them,” Morley said.
“I have caught up with Lewis Dodd and Ryan Sutton, who is in-between clubs, while over here. I will go to Canberra to see a few of the English lads there and Ricky, my old coach.
“The Roosters have a couple, even though Victor (Radley) talks with an Aussie accent, we’ll still claim him, and Dom Young while Newcastle has Kai Pearce-Paul.
“There’s Johnny Bateman and Herbie Farnworth in Queensland. It’s rewarding, good to be back in the game and making a difference.”
RETURN TO OZ
Morley is considering a full-time shift back to Australia.
“I could – I have forgotten how much I miss the place,” Morley said.
“My wife (Claire) is English but the kids love the nice weather. We have spoken about potentially coming out in the future. We’ll have to get a plan together and go from there.”
Originally published as Former Sydney Rooster and England player Adrian Morley on his NRL stint and biggest on-field regret
NRL stars traumatised by on air stitch up
Melbourne Storm star Xavier Coates was left screaming in fear after he was the target of a merciless stitch up for a TV segment.
True extent of Adam Reynolds’ bravery for Broncos revealed
Brisbane star Adam Reynolds has opened up on how he pushed through a hellish day to produce a match winning performance - and revealed his questionable status for next week’s Magic Round clash.