Saint, Sinner, Shoosh: Mitchell Pearce-Cronulla Sharks rumour won’t go away
There has been plenty of these in recent weeks but you expect more 13 on 13 action on Wedneday night. Check out all the latest NRL chatter and more.
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The rumour will not go away that veteran halfback Mitchell Pearce could finish up at the Cronulla Sharks next season, despite the fact he recently signed a one-year extension at the Newcastle Knights.
He is certainly highly regarded by incoming coach Craig Fitzgibbon. The Knights recently signed Cowboys halfback Jake Clifford.
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All the latest NRL chatter and more in Australia’s hottest sport gossip column.
SAINT
We’re getting mail from NRL headquarters that the sin-bin blitz will be slightly relaxed — as it should be — for Wednesday night’s Origin I. This is brilliant news. The speed and intensity of Origin is far greater than a premiership match and there will be accidental high shots. Unless it is blatant foul play, the unintentional high tackles can be put on report and dealt with after the game.
SINNER
The $15,000 fine to four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka for failing to attend her French Open press conference for mental health reasons. This is disgraceful treatment of a young star who has been fighting anxiety and depression for years.
SHOOSH
Which Central Coast surf club has cancelled its annual State of Origin big-screen TV night on Wednesday because of not enough interest from members who are dirty on the game? This is the first time since 1980 the club won’t be open for the game.
SHOOSH
Bunker boy Steve Chiddy still hasn’t been sighted since his failure to even place on report Dylan Brown (knees to Drew Hutchison) and Marata Niukore (high shot on James Tedesco) in the controversial Roosters-Eels game in Round 9. Chiddy is the man who did last year’s grand final and, while he had a shocker that night, surely he has now spent long enough in the sin bin.
SHOOSH
Which Wests Tigers player has been offered to the Bulldogs in a swap with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak?
SPOTTED
Independent commissioner Peter Beattie and his lovely wife Heather buying fleecy tracksuit pants from Village Sport store in Darling Street, Balmain on Thursday.
SPOTTED
Jake Trbojevic has a much better tackling technique than golf swing. Last week the NSW Blues played in a sponsor’s day at The Coast when Jurbo sprayed a wild drive off the tee. It rocketed straight into a cart on the next hole, narrowly missing the driver — car dealer Kean Booker — who is the son-in-law of Sydney Roosters supremo Nick Politis.
SPOTTED
Freddy Fittler is a handy golfer. He plays off 18 and turned up at The Coast on Tuesday with a new (and free) set of Cobras. Freddy was having an absolute shocker after three holes before his playing partner offered some advice: “It might help if you remove the plastic from the club heads.”
SPOTTED
The great Gus Gould and Canberra coach Ricky Stuart having dinner on Thursday night. Ricky was in town for the Bob Fulton funeral on Friday.
SPOTTED
Poor old SEN continues to be a massive ratings flop on Sydney radio. The weekday breakfast show rated only 0.3 — a quarter of the audience of Laurie Daley and Michael Clarke on the Big Sports Breakfast.
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BLUES ROOKIE PICKS SAMOA OVER AUSTRALIA
Most NSW Blues players have a desperate desire to take that next step to wearing a Kangaroos jersey.
Not Jarome Luai, the livewire Penrith five-eighth who debuts in State of Origin on Wednesday night. Luai is one of five Samoans in the NSW Blues squad, alongside winger Brian To’o and middle forwards Daniel Saifiti, Junior Paulo and Payne Haas.
The 24-year-old was born and bred in Sydney’s west but has no interest in playing for Australia, even if it costs him tens of thousands of dollars in match payments.
“At international level you should play for your heritage,” he said. “I was brought up in the Samoan church and I owe it to my family. I want to do them proud.
VOTE: WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE BLUE?
“Money’s all good but I think at international level it shouldn’t be about money.”
When he first signed at Penrith, Luai put down New Zealand as his country of choice for representative Test footy. He’s now hoping Samoan authorities will allow Matthew and Andrew Johns, along with Sonny Bill Williams, to take up the coaching of the national side.
“They’ve won premierships, played for their state and their country and they’d bring something really special to the team,” he said.
It’s hard to believe this NRL crowd favourite is about to debut on rugby league’s biggest stage. Long-time Blues officials are amazed at how relaxed Luai has been in the lead-up to Origin I.
“I’m actually really chilled,” he said.
“The same as last year’s grand final – I really enjoyed the week.
“There’s so much positive energy around the team.
“I think about the game all the time but I’ll prepare like I do for any big game at Penrith.”
Wearing the No.6 Blues jersey that was once worn by legends Brett Kenny, Laurie Daley and Brad Fittler makes it even more special.
“I went to the Blues dinner the other night and I was in awe of all the legends in the room,” he said. “I got to hear what Origin meant to them.
“It’s a privilege to be in this jersey and I hope I can do all those guys proud.”
BRISBANE FANS FOCUS ON MAROONS
The Broncos’ horrible form in recent years hasn’t deterred rugby league fans in Brisbane.
It’s actually made them hungrier.
Origin game two at Suncorp Stadium is set to sell out three weeks before kick-off, such is the interest north of the border to finally back a decent team.
Only a few hundred tickets remain. The NRL expects the 52,000 sell-out sign to go up on Monday or Tuesday. It comes after 130,000 fans attended the three days of Magic Round.
Tickets for Stadium Australia’s game three are also well ahead of 2019 when the venue last hosted a game. More than 30,000 tickets have already been snapped up but much will depend on the series still being alive if it is to attract a full house.
VANISHING VONNY
Fox Sports star Yvonne Sampson will be in Townsville for Origin after gaining a late leave pass from the network’s executive director, Steve Crawley.
A proud North Queensland girl, Vonny purchased her airline tickets and hotel accommodation the moment the NRL announced Townsville as the venue to beat the last-minute price hikes.
This was the night before Fox League’s executive producer Joe Bromham put out its Origin roster with Vonny listed to host its pre- and post-game shows on Wednesday night from Sydney.
Another Queenslander, Ben Ikin, has been drafted in to host the shows allowing Vonny and her husband, Channel 9 reporter Chris O’Keefe, to get to the game and watch from the comfort of Peter V’landys’ corporate suite.
Fox League will have Ikin, Paul Kent, Cooper Cronk, Braith Anasta and Mick Ennis on an Origin panel to dissect the issues, before and after the game.
IT’S DOUBLE STANDARDS
Townsville is hosting Origin on Wednesday because the NSW government was outbid by its Queensland counterpart.
Tourism minister Stuart Ayres said: “We have to be responsible with taxpayers’ money.”
Interesting. This is coming from a government that is spending $850 million to build a new Sydney Football Stadium that is too big for the Sydney Roosters, Sydney FC and the Waratahs yet too small to host an Origin game or grand final.
This is also coming from a government undertaking a multimillion-dollar feasibility study to build a $200 million mini Bankwest Stadium at Kogarah. Only the Dragons will use the venue for six home games each season.
Now that’s a waste of taxpayers’ money.
THE ISSUE: UNREST WAS A MATTER OF FATIGUE
The players’ stoush with the NRL needs to be properly explained.
This didn’t just start in Magic Round with the high-tackle crackdown.
You can go back to April last year when Channel 9 boss Hugh Marks slammed the NRL administration and the product. The NRL reacted by sacking Todd Greenberg and rushing in rule changes to create a lot more speed and fatigue in the game.
Anyone with even the slightest medical knowledge understands that fatigue causes people to make mistakes and errors of judgment in sport.
The NRL’s own research last year showed most injuries in a game are suffered between the 61st and 70th minute at the height of fatigue.
This is all backed up by Australia’s most experienced sports medico, Dr Nathan Gibbs, who has been involved in rugby league and AFL for more than 35 years.
“More fatigue is an equation for an increased injury rate,” he says.
And this is why the players are dirty. They believe the NRL actually created the problem with the rule changes that have resulted in an alarming increase in concussion cases.
The players are not pushing for Peter V’landys to go. They just want more of a voice in the game and consultation around rule changes. And that, they are entitled to.
IN NO LEAGUE OF ITS OWN
Let’s put the dementia/rugby league issue into perspective. It is such an unpleasant topic because it is such a horrible disease that effects so many families.
However, there are some important statistics that should be taken into account.
Far more women than men die from dementia-related conditions. In fact it is 64.5 per cent women — who, until recently, haven’t played elite rugby league.
ARKO SETTLED FOR BOZO
The story can now be revealed that legendary Manly boss Ken Arthurson signed rugby league Immortal Bob Fulton almost by accident.
In 1964, Arko travelled to the South Coast after being tipped off about a fullback, Alan Maddalena, playing for the Wests Red Devils against Port Kembla in the Illawarra reserve grade grand final.
Newtown officials were also at the game and signed the fullback.
Arko happily settled for Fulton and the Parramatta Eels signed Peter “Zorba” Peters.
Maddalena and Peters a few years later were the groomsmen at Fulton’s wedding to his wife, Ann. Maddalena is now living in Hawaii and couldn’t make it back into the country for the funeral.
JUMPING IN TOGETHER
There’s not a lot the NSW Blues and Queensland Maroons ever agree on around State of Origin. This year, however, they’ve chosen the same supplier for their jerseys for the first time.
The Blues and the Maroons have signed a big-money deal with Puma, both dumping previous manufacturers Canterbury and ISC.
Peter Wynn said his sports store in Parramatta was selling the NSW jumper in huge numbers ahead of the series opener in Townsville.
FAMILY PEACEKEEPING
Rugby league has had some fantastic family stories over the years. The Mortimer and Hughes brothers at the Bulldogs, the four Burgess boys at the Rabbitohs and now the three Trbojevic brothers at the Sea Eagles — Jake, Tom and Ben.
But this one takes some beating from bush football in the Riverina. Sean Byatt (middle) refereed a game which featured his brothers Matt (left) from Tumut Blues and Robbie (Albury Thunder). Tumut won 44-26. We’re told the penalty count was almost even.
TOUGH TASK TO SELECT ORIGIN’S GREATEST
There is nothing more difficult than having to pick the 10 best State of Origin players of all time.
Seriously, how do you leave out Steve Mortimer, Greg Inglis, Gene Miles, Gorden Tallis, Glenn Lazarus, “Freddy” Fittler, “Blocker” Roach, Brad Clyde, Andrew Ettingshausen, Cooper Cronk and probably another 12 who wouldn’t look out of place in a top 10.
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