Peter Beattie says rugby league’s players must pull the code out of it’s tailspin

ARL Commission chairman Peter Beattie says rugby league needs players to pull it out of its tailspin on violence against women.

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Peter Beattie says rugby league needs players to pull it out of its tailspin on violence against women.

Beattie, the ARL Commission chairman, said recent months off the field had been a “train wreck’’ for the sport, capped by a Cowboys investigation into domestic violence by Ben Barba which saw the former Dally M winner have his Cowboys contract terminated on Friday.

Beattie yesterday commended the Cowboys for sacking Barba, which he said was “the sort of strong club leadership the game needs’’.

“The ARLC has made its position against domestic and other violence very clear,’’ Beattie told The Sunday Mail.

“It is also needs leadership from players. Recent unacceptable off field behaviour by a handful of players has been very damaging to rugby league and undermines the ARLC/NRL efforts to expand and build the game.’’

Beattie believes the players are the solution. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas.

The Rugby League Players Association said its members were “frustrated by the acts of a small percentage of their peers” which have put the game under pressure.

Beattie said Barba’s NRL career “is over’’.

RLPA CEO Ian Prendergast said the player union would fully support this decision if “the allegations are correct’’.

“The support offered (by the RLPA) to Ben would focus on helping him properly address any issues that may be causing what is alleged to have occurred,’’ Prendergast said.

NRL CEO Todd Greenberg yesterday denied he failed to properly investigate domestic violence allegations against Barba when he was CEO at Canterbury in 2013, saying he did what he could with the evidence in front of him.

The NRL found that Canterbury, Barba’s club at the time, acted correctly in their investigation into media images of facial injuries to Barba’s partner Ainslie Currie.

Barba has been sacked by North Queensland. Picture by Zak Simmonds.

In September 2013, Greenberg, then NRL head of football, said he has no regrets over the way he handled Barba’s employment issue. He said at the time he would do the same again because he was trying to best serve the interests of Barba, Currie and their children.

Beattie said culture change programs being run by a number of NRL clubs would act to safeguard the game from domestic violence.

“Only this week, Lynne Anderson, chair of the Bulldogs, briefed me on their impressive approach to culture change. Rebecca Frizelle from the Titans gave me a similar briefing before Christmas,’’ he said.

Barba’s sacking on Friday left the Cowboys with just 43 days in which to train up or recruit and prepare a fullback for their first premiership match, against St George Illawarra.

Barba’s actions are another bad look for the game. Picture by Zak Simmonds.

Ben Hampton played fullback for North Queensland in their last two premiership matches, with Te Maire Martin in the last line in the previous match.

Both are in the 2019 roster, but Barba’s sacking leaves salary-cap room if Cowboys coach Paul Green is able to secure a better alternative at fullback.

Brent Tate, a Cowboys old boys and current club employee, said he didn’t know who would be fullback on March 16, but he thought Michael Morgan would be deployed in a playmaking capacity rather than be handed the No.1 jersey.

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Originally published as Peter Beattie says rugby league’s players must pull the code out of it’s tailspin