Tolu Latu grilled by Rugby Australia’s integrity unit over alleged drink driving
Tolu Latu is facing further disciplinary action after being grilled by Rugby Australia’s integrity unit for being arrested and charged with allegedly drink driving.
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Tolu Latu is facing further disciplinary action after being grilled by Rugby Australia’s integrity unit for being arrested and charged with allegedly drink driving.
Already booted out of the Wallabies’ World Cup training camp in Brisbane, the feisty Latu spent most of Monday being questioned by the integrity unit and NSW Rugby chief executive Andrew Hore in the presence of the players’ union.
One of the first questions the Wallabies and Waratahs hooker would have been asked is why he didn’t tell team officials about the incident before they were notified by The Sunday Telegraph.
While it is understood there are no formal requirements for players to dob themselves in if they are arrested, they have been strongly advised to speak up if they are ever involved in any off-field incidents.
As it was, the news that Tolu had been found slumped behind the wheel in Sydney in the early hours of Thursday morning caught team officials completely by surprise and left them scrambling to work out whether or not he was even allowed to play against the Reds at Suncorp Stadium.
The Waratahs were only given the all-clear at the last minute because Latu was not under investigation at that stage.
And while he played off the bench, he was promptly ordered to return home to Sydney and front the integrity unit after Michael Cheika kicked him off the three-day training camp.
The embarrassing news could not have come at worse time for the sport, which is still grappling with the Israel Folau fallout.
It is understood when police stirred Latu from his sleep, he allegedly recorded an alcohol reading of 0.135, almost three times above the limit, and was driving on a suspended licence, so was ordered to front Downing Centre Local Court on June 6.
No decision was reached on Monday night and Rugby Australia may decide to wait until his court case has been heard before deciding on any sanction, though he could be stood from playing until then.
Capped 12 times by the Wallabies, Latu already has a long history of ill-discipline on the field and only recently returned from a six-game suspension, fitter than ever and promising to be on his behaviour.
He could struggle to resurrect his international career in time for the World Cup after Cheika made it clear he would not tolerate that behaviour.
Last year, on the Wallabies trip to Europe, Cheika dropped Kurtley Beale and Adam Ashley Cooper for the Test against England for bringing three women into their hotel room.
Although one of the women was Ashley-Cooper’s sister-in-law and there was no suggestion of anything untoward, with all the guests leaving the hotel early, it was still deemed to a breach of the team’s strict rules so they were cut from the side.
Originally published as Tolu Latu grilled by Rugby Australia’s integrity unit over alleged drink driving