NRL 2024: Steven Gordon set for 12-game ban for alleged stomp in Newcastle league game, Women’s footy outperforms men | Saint, Sinner, Shoosh
Women’s rugby league has grown to such an extent that it is now out-rating men’s Super Rugby, the Bledisloe Cup, and last weekend’s A-League grand final on free-to-air television. See the full Saint, Sinner, Shoosh.
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Women’s rugby league has grown to such an extent that it is now out-rating men’s Super Rugby – even the Bledisloe Cup – and last weekend’s A-League soccer grand final on free-to-air television.
On top of that, next Thursday night’s women’s State of Origin game in Newcastle has already sold out at McDonald Jones Stadium, which has a 33,000-seat capacity.
It is an extraordinary growth rate, considering NRLW started only six years ago in 2018.
Two weeks ago the opening game of the women’s State of Origin series on the eve of Magic Round attracted a viewership of 937,400 on Channel 9.
Now compare that to:
» Wallabies v All Blacks rugby union: 520,100 on Channel 9.
» Wallabies v Argentina: 419,200 on Channel 9.
» Wallabies v Wales rugby union: 363,100 on Channel 9.
» A-League soccer grand final: 329,000 on Channel 10.
The comparisons exclude data from Stan, Fox Sports and Paramount (not available).
Women’s league has taken off at a remarkable rate. “It’s absolutely flying,” says NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo.
The skill level, the fitness and their tactical nous improves every season. Tamika Upton, Jessica Sergis, Isabelle Kelly, Millie Boyle, Emma Tonegato and Jaime Chapman are not just wonderful players but great athletes.
The figures are even more damning for rugby union in club football.
The average NRLW audience last year was higher than the weekly men’s Super Rugby match of the round.
Last year the average audience for an NRLW game was 104,800, compared to Super Rugby’s 90,000. And women’s rugby league is now so much stronger than women’s union.
The Super Rugby women’s Saturday game attracted an average audience of only 19,800 last year. The Wallaroos are struggling for funding from Rugby Australia and in their on-field performances.
UGLY BUSH FOOTY STOMP SET FOR 12-GAME BAN
NSWRL boss David Trodden has stepped in to ban an ex-Newcastle Knight who allegedly stomped on the head of an unconscious player in a Newcastle league game.
Steven Gordon, who played for the Knights in 2007, was originally suspended for only two weeks when his grade 4 striking charge was downgraded to a grade 2 at a judiciary hearing.
This is despite referee Tom Taylor telling the judiciary in a statement that Gordon: “walked
over to the ball carrier, who still appeared to be unconscious laying on his back, and stomped directly on to his face with the studs of his boot.”
Gordon’s Raymond Terrace team was playing Dudley at Balcomb Oval five weeks ago when the incident allegedly occurred.
Dudley president Kody Bridges lodged an appeal for “an inadequate punishment”.
Inexplicably, his appeal was dismissed, despite the referee and three other witness statements, who all said they observed Gordon stomping on Dudley forward Joel Williams.
Williams, 26, had been knocked out in the previous tackle.
The appeals panel claimed the video was inconclusive.
A furious Bridges then contacted your columnist.
“We didn’t want to make a big deal of it, but the judiciary process has failed us,” he said, “I owe it to the club and the game to speak out.”
I then contacted Trodden to make him aware of the situation.
He acted within 24 hours and issued the following statement: “Following a recent hearing and appeal process in relation to an incident arising from the match between Raymond Terrace and Dudley on 20 April, the NSWRL yesterday reissued a charge of grade 4 striking against Steven Gordon from the Raymond Terrace Magpies club.
“The charge carries a nominal penalty of 1200 points, equating to a 12-match suspension upon conviction. The charge will be heard on 6 June, and the player will be stood down from participation in rugby league pending the hearing of the charge.”
PVL’S GLOBAL REACH
Australia’s most entrepreneurial sporting administrator Peter V’landy’s has bought a TV production company.
The NRL commission chairman and Racing NSW boss paid $5 million for the Global Advance company that went broke earlier this year and had to stop broadcasting A-League games. The network was valued at $20m before going bust.
V’landys bought the production company for Racing NSW to cover racing and other sports.
“We’re always looking for new sources of income,” V’landys said.
“It’s going to save us millions of dollars in racing. It’s all state-of-the-art equipment.
“We will look at all other opportunities, including talking to the A-League again.”
SAINT
A massive week for sport in the Harbour City, with two 80,000 crowds for the Matildas v China at Accor on Monday night and the Blues v Maroons at the same venue on Wednesday night.
SINNER
SHOOSH
Which NRL head coach rang your columnist and started singing ‘Up Up Cronulla, the boys in the black, white and blue’ in a voicemail message after the 42-nil loss to the Panthers last weekend.
SHOOSH
SPOTTED
Despite two-straight Origin series losses, the NSW Blues are still being heavily backed to win on Wednesday night. The TAB reports that an incredible 73 per cent of head-to-head bets have been placed on NSW to win Game 1 at Accor Stadium.
SPOTTED
NSW women’s State of Origin centre Jess Sergis and her partner, Manly Sea Eagles centre Tommy Talau, doing a workout at the Allianz Stadium gymnasium last week.
SPOTTED
AFL legend Jonathan Brown is on his way to Dublin with Fox Sports executive producer
Joe Bromham for an exclusive one-on-one interview with UFC superstar Connor McGregor before his next fight in Las Vegas on June 30.
BIG BREKKY
Catch you at 9.40am on the Weekend Big Sports Breakfast with Ray Thomas and Dean Bulldog Ritchie to discuss all the big issues in the countdown to Wednesday night’s Origin.
WOMEN’S RATE BIG TIME
BLUES SHARE DIGS WITH TILLIES
The NSW Blues will share the Pullman Hotel at Sydney Olympic Park with the Matildas over the weekend in the countdown to their blockbuster games at Accor Stadium.
NSW left the Blue Mountains to check in at the Pullman yesterday.
Blues players and the coaching staff will watch the Matildas against China on Monday night.
No doubt they’ll bump into Nathan Cleary, who will be at the hotel and game to support his partner Mary Fowler.
It’s become somewhat of a battle between the Matildas and State of Origin to see who can draw the biggest crowd. Both games will have more than 75,000 fans.
NSW players won’t be given the weekend off, as in previous campaigns, to return home. Instead, coach Michael Maguire invited families and partners to join the team at the Blue Mountain resort on Friday night.
On Thursday, Nicho Hynes and Cameron McInnes stayed in camp rather than travel watch their Sharks against the Eels at Parramatta.
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE
It’s nice to see the Blues being treated like rock stars as they prepare for Wednesday night.
The NSWRL shouted all the players hire cars to get to the Fairmont resort in the Blue Mountains on Monday. Skipper Jake Trbojevic turned up in a flash Merc. In previous camps they took their own cars.
MATTY PARIS-BOUND
Matty Johns, Hannah Hollis and Fox Sports boss Steve Crawley are off to the Olympics.
Johns will do his podcasts, TV crosses and write columns for this masthead out of Paris.
“I’ve always followed the Olympics closely,” Matty said, “It will be hard work but fun.”
The TV host seems more concerned about leaving his popular twice-weekly TV show to Bryan Fletcher and Nathan Hindmarsh while he is away.
“I’m nervous,” Johns said, “Leaving the show with those two blokes is like leaving your new- born baby with the Capital City Goofball (from The Simpsons).”
ELIAS DESERVES KUDOS TOO
Steve ‘Blocker’ Roach and Michael O’Connor have been added to the NSW Blues Hall of Fame.
Both are most worthy of the honour.
However, I’m not sure why it is taking so long for the champion, old Balmain Tigers hooker Benny Elias, to be recognised and inducted.
Elias made 19 gutsy appearances for NSW between 1985 and 1994, for a 52 per cent win record.
O’Connor played 19 games as well, and Blocker played 17 Origins.
All three are equally deserving of the honour.
Surely the judges will recognise Benny next year.
He was a sensational player and deserves recognition alongside all other NSW Blues legends.
PUNTERS GET BEHIND EDWARDS
Broncos superstar Reece Walsh is a $6 favourite to win man-of-the-match honours in State of Origin I.
However, most money has come for his opposite, NSW fullback Dylan Edwards.
Edwards is a big-game performer at Accor, winning the Clive Churchill Medal on grand final night in 2022.
“Edwards is far and away the best backed for player of the match with close to 40 per cent at $10,” TAB’s Rohan Welsh said.
“It dwarfs the outlays on his star rival and TAB favourite Reece Walsh, who has taken around seven per cent as Queensland’s most popular for the award.”
Interestingly, there’s more money on Blues skipper Jake Trbojevic than Payne Haas, who is always well backed with punters.
SPELLING IT OUT FOR YOU
Can the bus mob ferrying our cricketers around at the T20 World Cup please learn to spell?
Sorry, but it’s not “Austrailia” like the sign on the front of our team bus says.
Australia plays Oman on June 6 in our first game of the tournament.
HAPPY 60TH TO BOXING ICON
For a bloke who almost died in hospital two months ago, Jeff Fenech looked remarkably fit and well at his 60th birthday celebrations last week.
It was a ripper event at Aberdeen Asian in Haberfield … lobsters, caviar, oysters, scallops, the most beautiful wines and blue label scotch.
There were a host of big names there … my great mate Michael Clarke, Johnny Lewis, Mark Bouris, Benny Elias, Wayne Pearce, Mario Fenech, and veteran player agent Sammy Ayoub.
Mario Fenech is struggling these days with dementia, but he’s doing OK, and it was so nice to catch up and chat with one of rugby league’s greatest ever characters.
Jeff Fenech spoke beautifully about his career and how it started in a youth detention centre, before he found Newtown Police Boys Club and became the country’s all-time greatest boxer.
CHIP IN FOR SLUDGE DAY
A celebrity golf day at Kareela on June 17 will honour the memory of the late, great Steve ‘Sludge’ Rogers and raise funds for the fantastic Gotcha4life charity. Rogers’ son Matt, who recently got a hole-in-one on the Gold Coast, will be there with a stack of former players. Contact Perry Haddock for tickets at perry@oztag.com.au
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