Rebecca Wilson: No place in rugby league for Andrew Fifita

ANDREW Fifita should not be playing rugby league. He should be banned by his coaches, and boycotted by Sharks fans, writes REBECCA WILSON.

Andrew Fifita on the charge for the Sharks.

NOBODY likes it when we do this.

Comparing the codes and the individuals who take part in league, AFL and rugby union leads to ugly discrimination, occasionally unfair bias and an even denser line between the three.

The latest example is Cronulla’s Andrew Fifita — a disgraceful human being, with a long record of bad behaviour who has now decided that he can find a violent prisoner in jail, go and visit him and then decide that everything the bloke has done is absolutely fine even though a family has lost not one, but two sons as a result of the thuggery he committed on the beautiful Kelly family.

I’m not even sure that idiotic Fifita knows who the Kelly family are — the one that lost a son to a king hit in Kings Cross and then lost another one because he simply couldn’t go on living without his beautiful brother.

Instead, Fifita has made a habit of going to see his friend, convicted one-punch killer Kieran Loveridge, in prison.

This has not been something of a one off — it has gone on nearly all year and the visits are underlined by wrist strapping that states FKL — Free Kieran Loveridge or For Kieran Loveridge. Fifita denies the F stands for Free.

If it wasn’t so serious, you mighty even raise a wry laugh at the pathetic, disgusting nature of Fifita’s reaction and the way in which he has perpetuated it. The man has no shame, no guts and is excused by his club and his code.

For so long, he has behaved vilely towards junior league, other opponents who get in his way and even his own club that must look at him and think what are we doing?

Cronulla fans have a laugh but the rest of the league find it abhorrent and entirely wrong. He is a bad person but because he can play, the Sutherland Shire is his oyster.

Fifita should not be playing rugby league.

He should be banned by coach Shane Flanagan, and Laurie Daley, boycotted completely by the Sharks fans and stop being picked for rep teams without any questions being answered.

The Sharks juniors don’t need him hanging around their kids making trouble.

So that’s when the league steps in. Dare I say it but incidents like this do not happen in rugby union or AFL.

While there are bad eggs in both, nothing in either comes close to the atrocities that are almost routinely committed in league.

Let’s look at the club bosses who have overseen this rubbish — Flanagan, a candidate for coach of the year who has allowed it to go on right under his nose.

Then there is club boss Lyall Gorman who looks like a mild-mannered Clark Kent but has failed to put a stop to the place being one of ill repute.

Gorman appears to be honest but his credentials are questionable. Too many dodgy occurrences happen at Cronulla.

The place is competitive so everyone is applauding them but peel back the layers and things like this still go dreadfully wrong.

Cronulla Shark Andrew Fifita has caused outrage over his support of Kieran Loveridge. Picture: Cameron Richardson

Fifita’s teammates are not emerging unscathed either.

Where is Mick Ennis? The wonderful example of leader Paul Gallen? Why didn’t either of them say, “Hey bro, what’s with the tape and the initials?” Surely they would have thought it?

Fifita is one of those people who is in a side box that nobody can get to.

He is not included in the group list, there’s no what the hell is that all about?

There is no fear from him.

Todd Greenberg needs to assess the value of someone like Fifita to the code and then decide if he sacrifices him for the greater good.

No coach or trainer should say leave the poor bloke alone and let him get on with it.

This is the latest chapter in an ongoing book that makes us all cringe and seethe with anger.

Make it the last instalment because normal people are completely over this bloke and the level of acceptance he’s granted in rugby league.

It’s finished and we won’t be the poorer for it.