Saint, sinner, shoosh: Canterbury Bulldogs boardroom drama as former director is disqualified
Never far from the drama, the Canterbury Bulldogs have had their latest dose of behind-the-scenes boardroom farce. Phil Rothfield reveals the latest in Saint, Sinner, Shoosh.
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It wouldn’t be a footy season without boardroom drama at Canterbury Bulldogs.
Veteran director Gary McIntyre has been disqualified from this weekend’s Canterbury League Club ballot by the returning officer for failing to declare he had been previously banned as a director.
McIntyre was embroiled in the club’s 2002 salary cap scandal and prohibited from being a board member until four years ago.
He was then voted on as an independent after declaring past indiscretions. This time, he failed to, ruling him ineligible.
With McIntyre a late scratching, the son of Bulldogs legend Steve ‘Turvey’ Mortimer is challenging for a position as an independent.
Andrew Mortimer is an impressive candidate with a strong history and expertise in sales.
“I’ve always been passionate about the footy and league club,” Mortimer said.
“I want to help the club continue to grow.”
The challenge for licensed clubs these days is building revenue away from poker machines.
“There’s always pressure from governments on pokies money and we need to keep looking at new revenue opportunities,” Mortimer said, “I’ve got a few ideas around that.
“My interests are long term for both the league and footy club. To help ensure the long-term security and future of the club with different strategies to bring in other revenue.
“The pokies are the engine room but all clubs are looking at other alternatives.”
The League Club elections will not have an effect on footy operations.
However, following the recent dismissal of popular footy club chairman John Khoury, there are suggestions members will call an EGM if the NRL side continues to struggle.
The new chairman Adam Driussi was placed into the position in a boardroom coup to replace Khoury despite never being elected as a director at a members’ ballot.
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SAINT
Parramatta Eels legend Ray Price has beaten both bowel cancer and melanoma. It’s why he is so passionate about raising awareness and funds for more research into the hideous disease. Price hosted a golf day on the Gold Coast last week.
Peter Sterling and Fatty Vautin were among the corporate heavy hitters and everyday hackers. Even David Liddiard turned up, despite a recent heart attack, to sell the raffle tickets. More than $10,000 was raised. Great work Pricey.
SINNER
Johnathan Thurston smashed the NRL on national TV over Spencer Leniu’s eight-week ban, suggesting “the game has failed in this instance”, What rubbish. A player rubbed out for a third of the season is a more-than-satisfactory outcome.
SHOOSH
Which NRL club is showing interest in a possible swap deal for Dragons star Zac Lomax? And it’s not the Eels. The Dragons could potentially finish up with a handy front-rower.
SPOTTED
Another one from the wedding ring spotters … Candice Warner on the Back Page on Fox Sports last week minus her very expensive wedding and engagement rings. So we checked in to find out why. Turns out Candice had been training before the show and always removes her rings. Then she accidentally left the bling at home.
SPOTTED
Dolphins recruitment boss Peter O’Sullivan out of petrol and stranded on the highway between Brisbane and the Gold Coast. It was a forgettable week for Sully, with son Sean dropped from the Dolphins team after the loss to the Cowboys.
SPOTTED
St George-Illawarra five-eighth Kyle Flanagan enjoying the Fred Again concert at Qudos Bank Arena on Tuesday night – fresh from a big win and strong performance against the Titans.
BLEEP RELIEF: NO MORE DOCOS FOR MADGE
Still scarred from the Wild Wests: Tales from Tiger Town documentary, NSW Blues coach Michael Maguire has declined an opportunity for a new behind-the-scenes TV feature on State of Origin.
Channel 9 personality Karl Stefanovic had approached the NRL to make a new doco on rugby league’s showpiece event to give viewers an insight into the Blues and Maroons camps.
Stefanovic had previously floated the idea with the support of former NSW coach Brad Fittler but had it rejected by old super coach Wayne Bennett, who was in charge of Queensland.
Not surprisingly, Maguire says at this stage he’s not interested.
The former Wests Tigers coach dropped a staggering 113 F-bombs in 57 minutes in the second edition of Tales from Tiger Town, the controversial documentary on Fox Sports that looked into the club’s 2021 season.
The way he was portrayed as such a hard, aggressive and angry man in Wests Tigers team meetings and inside his coaching box would have contributed to his sacking the following year.
In one of many outbursts, he says: “This f------ jersey makes you rise … be the f------ team that puts on f------ tries, scores f------ tries, f--- there’s nothing better than scoring another one. All those little things you get to do together, it’s f------ good fun. Well go out and f------ do it boys, hey. Go out and rip into this f------ team.”
Maguire laughed when we rang him on Friday to inquire about his interest in participating in another documentary.
“No, I’m not going to touch it mate,” he said.
“I haven’t got another documentary in me right now.
“I want to create a culture in the silence of the way I go about things.
“Putting it all out there at the moment is not something we need to do.
“Maybe it could be something down the track.
“Right now winning is what the fans want to see more than anything else.”
Stay tuned.
SELFISH SMITH
He was once Australia’s most admired Test cricketer.
Now Steve Smith is being labelled a selfish player over his constant waste of video referrals.
Cricket stats guru Lawrie Colliver, from Fox Cricket and the Australian Cricket Digest, has revealed the damning proof of Smith’s terrible Hawk-Eye dismissal rate as he fights to save his career.
Of Smith’s last 14 reviews, 12 of them have been incorrect including two in the recently completed Test match against the Kiwis in Christchurch.
Former Australian captain Kim Hughes didn’t hold back when we contacted him on Friday.
“He’s been an amazing player but to me he’s become very selfish,” Hughes said.
“A number of times I’ve seen him review without even consulting his teammate at the other end.
“You don’t do that unless you know for sure that you’ve nicked it.
“You only get three reviews.
“If you chew up one early on, you might need it later on.”
It’s fortunate that Australia has had a summer against substandard opposition – Pakistan, the Wests Indies and New Zealand – where the wasted referrals haven’t been as costly as they might have been.
It smacks of a player who will desperately try anything to save his Test position.
The former Australian captain has copped an absolute pasting on social media in recent weeks.
In his last video referral – in the second innings in Christchurch – Hawk-Eye showed the ball was smashing into his middle stump.
In eight innings since replacing Dave Warner at the top of the Australian order Smith has averaged only 28.5 with the bat.
He averaged just 13 for his last four knocks in New Zealand.
“Maybe the selectors should have been stronger,” Hughes said. “They should have said to Steve when he put his hand up to open that Cameron Bancroft was the best option.
“It’s sending a bad message to every Sheffield Shield cricketer in Australia when the best available player isn’t being chosen.”
OUT, OUT CRONULLA: SCOMO LOSES GIG
Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison jumped before he was pushed when he relinquished his position as the Cronulla Sharks No. 1 ticket holder on Friday.
The Sharks farewelled ScoMo over lunch at Sea Level restaurant last week and publicly thanked the retiring politician for his support during his time as the local member.
“As prime minister he magnified our brand around the world whether he was wearing a Sharks cap, tie or scarf,” said chief executive Dino Mezzatesta.
Privately, however, there are other Sharks powerbrokers who are relieved he has gone.
It was reported last year the Sharks were considering revoking his No. 1 ticketholder status due to adverse findings made against him by the Robodebt Royal Commission.
There is also a feelinghe did little over his 16 years in politics to help the club in its toughest times. The Sharks are the only Sydney-based club that hasn’t received government funding for a high performance centre or ground improvements, while rivals have received combined state and federal support.
Knowing the story was about to break that he was stepping aside, Sco Mo on Friday used his own social media account to put a positive spin on it.
GLOVES UP AT 80
Legendary boxing trainer Johnny Lewis turns 80 on Monday – a milestone age in life where most sport professionals are long retired.
Lewis, though, will not even consider giving the sport that’s been his life and passion away, especially while he is so close to overseeing his seventh world champion – female boxer Ella Boot.
Ella will fight next weekend at Bankstown Paceway for the WBC silver lightweight championship against Thai boxer Usanakorn Thawilsuhannawang.
“I really believe in Ella and I still love boxing,” Lewis said.
“Why would I retire?
“I never thought I’d ever train a female boxer but I enjoy training Ella as much as any of my great champions.”
Lewis won six world titles with many of the biggest names in Australian boxing history — Jeff Fenech, Kostya Tszyu and Jeff Harding among others.
He says he gets as much satisfaction out of steering Ella’s career as he did taking his past champs to the top.
“She is the best advertisement for women’s sport,” Lewis said.
“She is a beautiful, humble lady, who trains and fights as hard as anyone I’ve looked after.”
TILLIES SUPREMACY
Further proof the Matildas are Australia’s favourite sporting outfit.
Almost 40,000 tickets were sold in the first three hours on Friday morning when sales opened to Football Australia account holders for their June 3 match against China at Accor Stadium. The match is shaping up as their 13th straight sellout on home soil – even minus their biggest name, injured Sam Kerr.
HYNES’ STATEMENT DEFENCE
It’s hard to believe that Brad Fittler and Greg Alexander dropped Nicho Hynes from the NSW State of Origin side for just one missed tackle in the Blues’ 26-18 Origin I loss in Adelaide last year.
There is not a better defender in the NRL on an edge than the Cronulla Sharks playmaker, who saves tries every week by putting his body on the line against huge rivals the size of Billy Kikau.
It’s outrageous that Fittler and his minders accused the media of trying to drive a wedge between Hynes and himself — rather than just admit he was wrong when Hynes was dropped after just one game off the bench.
BIG TICK FOR U.S. RATINGS
The NRL has completed a review of the US media coverage from the Las Vegas double-header – and it’s mostly positive.
Nationally, the season opener was covered by some of the biggest organisations in America including the New York Post, Associated Press, Forbes, Fox News, Fox Sports, Washington Post, ESPN, NBC, CBS and ABC.
It helped with ticket sales in that 23,000 seats were sold in America compared to 15,000 from Australia.
Also 1,749 new NRL accounts were created from the USA.
The NRL attracted 9.1 million total video views for Las Vegas content between August and March.
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