Saint, Sinner, Shoosh: NRL finals TV ratings war, AFL grand final day clash
NRL commentator Phil Gould has been put in his place by a footy legend over his controversial views on Latrell Mitchell’s season-ending hit on Joey Manu.
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Phil Gould says only people who have played NRL can understand Latrell Mitchell’s brutal tackle on Joey Manu that smashed his cheekbone.
Well, Garry Jack played at the highest level in 244 games for Balmain Tigers and 22 Test matches for Australia. In fact, Gould recently rated Jack as rugby league’s greatest defensive fullback. Jack says Gus got it wrong in his defence of Latrell.
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“I didn’t agree with what Gus said,” Jack told listeners on his podcast The Fend last week. “Latrell got his technique completely wrong.
“When you’re making that sort of tackle, when you’re defending your try line, the first thing he had to do was to go ball and all and try to wrap up the footy.
“I made that tackle plenty of times and that’s NOT how you do it.”
NRL finals TV ratings war
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo is refusing to back away from an unwinnable TV ratings showdown against the AFL grand final later this month.
The two codes normally have clear air and share grand final weekend, with the AFL on Saturday afternoon and the NRL decider 24 hours later on Sunday evening.
That has changed this year with the AFL bringing its game forward by a week to September 25, with the decider to be shown live into the eastern states at 7.30pm from Optus Stadium in Perth (Channel 7 and Fox Sports) opposing an NRL grand final qualifier (Channel 9 and Fox Sports) at Suncorp Stadium.
The AFL grand final last year on a Saturday night at the Gabba in Brisbane rated a massive 3.8 million, the biggest free-to-air audience share since OzTAM began in 2001, even higher than the Tokyo Olympics last month and Lleyton Hewitt in the Australian Open final in 2005.
Of concern to Channel 9 is that the AFL grand final did a 400,000 audience in rugby league heartland in Sydney.
Abdo was unaware of the clash until contacted by The Sunday Telegraph. He insisted he would not move the NRL game to Saturday afternoon to prevent a clash.
“We’ll stand our ground,” Abdo said. “Sports lovers will have to make a choice. League fans will be more interested in our preliminary final.
“We’ve got to do what’s right for our game, our teams, our fans and our stakeholders.
“I know how our finals series is shaping up and the quality of teams.
“Even the Eels upset Storm. Manly is playing great footy. We’ve got Penrith and Souths. This is setting up to be something very special. I’m not being arrogant but they should be more concerned than we are that we’re going to put on an unbelievable game of rugby league.
“I’m so focused on what’s right for our sport, not theirs.”
All the latest NRL chatter and more in Australia’s hottest sport gossip column.
SAINT
There is not a nicer person in rugby league than Rooster Joey Manu. For him to have his finals dream shattered by Latrell Mitchell but then declare they will always remain friends is so typical of a great sporting ambassador who was more concerned about Latrell’s mental health than anything else.
SINNER
A handful of Sydney-based NRL club officials are still quietly lobbying behind the scenes to try to stop expansion with a second Brisbane team. These are the same people flat out running their own organisations and have no idea about the importance of growing the market north of the border.
SHOOSH
Sydney’s magnificent new 45,000 seat Allianz Stadium in Moore Park will open in August next year. The NRL is already planning the 2022 draw around the Sydney Roosters v South Sydney Rabbitohs as the first rugby league event in a blockbuster grudge match. This will be huuuuuge.
SHOOSH
The rumour will not go away that Mitchell Pearce will leave Newcastle at the end of the season despite having one year to go on his contract. The Bulldogs, Raiders and Catalans in the UK Super League have all offered him big money, two-year deals.
SPOTTED
The old crusher tackle has been around forever, even in this old Reschs pub beer poster of the Eastern Suburbs Roosters and Newtown Jets which has resurfaced on social media. It’s a bit like back in California in 1987 when the ARL used a giant photo of a speartackle on billboards to promote the State of Origin game in LA.
SPOTTED
Recently-retired winger Brett Morris lining up for a latte at a Woolooware coffee shop wearing his Sydney Roosters mask on Tuesday.
SPOTTED
Andrew Bogut selling his six-bedroom Concord mansion for $4.1 million. The basketball legend is moving into a new $5 million home in Melbourne.
SPOTTED
Rex Mossop’s old sidekick Barry Ross — Channel 7’s sideline eye for the first State of Origin game in 1980 — celebrated his 80th birthday on Thursday. A celebration lunch had to be cancelled but Steve “Blocker” Roach, Bob Dwyer, Johnny Lewis, Craig Wing, John Gray and Tom Mooney put together a video tribute. Barry has been a tireless contributor to the Men Of League charity for many years and is a really decent guy.
THREE-YEAR RIVALRY FOR MITCHELL, MANU
The rivalry between Latrell Mitchell and Joey Manu has been building since 2018.
This headline appeared in The Daily Telegraph on October 11 three years ago and says it all: I’m ready to ruffle Joey’s feathers.
It was when the then Sydney Roosters teammates first opposed each other in a Test match in New Zealand — Mitchell for the Kangaroos and Manu for the Kiwis. On the eve of the game, Mitchell spoke about his plans to be aggressive when marking his clubmate.
“I’m competitive and he’s going to be competitive,” Mitchell said. “There’s no mates on the field. Aggression just comes out. People take it as being grubby or whatnot but it’s just how I play. I just want to beat my opponent at the other end.”
The Kiwis downed the Kangaroos 26-24 at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland, highlighted by Manu fending off Mitchell in the 34th minute of the game to score a try.
Mitchell was quick to applaud Manu after the game
“He’s an unbelievable talent,” Mitchell said. “I don’t doubt he’ll be the best centre in the game one day — probably could even be next year.
“He just turns it on. I think he can go to another level. He has showed that.”
LEGEND’S HOUSE FOR SALE ... AT $7M
The beachfront family home of Canterbury Bulldogs legend Chris Anderson is up for sale as he fights a multimillion-dollar legal battle with the taxation department.
Shire agent Greg Gilbert has expectations for a $7 million sale at auction for the home.
The Australian Taxation Office has launched separate legal actions against Anderson and his brother-in-law, Kevin Moore, in the NSW Supreme Court alleging a long list of breaches by the pair when they were directors of labour hire companies that are now in the hands of liquidators.
Both are disputing the claims. The cases are back in court on October 15.
The magnificent family home is listed in the name of Anderson’s wife, Lynne, the former Canterbury Bulldogs chair and chief executive of Paralympics Australia, who recently stood down from the role.
She paid $2 million in 2008 for the property and then lodged a development application for a new $900,000 home the following year.
Anderson is in Tokyo at the Paralympics and declined to comment when contacted by The Sunday Telegraph.
HEAVYWEIGHT CHOC READY TO GO AGAIN
Anthony Mundine has put on 15kg since he retired from boxing six months ago … but he’s still planning to have one more fight.
“The Man” last fought Michael Zerafa at 72kg but is now weighing 87kg and enjoying life without the strict diet and intense training.
Yet, believe it or not, he’s planning another fight on December 4 in the Northern Territory. Mundine will step into the ring in an exhibition bout against Bobby Antonakos, one of his old sparring partners to raise money for indigenous causes.
Others on the card include Ben Barba and John Hopoate, who will fight against AFL players. Justin Hodges will also fight Ben Hannant.
“I’m not worried about fighting again,” Mundine said. “The only reason I struggled in my last few fights is that I had to lose too much weight. You lose your resistance. I’m still a beast, bra. I’ll have some fun, enjoy the night and give back to the people.”
FAMILY TIME TAKES AWAY THE BLUES
NSW Blues State of Origin coach Brad “Freddy” Fittler says there is one benefit out of living with Covid-19. It’s all about having more time with his family ... and not just on Father’s Day.
“It made us realise that we genuinely love spending time together as a family, whether in or out of lockdown,” Fittler said.
Freddy and wife Marie have two children — Zac and Demi.
“My children are moving from teenagers to adults, which means now we can do pretty much anything together,” he said. “Going to the beach, exercise, dinners, movies – actually Marie and I spend most of our time, especially now during lockdown, with the kids. We love it.”
Apart from his Origin coaching and Channel 9 commitments, Freddy is also a ResMed sleep ambassador and a firm believer in routine and getting a good night’s rest. On non-work nights he’s normally in bed by 9pm.
“Getting the right amount of sleep makes me a stronger person,” he said.
“It is science. It allows me to be tolerant and energetic. I enjoy everything about being a father. Having Marie next to me makes it better and easier.
“I love watching them experience life. Highs and lows. Right and wrong. It’s like the key to life. Talk to old people, hang out with young people. Until they tell you to beat it. Then I go sulking off to my corner.”
CHAMPAGNE CURES THE PAIN
Netball players can be as tough and resilient as our NRL stars … and there’s a story to prove it from last weekend’s Super Netball grand final.
Sydney Swifts captain Maddy Proud played with a broken rib from a semi-final two weeks earlier.
“To properly heal it’s normally a three to six week injury,” says NRL Physio Brien Seeney.
Maddy needed heavy strapping and also pain killing injections before the game.
The fact she missed the grand final two years ago with an ACL rupture made her more determined to play this time. The Swifts won the grand final over the GWS Giants.
With no Covid restrictions, Maddy and the girls celebrated long into the night in Brisbane.
“Champagne became my painkiller,” she laughed.
FOOD FIGHT AT ALLIANZ STADIUM
Justin Hemmes’ Merivale has won catering rights for the new Allianz Stadium at Moore Park. This has shocked NRL clubs which were pushing for a company that included celebrity chef Matt Moran as part of its tender — the same caterers which look after fans at Bankwest Stadium with excellent and reasonably priced food.
RADIO RATINGS SURPRISE
The big winner in the latest NRL radio ratings is 2GB’s highly regarded young broadcaster James Willis.
Willis hosts the Continuous Call team on Friday nights that pulled an audience of 14.5 per cent. The weekend team rated 10.4 on Saturdays and 10.1 on Sundays.
Again, SEN has been a major flop. It rated just 0.4 on Friday nights, 0.7 on Saturday nights and 0.3 on Sundays.
In weekday breakfast, Laurie Daley and Michael Clarke on Big Sports Breakfast had more than three times the audience of SEN.
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