Greg Alexander awards new Dally M votes for Parramatta’s Round 7 win over Manly
SPORTS CONFIDENTIAL: Dally M votes reissued, Jack Bird’s ultimatum for Wayne Bennett and how the Dragons are getting ready for the Origin period.
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THE now ill-fated Dally M votes cast for the Parramatta and Manly game have been reissued after Ruan Sims was forced to stand-down having not watched the game live.
Penrith premiership winner Greg Alexander was appointed to re-watch the match and re-adjudicate the player of the year points after the NRL announced Sims’ votes were invalid.
Both Alexander and Sims agreed Eels halfback Mitchel Moses was man of the match as he kept his three Dally M points.
However, Tim Mannah (two points) and Manly’s Api Koroisau (one point) have been stripped of their points, with Alexander awarding all points to Parramatta players following their 44-10 thumping of the Sea Eagles in round seven.
Corey Norman was given two points and Kaysa Pritchard one point in what was the Eels’ first win of the season.
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BLUSHES ALL AROUND
IT is quickly emerging as the NRL’s greatest mystery, rugby league’s modern version of the Bowler Hat scandal.
It began earlier this year in the flash surrounds of Point Piper, at the house of a certain well-connected individual with a full-scale security system.
One afternoon security was checking the cameras when they noticed a couple in the Harbour engaging in a solid game of two-handed touch, or something similar. Details are sketchy.
A closer inspection was warranted, at which point one of the security officers managed to notice the man involved and, not only that, but that he bore a stark resemblance to a particularly dashing young NRL player. In fact, it was him!
More, he knew the player!
So he called the player later and asked if he happened to be swimming around Point Piper that afternoon.
Why, yes, said the player, in fact he was. How did he happen to know?
Well, said the security man, we have it on video, at which point the player heavily blushed.
A PROPER CLOSING CEREMONY
YOU could be forgiven for thinking Friday’s Team Australia celebration for some of our Commonwealth Games heroes at First Fleet Park at The Rocks was an episode of Paw Patrol due to this four-legged social media influencer.
Track star Madison de Rozario took centre stage with her double gold Games performance in the T54 1500m and marathon, followed by her stunning London marathon win only a week later.
But it was de Rozario’s dog Sebastian who stole the show. The loveable pooch has become a social media star on de Rozario’s Instagram account and the 24-year-old told us “my dog is the actual best thing to ever happen to me”.
Now that’s gold.
DRAGONS READY TO BUNKER DOWN
THE Dragons are taking dramatic steps to ensure the team does not crumble ahead of what is expected to be a torrid representative schedule.
St George Illawarra could lose as many as seven players to Origin, while Gareth Widdop and James Graham will be Denver bound for the mid-season Test. Veteran Jason Nightingale is also a chance of playing for the Kiwis.
Aware their side is likely to be hit hard, the Dragons new leadership and culture coach Ritchie Gibson has been tasked with having the young guys mentally prepared.
Gibson has been working with the Dragons’ lesser-experienced players including Jacob Host and Hame Sele plus Mitch Allgood — who has not played in the NRL since 2014 — to have them primed for carrying an extra workload.
“We are fully aware and proactive — and not being reactive — that we may have a strong contingent of players that may be suitable for Origin,” Gibson said. “ A lot of young players on a fringe — including Allgood, Host and Sele — are physically good players. But mentally it’s important to prepare them from what’s to come so we don’t have a gap when the Origin players leave the club.
“My ideal is for the coaching staff to scratch their heads and have a conundrum on who to pick when the Origin players return. I don’t want us to lose anything.
“This started a few weeks ago. Sometimes I’ll sit down with the younger guys about what’s required to play at NRL level. On Monday I spoke to them about the six elements of getting them in the zone mentally.”
McGregor has also shared the minutes of Sele and Host in recent weeks while gun hooker Reece Robson has been named to play Melbourne in a bid to expose him ahead of what could be Cameron McInnes’s first Origin series.
DOGS STILL IN CAP TROUBLE
CANTERBURY’S salary cap problems continue to hamstring the club. The full extent of the Bulldogs’ mismanagement will be felt for years.
Greg Eastwood is a case in point. Eastwood’s three-year deal averaged a market rate $500,000 a year. But it was structured for $200,000 in 2016, $500,000 in 2017 and $800,000 in 2018.
The Morris twins, Josh and Brett, are also on back-ended deals, to the point where they will become unaffordable to retain when their contracts end this season.
Not that the Bulldogs can do much. The money freed up by the Morris twins will go towards the back-ended deals of other players already at the club next season, instead of any kind of like-for-like replacements.
HODKO COULD HEAD HOME
TRENT Hodkinson is a chance at returning to Manly before season’s end.
The Sea Eagles are desperately short in the halves and have no appetite to play Jackson Hastings.
Hodkinson’s deal with Cronulla is paid in part by Newcastle, which is good news for the Sea Eagles, who can’t afford much in their cap. But unless Manly come in with some kind of incentive over what is basically the same deal at Cronulla — who appear finals bound, unlike the Sea Eagles — Hodkinson, who is looking for a deal for 2019, has little reason to want to head to the northern beaches.
COULD BIRDY FLY THE COOP?
WHISPERS of Jack Bird’s struggle to adapt to life at the Broncos continue to leak out of Brisbane.
All’s well at the moment while ever Bird is running out with No. 7 on his back.
Bird shocked those around the club by revealing he delivered an ultimatum to coach Wayne Bennett that it was the halves, the bench “or nothing”.
Stay tuned.
Ultimatums generally don’t go down well with the supercoach.
THAT’S GOTTA HURT
FOR years it was a mystery to Cliff Watson, the Cronulla legend who passed away this week at age 78.
Here he was in the 1973 grand final, squaring up on a falling Manly opposite Peter Peters for an earlier infringement with what could only be called a pool hall left.
The decider is regarded as the most violent game ever played, and here’s an example why.
Watson is planting one square on his chin but Peters’ direction seems to be all wrong. Instead of covering his jaw his hands are carefully protecting the nether regions.
“There’s a photo going around,” Watson told NRL360 in 2013, “and I’m scuffing him around the jaw. And he’s holding his crown jewels. And I thought why is he doing that? And apparently it came to light that Tommy Bishop kicked him in the crown jewels before I hit him on the chin. That’s why he was holding his nuts.”
Watson was voted in at prop alongside Andrew Fifita in Cronulla’s 50-year team.
BIG NAMES IN TROUBLE?
IF the names are to believed, the player agents in the firing line following the investigation into Parramatta’s salary cap cheating then they will have serious ramifications for the code. The client-list of the agents is among the most impressive in the game.
SYDNEY CLUBS NOT HAPPY
THERE will be an interesting meeting between Canterbury’s Andrew Hill and South Sydney’s Blake Solly with NSW opposition leader Luke Foley on Friday. The respective club bosses have bandied together to try and get some clarity from Foley regarding his stadiums policy — which has been wishy-washy at best.
Canterbury and South Sydney have watched on as rivals including Parramatta and the Sydney Roosters have been gifted shiny new stadiums but their home base ANZ Stadium will be given a makeover. To say they are concerned would be an understatement.
They will meet with the NSW government next week.
MADGE INCHING CLOSE TO KIWI JOB
FORMER South Sydney coach Michael Maguire has emerged as the street corner tip to become the new Kiwis coach. Maguire and former NSW coach Laurie Daley are the two frontrunners with Maguire said to have his nose in front after Des Hasler and Geoff Toovey withdrew while Ritchie Blackmore is still in the mix.
It is understood Maguire — who still harbours a desire to coach in the NRL — would be able to combine the roles should he land the Kiwis gig.
HOOPS ON FREE TO AIR?
COULD the NBL save Channel 9’s vacant summer slots? There are moves for the free-to-air network to broadcast some of the NBL matches after losing the rights to the cricket from this summer. As it stands, Channel 9 are without any major summer sports with Channel 7 retaining the Australian Open for one more year before 9’s contract kicks in.
DOUBLE HEADERS ON THE HORIZON
THERE are plans to kickstart next year’s NRL season with another out of town double header following the success of this year’s match in Perth. Adelaide has emerged as a likely destination while Perth is also in the mix once again. Discussions are ongoing with plans to start the season with “round zero” in the USA.
CARIGE COMES HOME
SPEAKING of cult figures — if we weren’t, we are now — former Parramatta fan favourite Paul Carige will be back in the Blue and Gold later this season after agreeing to play in the second Legends of League tournament at Central Coast Stadium on November 17.
A smashing success last year, the Legends of League approached Carige and he was only too keen to play.
While the players take winning the tournament seriously, no assurances were sought from Carige not to kick from his own half, in the dying minutes, with the game on the line. Yes, 1998, anyone?
Already a thousand tickets have been sold after going on sale on Friday. Tickets are available at www.ticketek.com.au/legendsofleague.
SIMS STAYS CONFIDENT
TARIQ Sims may be in career best form but the Dragons player had an interesting reply when asked if he felt at his most confident this season.
“No,” Sims flat-batted. “When I was a 21-year-old running off Johnathan Thurston. That gives you a bit of confidence.”
JETS BACK ON THE BOX
THE Newtown Jets will host North Sydney in the Intrust Super Premiership on Saturday in what the Jets are claiming is their first regular season game to be shown on free to air since 1982. The match will be shown on Channel 9 from 1pm.