What's the Buzz: NSW State of Origin fullback Josh Dugan's two benders in 24 hours

WHAT'S THE BUZZ: NSW fullback Josh Dugan was involved in a drunken incident with police the night before he was out with Blake Ferguson.

NSW fullback Josh Dugan was involved in a drunken incident with police on the night before he was out with Blake Ferguson at a Cronulla nightclub last weekend.

It can be revealed that 24 hours earlier, police were called to a home on Karimbla Rd, Miranda, following complaints by neighbours.

Officers turned up to find an allegedly intoxicated Dugan and a male acquaintance sitting in a boat on the side of the road, drinking and pretending to be fishing.

True story.

They were searched before being ordered inside. Dugan has been living in the house since leaving Canberra and signing with St George Illawarra.

Neighbours phoned police to complain about alleged noise and feared the boat had been stolen when it was moved from the front yard of the house to the side of the road.

Having a beer at home is obviously not a major crime on the scale of atrocities in rugby league these days.

The concern is that Dugan was undergoing treatment for an ankle injury and behaving like an absolute gibberer at the time.

Most clubs now have strict no-alcohol policies in place for anyone on the injured list.

The fact he backed up the following night with Ferguson at Northies and then the 2320 restaurant bar questions how professionally he is caring for his injuries - even when he's on the verge of playing in the biggest State of Origin game in a decade as Jarryd Hayne's replacement.

The NRL and its chief executive Dave Smith's talk of zero tolerance is a case of too little too late.

When Dugan was sacked from the Canberra Raiders for repeated alcohol-related infringements, the NRL allowed the Dragons to sign the troubled fullback a few weeks later.

For starters, this was grossly unfair on the Raiders.

A more appropriate response may have been to send Dugan to the bush for a year like Todd Carney, who continues to show the benefits of his new maturity.

St George Illawarra's commitment to Dugan's overall rehabilitation needs to be questioned, too.

It's wonderful that he's scoring tries, but surely they need to be more conscious of his off-field activities and behaviour.

A player's welfare should be far more important than two competition points.

Dugan

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THE truth about why Blake Ferguson turned on a bender last weekend can be revealed for the first time.

The Canberra Raiders star had earlier in the day failed in an attempt to patch up a broken relationship with his old girlfriend.

Ferguson was originally booked on an early Monday morning flight from Canberra to Sydney to join the Blues camp.

Instead he changed his flight to Sunday morning and told Raiders officials he was going early to visit family.

At the same time he told a number of his Raiders' teammates he really wanted to see his ex-girlfriend.

It didn't go well, so he phoned Josh Dugan to organise the night out in Cronulla, which led to him being charged with indecent assault.

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RUGBY league has a long history of players falling off the rails.

The good news is most of them learn from their mistakes and make it back to the top with the right type of guidance.

We've even picked a team (see below) of players who have had to overcome major dramas.

It wasn't that long ago Jarryd Hayne was dodging bullets in Kings Cross after a big night on the town.

Todd Carney was banished to the bush and Albert Kelly was dumped by the Sharks and the Knights. His career looked to be over before the Titans took him on.

Willie Mason was damaged goods and no one but Wayne Bennett would give him a start. It still frustrates Test coach Tim Sheens that the Wests Tigers board banned him from signing Mason last year.

Jake Friend had his contract torn up at the Roosters and had to work in a Surry Hills sandwich shop while he was out of the game for a season.

It gives hope to the likes of Blake Ferguson and Josh Dugan. Anyone can make it back as long as they are prepared to pull their heads in.

REFORMED XVII: Jarryd Hayne, Lote Tuqiri, Michael Jennings, Greg Inglis, Sandor Earl, Todd Carney, Albert Kelly, Paul Gallen, Jake Friend, Willie Mason, Nate Myles, Sonny Bill Williams, Greg Bird. Interchange: John Sutton, Anthony Watmough, Joel Monaghan, Ben Barba

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The O'Neill Family

THIS is one of the most uplifting stories in rugby league at a time when the game desperately needs good news.

Retired Wests Tigers star Mark O'Neill and his wife Belinda have been doing double-time after the birth of twin girls Ella Rose and Maddison Lee three weeks ago.

What makes this such an inspirational family is the fact Belinda was diagnosed with breast cancer 11 years ago and had to have a breast removed and re-constructed.

The O'Neills even went as far as having embryos frozen as Belinda had the mastectomy, went through chemotherapy and was warned about the possibility she and Mark may never be able to have a family.

Fortunately, it wasn't the case.

Today, the O'Neill household has never been busier, with the twins becoming little sisters to three-year-old Myla Belle.

"We're over the moon. There's not enough hours in the day but we couldn't possibly be any happier," O'Neill said.

"What we'd really like to do is help raise some awareness if we can.

"Belinda is breast-feeding the twins and she's actually only got one breast that works.

"The twins need six feeds each a day and Belinda is doing four of them, then we're going with bottles for the other two. It's safe to say with four girls in the house now, I'm getting a lot of love."

O'Neill captained the Tigers to their last premiership in 2005 and is currently the NRL's operations manager.

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SAINT

THE Socceroos have not only made it to Brazil but they have shown our cricket, rugby league and rugby union stars the exemplary behaviour that is expected of our national sporting teams. Tim Cahill, in particular, was an absolute class act on The Footy Show.

SINNER

LAST week we couldn't separate Dave Warner and James Tamou as sport's biggest ratbags. This week the winner is Blake Ferguson (gold), Josh Dugan (silver) and George Burgess (bronze). Mal Meninga finished a close fourth.

THE BOX SEAT

THE best kept secret in Australian sport is that there are still seats available, albeit expensive ones, for the Sydney Test between the Wallabies and British & Irish Lions at ANZ Stadium on Saturday, July 6. If you're a typical rah-rah supporter with truckloads of cash, eight-seat corporate boxes are still available at $1500 a head.

You get wined and dined for four hours, attend a cocktail function and the best seats in the house.

And don't forget the leather patches.

SHOOSH

IF you thought Souths boss Shane Richardson and coach Michael McGuire were angry about the poor behaviour of George Burgess in Cairns last weekend it was nothing compared to the dressing down he received from older brother Sam.

MERRITT POINTS

NATHAN Merritt is the exact opposite to Blake Ferguson, the man he replaced on the Blues wing.

In his first night in Origin camp the team had dinner at a Coogee restaurant and Merritt didn't touch a single drop.

PLANE SILLY

HOW could Qantas boss Alan Joyce and his marketing team drop the naming rights of the Socceroos just as the game hits new peaks? Surely the question is being asked from the boardroom of our so-called "national carrier"?

ORIGIN FLASHBACK

UNDER the NRL's new broadcasting agreement, 2GB can't call Channel Nine's delayed Sunday afternoon game. Not a problem. This afternoon gun caller Andrew Moore will call the first ever State of Origin game in 1980 off an old DVD.

STANDING PROUD

THE Fox Sports shoulder-to-shoulder campaign is starting to take off. In pouring rain this trio showed their passion for the Socceroos and even got a re-tweet from Tim Cahill, who is fronting the campaign. All Aussies can get involved for their chance to win a trip for six people to the Ashes for the fifth Test by standing shoulder-to-shoulder in support of Australia's national teams and posting it to Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #itson and tag @FOXSPORTSAUS.

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Kieran Foran

IT'S a shame more footballers aren't as professional as Kiwi Test skipper Kieran Foran (pictured above).

The 22-year-old Manly Sea Eagles five-eighth has sworn off the booze for the rest of the season.

It's a sacrifice he's prepared to make to try to win the premiership and lead the Kiwis to the World Cup. And it's typical of his commitment to the game.

The NRL should be using outstanding citizens like Foran as a mentor for up and coming players in the game.

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THE Bulldogs have warned rival clubs to stay away from Dally M champion Ben Barba.

Coach Des Hasler and CEO Todd Greenberg have made it clear he will not be released.

The Titans and the Tigers are two clubs who are believed to have spoken to Barba's agent Gavin Orr.

There is a thought Barba is on "unders" at Belmore and could earn substantially more at another club.

His current deal was done before he shot to prominence as the game's No. 1 one pin-up player last year. He used to be a heavy gambler and has not invested his football earnings wisely.

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IT'S been a particularly tough week for boxer Anthony Mundine, torn between loyalty to two of his closest "brothers".

The sacking of Blake Ferguson and then the selection of Nathan Merritt in the Blues side left the boxer with mixed emotions.

Mundine sent coach Laurie Daley a text message to congratulate him on Merritt's selection.

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IF you reckon the Socceroos did it the hard way in getting to Brazil, spare a thought for the thousands of Aussie fans facing the trauma of a global ticketing ballot later this year.

There are 3.3 million tickets available for the World Cup, but Brazil's football-mad population of 200 million is first in line.

Details will be announced on July 1 and the scramble begins in August.

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WHILE the coach and players deservedly received the praise for the Socceroos' triumphant last few weeks, one of the unsung heroes was physio Les Gelis.

FFA boss David Gallop told me during the week how he had been persuaded by coach Holger Osieck to fund an individual trip by Gelis to the Middle East and Japan to help Mark Bresciano and Josh Kennedy with their injury rehabilitation last month.

A fit Bresciano was outstanding against Japan, Jordan and Iraq, firing the cross for Kennedy's winning header on Tuesday night.