Ex-NRL star Tristan Sailor’s message to alleged rape victim read out in court

A mother has given a harrowing account of the moment her daughter told her she was allegedly raped by an ex-NRL star.

*GRAPHIC DETAIL WARNING*

The mother of a woman allegedly raped by former NRL star Tristan Sailor has told a court her daughter appeared “zombie-like” and was unable to sit down properly because she was in so much pain the night after.

Mr Sailor, 23, is standing trial in the NSW District Court after pleading not guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual assault which allegedly led to bodily harm being inflicted on the woman in October 2020.

Former NRL player Tristan Sailor arrives at the Downing Centre in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

On Wednesday, the woman’s mother told the court she first found out about the alleged rape when her daughter called her through Facetime the day after.

The mother said the woman said “I think something bad happened to me … I think I was date raped”.

When the mother asked what about what had allegedly happened, the woman said “I don’t know what happened exactly … I went to the toilet, sat back at the table, had two sips of my drink and I can’t remember anything else … I woke up completely naked”.

Tristan Sailor denies wrongdoing and claims the woman consented to the sex they had. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

The court heard the mother asked if the woman thought Mr Sailor could have raped her and the woman said “well why would I be bleeding?”.

The mother told the court her daughter had never previously been seen or heard to appear the way she did during the Facetime call.

“It was like she was in shock and when I was speaking to her I was getting a delayed response,” the mother said.

“It was like she was sort of not realising what was happening to her or comprehending it. I found her just to be very zombie-like.”

After the daughter tried to access a specialist sexual assault examination at a medical centre, the court heard she was turned away and told to go hospital because the medical centre could not do the examination.

The mother met the woman at the hospital and said “I just held on to her and we just waited to be called”.

“She was very shaky … very despondent,” the mother said.

The court heard the woman was unable to sit down properly and she told her mother “I’m in pain, I can’t sit down”.

Former St George Illawarra Dragons player Tristan Sailor (right) leaves court with his father Wendell Sailor, the ex-Wallaby and Kangaroos player. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

Earlier on Wednesday, a friend of the woman fronted court to give evidence about conversations they had on the morning after the alleged rape.

After seeing a photo of the woman and Mr Sailor on his Instagram page, the friend said she messaged the woman to say “oh my god, tell me what happened … I saw you were with the boys … yes, yes, yes”.

The court heard the woman responded, telling her friend “I think I said sex with f****** Tristan last night … I completely blacked out … I was so pissed”.

Tristan Sailor (right) shakes hands with his father Wendell Sailor after a Dragons match in 2019. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

The friend said the woman and her had a Facetime call later in the day and the woman claimed the last thing she remembered was Mr Sailor pouring her drinks in the apartment.

“When we were on the Facetime call she was very spaced out … when I was talking to her she just kept saying ‘I don’t know what had happened’,” the friend said.

“She said ‘this morning when I woke up I wiped my bum and there was blood’.”

“I think that I had asked her if she had already contacted him and she said she had but he hadn’t responded … we then decided to script a message to him … it said ‘Tristan I don’t remember anything from the Uber, just for peace of mind what happened and did we have sex’.”

The court heard Mr Sailor wrote back to the woman the following day after she messaged him, saying “Sorry I was out, we just played drinking games and yes we did have sex. I asked you and *** before we did though to check, but I pulled out and everything … that was so sweet.”

The trial continues.

Originally published as Ex-NRL star Tristan Sailor’s message to alleged rape victim read out in court