Rabbitohs star Cody Walker will accept NRL punishment over viral fight footage
South Sydney look set to lose Cody Walker for the blockbuster restart clash against the Roosters, and the contrite Rabbitoh says he will accept whatever penalty the NRL hands down over his viral street fight video.
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Under-fire NRL star Cody Walker has vowed “I will not be appealing” any punishment as the game’s bosses juggle another crisis of conscience in the countdown to next week’s competition relaunch.
Walker, 30, is in danger of being rubbed out of Friday week’s return blockbuster against the Sydney Roosters for a dangerous act of stupidity.
Just days after putting to bed Nathan Cleary’s embarrassing Anzac Day antics, Walker – who gets paid a reported $700,000-a-season – is in strife after video also emerged on social media of him launching into a street fight involving two other men with an unprovoked karate kick.
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“Whatever decision the game, the club, anyone come up with, that is what is going to happen,” Walker told Channel 9 on Monday night.
“I will not be appealing. I am very, very sorry.”
But the Rabbitohs were hanging on Walker’s availability given he is now under an NRL and police investigation for the same brawl over which he told police he had been blackmailed.
The incident, which occurred in Walker’s hometown of Casino in northern NSW on December 1, appeared on social media on Monday.
This came after Walker told police on Sunday he had received a phone call on Saturday evening from someone threatening that the video would go public unless he paid a sum, understood to be $20,000.
Walker claims his actions came after an emotional night of drinking following a family funeral when he spotted one of his cousins involved in the street fight.
While onlookers pleaded with Walker to stay out of the fight, he claimed: “I was trying to protect a family member after the loss of one of my first cousins who we lost through suicide.
“She was 24 years of age and we were grieving her.
“Seeing her brother who is my first cousin, seeing him fight, the first thing that popped into my head was I just need to stop it.”
Walker said he told Souths of the drama at the time but admitted he had “no recollection” that it was on video.
He said his manager was then contacted last Saturday night when the blackmail allegation surfaced: “They basically said they want 20k for the vision otherwise they are going to media outlets and we got on the front foot and put in a statement to Mascot Police on Sunday morning.”
Fans and experts divided over what if any punishment Walker warrants for his Bruce Lee-style cameo appearance in a four minute video that went viral on social media.
The NRL integrity Unit interviewed Walker on Monday afternoon but were holding off making decision about any potential punishment until police have concluded their investigation.
Some believe the incident deserves nothing more than a rap over the knuckles because no one got hurt.
Roosters fans might argue the point given Mitchell Pearce was suspended for eight games and fined $125,000 for simulating a sexual act with a dog back in 2016.
This also comes after Cleary landed himself a two match ban and a $30,000 for lying to the NRL integrity Unit for breaking social distancing laws for his involvement in a dance video that found its way onto social media.
It would be a huge setback for the Rabbitohs to lose Walker for any length of time, especially in the shortened season, given star centre James Roberts is also in doubt for the comeback clash after entering a rehab facility for personal issues.
Latrell Mitchell is also under huge pressure leading into the game against his former club after a lacklustre start to the season in his new position at fullback.
It was earlier claimed Walker had become involved in the fight to try to separate two men, but the video shows Walker’s actions appeared unprovoked and dangerous.
At the time Walker was recovering from shoulder surgery and it was claimed he could not use his arms to intervene.
The video begins with two other men in a stand-off, before starting to fight. After a minute of scuffling, Walker clearly comes charging in and lands a heavy kick on an unsuspecting man’s chest, sending him stumbling backwards on the street.
Onlookers then attempt to calm a shirtless Walker before the fighting seemingly ends. But tempers flare again and the confrontation resumes, casting doubt on claims Walker’s intervention was made to end the violence.
It is unknown who initiated the fight.
During the video a man can be heard asking: “Who’s this motherf … er?”
At another point a woman responds: “Cody, he’s the one that kicked ya”.
“Cody who?” a man asks.
“Cody Walker, he’s the one that kicked ya.”
Later in the video the man involved in the fight says to Walker he would like to fight him “one-on-one”.
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Originally published as Rabbitohs star Cody Walker will accept NRL punishment over viral fight footage
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