Saint, Sinner, Shoosh: Ray Warren missing from Channel 9 2022 NRL commentary line-up
Saint, Sinner, Shoosh: Ray Warren has been left off Channel 9’s NRL roster — check out all the latest rugby league chatter and more.
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Broadcast legend Ray Warren is mysteriously missing from the Channel 9 NRL roster for the competition’s opening six rounds.
Your columnist has seen a copy of an email sent to Nine’s on-air talent last week from the network’s rugby league director Simon Fordham for games up until round 7.
The only callers listed were Matt Thompson and Brisbane-based Peter Psaltis.
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Warren, 78, has reduced his workload at Channel 9 in recent years.
Yet it is a complete shock the veteran caller won’t be working on at least the season opener to launch Nine’s coverage for the year.
Warren has been reluctant to discuss his future when we have spoken in recent times.
Before last year’s grand final he said: “Don’t ask me if I’m going to retire.”
He has called 99 State of Origin games for the network.
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All the latest NRL chatter and more in Australia’s hottest sport gossip column.
SAINTS
The NRLW kick-off at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle, with a triple-header starting from midday Sunday on Fox League. The huge growth of women’s rugby league will see the introduction of three new teams – Parramatta, Gold Coast Titans and Newcastle.
SINNER
Six months after leaving Roosters star Joey Manu with three metal plates and 12 bolts in his face for the rest of his life from a shocking high tackle, Latrell Mitchell still shows no signs of remorse. Instead he thinks it’s the media’s fault for his lengthy suspension for influencing the match review committee. It’s time for Latrell to take some ownership. It’s time he apologised and admitted his reckless actions cost the Rabbitohs the premiership. I have no doubt Souths would have beaten Penrith in the grand final had he played.
SINNER II
The ugly politics at the NSWRL that resulted in the dismissal of Dr George Peponis as chairman and the resignation of Nick Politis from the board on Friday. This is a worrying situation for an organisation in charge of grassroots rugby league and needs the urgent attention of independent commission boss Peter V’landys.
SHOOSH
Which former premiership-winning NRL star uses medicinal cannabis to ease the pain from old football injuries? When contacted, he declined to comment.
SHOOSH
Which NRL club media manager has quit his job after just one month because he found the head coach too intense?
SHOOSH
Which off-contract Cronulla Shark has Wests Tigers management discussed signing for 2023?
SHOOSH
Which very talented female sports presenter is unhappy about missing out on Erin Molan’s old job as sports anchor on Channel 9’s Friday and Saturday night news bulletins? The job has gone to James Bracey.
SPOTTED
Despite finishing 14th on the premiership ladder, the Brisbane Broncos had a huge financial result last year. ASX records show the club made a profit of $4.2m. This compares with a loss of $470,000 the previous year which included the million-dollar payout to Anthony Seibold. Like all clubs, the Broncos benefited from increased grants from the NRL for 2021.
SPOTTED
Former Australian captain Steve Waugh inspecting the fresh cookies at Woolies in Caringbah.
SPOTTED
Melbourne Storm expect to reach a membership record of 30,000 in the next week. It’s a sign of the incredible hunger for rugby league at AAMI Park, where there has been only five games in the past two seasons because of Covid.
COSTLY EXIT FOR OUSTED PANTHERS CHAIRMAN
IT’S tough for any chairman to be kicked off an NRL board, especially within six months of winning a premiership.
Even tougher for Dave O’Neill at the Panthers, who was unceremoniously dumped from the board by members at last week’s club elections for club legend John Farragher.
Penrith rewarded O’Neill a lot better than most clubs look after their chairmen. He had a free car, a complimentary phone and was paid an annual fee of $60,000.
Directors at other NRL clubs act in an honorary capacity and don’t take a cent.
Take the Sydney Roosters for example. There’s a great story from 2007 when they sacked coach Chris Anderson and faced a payout of $150,000.
The directors chipped in $20,000 each to cover his severance pay.
“The board appointed him so the board had to pay him out,” Nick Politis said at the time.
But back to O’Neill and the Panthers board.
Your columnist has raised the question of payments made to the companies of three directors – O’Neill, Greg Alexander and Ian Hicks.
Two years ago we reported O’Neill was a director of ABCOE Distributions, a company that was paid $396,000 for stock.
Alexander owns Dalycone, that was paid $201,000 for services and function hosting.
Hicks is managing director of Hix Electrical Pty Ltd, a company that collected $704,000 from the Panthers.
The latest annual report shows the club paid the companies of Hicks ($442,000), O’Neill ($387,000) and Alexander ($137,000) — plus their director’s fees.
These payments and all directors’ fees will be of particular interest to Farragher at a time when the club has slashed funding to junior league pathways.
There is another story brewing around Farragher’s relationship with chief executive Brian Fletcher. Once good friends, the pair are no longer close and have differing views on a number of issues.
BACK TO THE SKY-HIGH BLUES
The NSW Blues will return home to Sydney for State of Origin this year with a new jersey and a flashback to the old days.
The navy blue ‘away’ strip has been ditched for the original light blue jersey without the chevrons for all three matches this season.
Blues wingers Brian To’o and Josh Addo-Carr had an early fit-out at the stadium last week.
“I’m always proud to wear the Blues jersey but this one in particular,” Addo-Carr said. “It’s all sky blue so it’s respecting the history of the jumper. I love it.”
Sydney has the first game of the series on June 8, followed by Perth and Brisbane.
This will be Sydney’s first game at Homebush‘s Accor Stadium since November 2020.
KEY DOLPHIN IN NEWCASTLE
Redcliffe Dolphins recruitment manager Peter O’Sullivan made the long trek to McDonald Jones Stadium from Brisbane last Monday for the Knights v Bulldogs trial.
No doubt he was looking at million-dollar Kalyn Ponga, not that anyone needs further proof of his ability, class and value to the NRL’s 17th franchise.
The Ponga contract situation is a huge developing story. He loves the fact he has been appointed Knights skipper and loves living in Newcastle. But insiders are suggesting Newcastle’s performances in the opening two months of the competition will be vitally important in his decision.
“If they are one from seven it will make it hard for Newcastle,” said one insider. “He obviously wants to be part of a successful club and play finals footy.”
SPRINT FOR A VODKA
There is rarely any benefit for a big-name Sydney jockey to cop a suspension. Tommy Berry was unable to ride at Randwick on Saturday after being stood down for careless riding.
It at least meant he could have a rare Friday drink at the Big Sports Breakfast lunch at Luna Park on Friday, normally a strict no-no.
Berry turned up looking forward to having a few relaxing vodka and sodas. It didn’t even matter that he turned up to find there was no vodka in the house. Showing the speed of Winx, Berry ran almost a kilometre to the bottle shop at Milson’s Point and back for a six-pack of Smirnoff vodka and soda.
STORM OLD BOYS OF 2012 TO REUNITE
Melbourne Storm is holding a 10-year reunion lunch of its 2012 premiership team on the weekend of the Bulldogs home game at AAMI Park in Round 4.
Given the salary cap drama only two years earlier, it was arguably the club’s greatest achievement.
Of the 17 players who played in the grand final win over the Canterbury Bulldogs, only two cannot make it to the day — Gareth Widdop (UK Super League) and Will Chambers (rugby in LA).
Assistant Storm coaches that season included Kevvie Walters, David Kidwell and Adam O’Brien. Current Titans chairman Dennis Watt was an influential player on the Storm board that year.
This was the grand final when Bulldogs warhorse James Graham was found guilty of biting Billy Slater on his left ear. Graham was banned for 12 weeks by the judiciary.
US FEAST FOR FENECHS
Jeff Fenech and wife Suzi have returned to Australia after a whirlwind fortnight in the US that included a dinner at James Packer’s $80m Beverly Hills mansion.
The boxing legend joined Eddie Maguire, who was in LA for the Super Bowl, as guests at Packer’s home for a feast of seafood and expensive wines.
Fenech also attended the wedding of wealthy businessman and global boxing identity Salvador Briman at the stunning Puerto Vallarta in Mexico.
The three-time world champion was even spotted chatting to boxing great Muhammad Ali’s wife Lonnie at the wedding.
NEW ET’S AT THE SHARKS
The Ettingshausen bloodlines live on at the Cronulla Sharks.
Andrew, or E.T as he was known, has two nephews in the Sharks’ junior pathways – Oscar Catton, who is in the club’s under-18’s academy, and his brother Jasper, who plays Harold Matthews. ET’s sister Charmaine is the mother of the two boys.
Uncle Andrew is a Sharks, NSW Blues and Kangaroos legend who played 327 games for the club.
BLUES SPONSOR QUESTIONS KEY TRIO’S DEPARTURE
Rugby league has a long history of bitter boardroom brawling and political self-destruction.
Now it’s the NSWRL’s turn.
The departures of Dr George Peponis, Sydney Roosters billionaire Nick Politis and Professor of Law Deborah Healey are a monumental blow to rugby league from grassroots to Origin.
Lee Hagipantelis is chairman of the Wests Tigers and the boss of Brydens Lawyers, the major sponsor on the front of the NSW Blues jersey.
“This level of expertise and football nous cannot be easily replaced,” he said.
“I have enormous regard for George, Nick and Deborah.
“It is a sad day for the game to lose three people of their character and experience.”
The NRL invests $40 million a year in junior football but at the end of the day it is the NSWRL’s job to oversee pathways in metropolitan and bush juniors.
To protect that investment, the NRL clubs have been behind a push for Cronulla Sharks chief executive Dino Mezzatesta to join the board.
He was ruled ineligible and disqualified from nominating for what was an alleged conflict of interests. Never mind the fact that other club CEO’s have regularly been on the NSWRL board in the past.
This is why Hagipantelis is keen for the NRL to investigate.
“All of these procedural arguments have to be fully ventilated,” he said. “They say he nominated 20 days ago but was only told two days before the election that he didn’t qualify. All this intrigue will have to be looked at carefully.”
Mezzatesta is now seeking legal advice, ironically at the same time another NSWRL director faces questions around his own conflicts of interest. This is rugby league at its ugliest.
BENNY’S WHACK FOR WOK
Benny Elias didn’t miss his old Balmain coach Warren Ryan while discussing the 1989 grand final loss to the Canberra Raiders at the Big Sports Breakfast lunch on Friday.
Elias was on stage with Raiders superstars Laurie Daley and Mal Meninga when he ripped into Ryan about replacing champion forwards Steve ‘Blocker’ Roach and Paul Sironen with 20 minutes to go.
SOME MORE SPECIAL K
The Special K show is set for an encore performance with confirmation Australia’s dynamic tennis duo will return to the doubles scene at the Indian Wells ATP event next month.
The Australian Open doubles champions Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis caught the imagination of fans globally with the remarkable run over two weeks in Melbourne.
They will make an announcement on Indian Wells in the next few days.
Their doubles win was the first by a home pairing in Melbourne since the Woodies – Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge - in 1997. The enthusiasm and exuberance they displayed was a tournament highlight alongside Ash Barty’s victory in the women’s final.
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