Sport Confidential: NRL stars open up on YouTube; ‘Great Wall of Des’ disappears from Titans training
A host of NRL players have launched their own YouTube channels giving fans a look at their lives off the footy field – see some of the best here.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A new generation of NRL media stars is evolving.
A host of NRL players have launched their own YouTube channels, documenting their lives through the eyes of a video camera.
Roosters playmaker Chad Townsend was one of the first to jump on YouTube and begin ‘vlogging’ – video blogging – seven years ago.
Townsend takes his 46,000 subscribers behind the scenes and shows what life is like as a professional athlete.
Plenty more are following the trend.
Tigers recruit Terrell May has been gaining traction recently with his off-season videos showing his gym sessions and animal-based diet.
Even the usually reserved Warriors forward Kurt Capewell has jumped on board.
Capewell last week posted a 38-minute video of his off-season fishing trip to The Gulf of Carpentaria.
The videos take some effort to film, edit and upload but they give fans a glimpse of what it’s like to be an NRL player.
HASLER’S WALL DES-APPEARS
Is Des Hasler mellowing?
The Gold Coast Titans coach insists he isn’t but there has been a noticeable change at the club’s Parkwood headquarters lately.
The ‘Great Wall of Des’ that encapsulated the Titans’ training field has disappeared.
Shortly after arriving on the Gold Coast last year and building a dojo for sweltering wrestling sessions, Hasler had a blue fence erected around the entire field.
It was meant to keep prying eyes away from seeing what the Titans were up to.
Small problem. It was made out of shade cloth material and see-through.
Still, it remained for the entire 2024 NRL season but when the Titans turned up for pre-season a few weeks ago it was gone.
It’s now a free-for-all at Parkwood and Hasler’s tricks are there to be seen.
Perhaps not for long.
SHOOSH
Which big name recruit was the first to call quits in the dreaded ‘Yoyo’ fitness test at his new NRL club?
SPOTTED I
Queensland Rugby League CEO Ben Ikin with his staff at Tangalooma Beach on Moreton Island enjoying some sunshine before they shut down for the year.
SPOTTED II
Olympic swimming superstar Ariarne Titmus’ father Steve interviewing Titans playmaker Kieran Foran. Steve Titmus read Channel 7 news on the Gold Coast but has been redeployed into a reporting role since it was axed.
‘FOZ’ LEAVES DOOR AJAR
Titans veteran Kieran Foran is refusing to close the door on playing in 2026.
Foran is gearing up for what is expected to be his 17th and final NRL campaign next year.
He has a “new ankle” following an off-season reconstruction and also had a nagging finger injury repaired.
Foran signed a one-year extension for 2025 and is odds-on to retire.
But he is finding it difficult to walk away from the game he loves dearly.
“It’s been my last year for the last four years,” Foran said with a laugh.
“Time will tell.
“I’ve always said I’m not going to put a finish line on it. My body and mind will tell me when it’s time to pull up stumps and when I can no longer play the sort of footy the team needs me to play.
“At this stage I’m feeling full of running and still have plenty left in the tank.”
One of the game’s best playmakers, Foran will likely walk into a coaching job at the Titans when he does decide to hang up the boots.
He has also started dabbling in media, featuring on Fox League’s Super Saturday coverage last season.
BRONCOS SPIN CHIEF DEPARTS CLUB
There have been more changes at the Broncos with the club’s leading spin doctor exiting Red Hill.
Long-time media and communications chief Steele Tallon has departed following nearly eight years at the club.
A former newspaper editor, Tallon was in charge of media at the Brisbane Lions before being poached by the Broncos in 2017 by former CEO Paul White.
He was tasked with handling crises like Matt Lodge’s controversial signing, Wayne Bennett’s messy departure and the multiple dramas during the 2020 wooden spoon season which culminated in Anthony Seibold’s sacking.
Tallon finished up last week, with former Channel 9 reporter Melissa Mallet stepping up and taking over the media liaison role.
Fulltime whistle blows after 184 games behind the scenes at the Broncs. A decent old ride for 8 seasons in the rugba leeg. Thanks to some great friends at the club and across the game - was a privilege to carry the baton in a role that only a handful have lived and breathed since… pic.twitter.com/1RYR63hcAU
— Steele Tallon (@SteeleTallon) November 26, 2024
NO PAIN, NO GAIN
There’s only one thing crazier than a marathon runner – an ultra-marathon runner.
Enter Brisbane man Stephen Parker, who has released a new book dedicated to running’s craziest pursuit yet – the Backyard Ultra.
Forget about a 42km marathon or 100km ultra. The Backyard Ultra is a race with no actual finish line. Participants must run a 6.7km lap in a 60-minute time limit and then resume on the hour, over and over, amassing as many laps as possible before their body or mind says no more.
Australian Phil Gore set the world record last year in Queensland when he chalked up a mind-blowing 102 laps, or 684km, over four days of running.
Gore’s mark was beaten in October at the Backyard Ultra World Team Championships, when three teammates from Belgium punched out 110 laps each before agreeing to retire to share the new world record.
Queensland Bulls cricket coach Johan Botha represented Australia earlier this year and managed a staggering 375km.
Parker, who hails from Rochedale, has got the Backyard Ultra bug and says the event has taken off as part of the world’s running boom.
“My book tells the story of a race with no finish line,” Parker said.
“One of the key mottos of the event is ... just one more loop.
“I’ve done three backyards, two in Brisbane and one in Cairns.
“In August this year, I did 24 hours and 100 miles which is my personal best.
“I think the appeal is, like any extreme sport, pushing yourself to the limits. This event is special because there is no finish line. You keep on going until your body or mind forces you to stop.
“The question is how much pain can you endure? There is an unlimited amount of pain waiting for you with Backyard Ultras.”
More Coverage
Originally published as Sport Confidential: NRL stars open up on YouTube; ‘Great Wall of Des’ disappears from Titans training
Join the conversation
Infamous boot camp that broke Warnie can rebuild Broncos
Shane Warne was allowed to bring a carton of Benson and Hedges cigarettes to Australia’s boot camp in 2006. Broncos players will be afforded a sleeping bag and little else on their boot camp.
Read more
Dragons begin post-Hunt era with big captaincy call
They were accused of lacking leadership options but that hasn’t been a problem for Dragons coach Shane Flanagan after he anointed the successor to departed captain Ben Hunt.
Read more