Erin Molan misses Channel 9 NRL 2020 promotion

There are suggestions Erin Molan is no longer Nine’s go-to female sports presenter after a photo showed Andrew Johns with new talent.

A photo of Channel 9’s star-studded NRL broadcast team for 2020 has led to concerns Erin Molan has been pushed out of her high profile position as the network’s go-to female sports presenter.

Molan’s future at Nine remains clouded almost two months since it was first reported that NRL legend Andrew Johns had walked away from Friday Night NRL broadcasts after refusing to continue to work with Molan.

Molan has been missing from many of her on-screen duties at Nine since the end of the NRL season after she revealed she spent more than a week in hospital recovering from a serious injury.

Speculation Molan could be shafted from her high profile host position on Nine’s NRL coverage next year spiked again this week after she missed the NRL on Nine launch in Sydney where the network showed off its commentary line-up for 2020.

The Sunday Telegraph reports Molan missed the event because she was visiting family in Canberra.

Her absence did not go unnoticed at an event where Nine showed off returning female talents Ruan Sims, Allana Ferguson and Danika Mason.

In one staged photograph captured after the event, Mason was seen in a prominent position between Johns and the NRL’s Provan-Summons premiership trophy.

The photo suggests Mason will have a higher profile role in 2020 after being plonked front and centre with fellow host James Bracey on the other side of the trophy.

The report claims Molan will continue in her role as an NRL host for Nine, but her position as one of the network’s most watched sports presenters is yet to be confirmed for 2020.

Other than Molan, all of Nine’s biggest NRL stars attended the event, including Peter Sterling, Johnathan Thurston, Billy Slater, Paul Gallen, Darren Lockyer, Sam Thaiday and Brad Fittler.

Erin Molan with Ruan Sims and Allana Ferguson.

Nine elected not to comment when asked by the newspaper if Nine’s incoming director of sport Brent Williams had moved to bring Johns and Molan together in a bid to heal the rift.

The report claims Williams is prepared to head into the 2020 NRL season giving Molan and Johns a fresh start — but the rugby league immortal remains unwilling to work with Molan.

It’s been a tough few months for Molan, who recently had an unexpected spotlight shone on her working relationship with Johns after a Daily Telegraph report revealed he stepped away from the network’s Friday night footy coverage when Molan took over hosting duties.

It led to intense focus on Molan’s abilities as a presenter – and nasty online trolling that left her struggling to sleep and in tears during a live radio interview.

2GB radio duo Natalie Peters and Erin Molan have been a ratings hit.

Erin Molan earlier this month went into detail about her horror fall that snapped her humerus “entirely off the shoulder”.

The Channel 9 and 2GB star took a tumble down a flight of stairs at her home that she shares with her fiance Sean Ogilvy and their 18-month-old daughter, Eliza.

“I got up to go and get her a bottle and I usually carry her down the stairs with me, but I felt a little bit light-headed,” Molan said.