Rugby Union: Three Reds players stood down after demanding full pay

Izack Rodda, Harry Hockings and Isaac Lucas have been stood down from Reds training after demanding they receive full pay

Queensland Reds player Izack Rodda has been stood down and may go to Japan

Izack Rodda, Harry Hockings and Isaac Lucas, all Reds players managed by agent Anthony Piccone, have been stood down from training by the Queensland Rugby Union after demanding they receive full pay during the COVID-19 pandemic.

All indications are that they are now intending to head to Japan.

Incoming Wallabies coach Dave Rennie spoke to both Rodda and Hockings – both members of the shadow training squad picked by the Australian selectors – to strongly advise them not to take this action, but to no avail. Lucas, who was not chosen in the squad but who many had seen as a long-term Wallabies five-eighth or fullback, was spoken to instead by Jason Gilmore, coach of the Australian Under 21 side that reached the final of the Junior World Cup last year. He, too, chose to ignore Gilmore’s advice.

Reds coach Brad Thorn has spoken to the players at length, but to no avail, and is reportedly extremely upset. Indeed, Queensland even called in their club coaches in an attempt to caution them against taking this decision.

Their actions are entirely at odds with the agreement RUPA chief executive Justin Harrison hammered out with Rugby Australia on April 19. Under that arrangement, Australia’s 192 professional agreed to take, on average, a 60 per cent pay cut until September 30 or until Super Rugby is rebooted this season.

The then RA CEO Raelene Castle said at the time: “The players recognise and appreciate their role and shared responsibility in securing the future and helping us navigate through this difficult time.”

Seemingly the Piccone Three are comfortable going against the tide.

In doing so, they are threatening to break up the team that was shaping as the third great era in Queensland rugby, following on from the Mark Loane-Tony Shaw-Paul McLean era of the 1970s and the John Eales-Tim Horan-David Wilson days of the 1990s. Rodda and Hockings looked to be shaping as the Wallabies locking pair, while Lucas, though kept at bay by the outstanding form of James O’Connor at five-eighth, could well have emerged as the Australian playmaker at the 2023 World Cup.

Now, all those plans lie in ruins, seemingly as a result of the players’ unwillingness to accept a reduction in pay and their nomination for the federal government’s JobKeeper subsidy, notwithstanding the negotiated agreement reached by RUPA and RA.

It is not the first time that Piccone-managed players have acted in apparent contradiction of their own best interests and those of the country. Former Reds centre Campbell Magnay chose to go to Japan in 2017, despite a virtual assurance from then Wallabies coach Michael Cheika that he would be taken on the spring tour that year. He has never subsequently played for Australia.

Similarly, Samu Kerevi looked deeply uncomfortable last year any time his decision to go to Japan was raised. He now is spending 14 days in isolation in a Sydney hostel after making a decision to return to Australia.

Instead of welcoming the Reds players back to training at Ballymore on Monday morning for the first time in months, QRU CEO David Hanham was forced to give a press conference.

“Many industries in Australia are facing the same circumstances as sport in this country and the majority of our people have agreed to reduced hours under the federal JobKeeper legislation, which is assisting businesses such as ours through the COVID-19 pandemic,” Hanham said in an earlier statement.

“We understand this situation is difficult for everyone and individual decisions need to be made to protect the long-term viability of Rugby in Queensland.

“As we have outlined before, these conditions are necessary at present and allow the QRU to create a financial bridge to the other side of this pandemic.

“Unfortunately, we have had to take the decision to stand down three of our players. Given the recent negotiated player-payment reduction agreement, this was not a situation the QRU had expected to face.

“As we build towards the likely resumption of community and elite rugby, the QRU remains focused and on-track to deliver on its three goals during the COVID-19 period – to ensure the health and safety of our people, to protect the financial viability of the QRU and to ensure the safety and viability of our clubs.”

Queensland’s actions have been fully supported by RA, which was represented at the press conference by director of coaching Scott Johnson.

This is an unfortunate situation given we have an agreement in place for the interim period while the game navigates the COVID-19 situation,” Johnson said.

“We want the players to remain in Australia and honour their contracts with the Reds and Rugby Australia. We are aware they are looking at their legal position, but we hope this can be resolved with the players as soon as possible and we will keep an open dialogue with them.”