NRL 2023: Wests Tigers player Brandon Wakeham accuses teammate’s brother of spitting at him

The NRL is investigating the ugly fallout to a spitting allegation against a Manly player as the Wests Tigers count the cost of friction between teammates.

Brandon Wakeham and the Fainu brothers, Samuela and Sione.

There are concerns of a player split at the Wests Tigers as the fallout from five-eighth Brandon Wakeham’s altercation with Manly’s Josh Aloiai in the tunnel at Campbelltown Stadium on Sunday continues.

Wests Magpies prop Sione Fainu has privately expressed anger at Wakeham for his on-field sledge at his brother, Manly debutant Samuela Fainu, that was at the centre of a melee late in the second half of the Sea Eagles’ 22-16 win.

It comes as match-day audio revealed allegations from Wakeham that Fainu spat in his face to trigger the scuffle.

In the 65th minute, Wakeham told referee Todd Smith that Fainu “spat at me. He spat at my face”. Smith then asked Wakeham: “Do you want to make a complaint about that?”, but he declined.

“In relation to any on-field incident, there was no formal complaint made on the field by a player,” NRL head of football elite competitions, Graham Annesley, said on Monday afternoon.

“And, to the best of my knowledge, there is no other evidence of any offence that took place on the field.

Brandon Wakeham and the Fainu brothers, Samuela and Sione.

“It now becomes a matter of what took place after the game which is not my area of responsibility. I deal with matters that take place on the field and my information is that there was an incident after the game off the field.”

The NRL football department will review available footage from the melee, but the Integrity Unit will scrutinise the post-game drama.

“The NRL is liaising with the Manly and Wests Tigers clubs to establish the circumstances,” an NRL spokesman said of the heated exchange outside the dressing rooms between Wakeham and Aloiai.

Neither club has lodged a protest to the NRL over the tunnel incident and it’s unlikely there is vision of the blow-up, given it occurred an hour after the game.

Well-placed sources have told The Daily Telegraph Sione Fainu was filthy that Wakeham abused his brother and let his feelings be known to Wests Tigers teammates on Sunday night.

Playing out of position, Samuela Fainu and Manly teammate Josh Schuster missed a tackle and centre Starford To’a scored a try that put the Tigers ahead, leading to Wakeham’s verbal spray.

Jailed Manly player Manase Fainu is the brother of Samuela and Sione. Picture: AAP/Brendon Thorne

News Corp can reveal Aloiai later accused Wakeham of “going too far” during the alleged on-field sledge.

After Sunday’s match, won 22-16 by Manly, Wakeham and Aloiai initially embraced in the players’ tunnel before sparks began. It is alleged Aloiai said: “You were talking some shit out there. Nah, bro, it’s not on, that went too far.”

Several journalists were outside the dressing rooms, where the incident took place. During the tunnel altercation, Wakeham denied any on-field abuse of Fainu.

Aloiai, fiercely protective of his young Manly teammates, even wanted to find a quiet place in the tunnel area - away from the media - to settle their differences.

One journalist said: “The whole thing was just bizarre.”

Aloiai was then ushered back into the Manly dressing room although Wakeham wanted to continue the discussion and approached the Sea Eagles sheds.

Josh Aloiai was at the centre of the on-field melee. Picture: Mark Kolbe/Getty

Wakeham was then told by Wests Tigers officials to retreat to the home dressing room. It is alleged Wakeham said: “Bro, it was nothing.”

A nearby journo said: “It wasn’t physical but certainly tense.”

Wakeham and Sione Fainu have played alongside each other in three reserve-grade games this season, the last of which came just two weeks ago in Wests’ 10-6 NSW Cup loss to Parramatta on Easter Monday.

Sione Fainu played in Western Suburbs’ 24-16 win over Manly’s feeder club, Blacktown Workers, in the NSW Cup curtain-raiser at Campbelltown on Sunday. He logged 26 minutes coming off the bench and played against his other brother, Latu, who was making his NSW Cup debut for Blacktown.

Originally published as NRL 2023: Wests Tigers player Brandon Wakeham accuses teammate’s brother of spitting at him