What’s the Buzz: Wanderers’ massive clash with Arsenal, and why Tim Simona’s life ban is the wrong call

WHAT’S THE BUZZ: The Wanderers’ massive clash with Arsenal, NRL players planning for the future and why Tim Simona’s life ban is the wrong call.

Wanderers fans are looking forward to a big game with Arsenal. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

WHAT’S THE BUZZ: The Wanderers’ massive clash with Arsenal, NRL players planning for the future and why Tim Simona’s life ban is the wrong call.

SAINT

THERE’S nothing like round one of the league season and grabbing your first pie and beer at the footy. That’s why we’re saluting Sargent’s Pies for their incredibly generous donation this week of $950,000 to The Shepherd Centre, a wonderful charity for deaf children, to coincide with the opening round of the NRL.

SINNER

CHANNEL Nine’s Footy Show has lifted its game in recent years from the grubby old days of juvenile jokes and vulgar attempts at humour. Then Tommy Raudonikis appears on Thursday night and drops the F-bomb while children are waiting up to watch Darryl Brohman’s popular segment Small Talk. It must have been so awkward and embarrassing for someone like Erin Molan, who has added so much style and class to the show.

WHAT’S THE BUZZ: COOPER CRONK TO QUIT FOR LOVE

SPOTTED

MICHAEL Maguireand assistant coach David Furner at Bobby Tate’s Glasshouse Hotel in Maroubra enjoying a feast at the pub’s Backyard Italian restaurant.

SPOTTED II

WARREN ‘Wok’ Ryan walking the backstreets of Pagewood and Maroubra, avoiding the main drag since his political debate at the Pagewood Rex Hotel ended in biffo.

SPOTTED III

SOUTH Sydney veteran John Sutton riding his custom-made red and green Rabbitohs surfboard in a huge swell at Maroubra Beach. So huge that soccer boss David Gallop didn’t venture out.

SPOTTED IV

MARK Gasnier having the final touches put on his hair at Portfolio hairdressers in Mona Vale on Thursday before the NRL Fox launch.

SHOOSH

WHICH NRL coach, who also looks after his son’s under-14s team, has been accused of trying to pinch players from a rival junior rugby league district to beef up his own team?

SHOOSH II

WE’RE hearing Blues State of Origin coach Laurie Daley and Jim “handbag” Wilson will be hosting Channel 7’s exclusive coverage of the rugby league World Cup in November. The network is still looking for a main caller.

SHOOSH III

FRAUD squad police are investigating the apparent hacking of a rugby league personality’s betting account where an $800 wager (a multi on two Italian soccer games) was placed without his knowledge.

Fans copped a drenching at Belmore on Friday night. (AAP Image/Craig Golding)

WILL SIX O'CLOCK ROCK THE FANS?

THE jury is still out on the NRL’s controversial new timeslot of 6pm Friday football.

Only a reported 8712 people turned up at Belmore Sports Ground, but it was a fair crowd considering Sydney’s atrocious weather on Friday that would have kept another 5000 away.

Importantly, it was a winner for Fox Sports and the number of fans who watched Melbourne beat the Bulldogs in a tight affair.

The game attracted an average audience of 274,000, making it the No. 1 show on subscription television for the year so far.

Later on, the Rabbitohs-Wests Tigers match drew an average audience of 270,000, which was Fox Sports’ highest simulcast regular season Friday match ever.

LARA GETS THE BEST OUT OF TODD

WE told you last week how NRL boss Todd Greenberg would not attend the Bulldogs-Storm game on Friday night so he could be at the Cronulla Sharks’ 50-year gala ball at Doltone House. Now we know why. It turns out Greenberg’s 20-year-old daughter, Lara, is a Sharks tragic and insisted dad take her to the big event where she sat alongside the host, Erin Molan, and chatted the night away.

A visit from Arsenal should show the best of the Wanderers fans. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

WANDERERS ARE GUNNER BE BIGGER

IF ticket sales for the blockbusters featuring EPL giants Arsenal are an accurate barometer, the Wanderers are a more popular A-League team than high-flying Sydney FC.

With the final allocation of public tickets to go on sale on April 4, more than 65,000 fans are already booked to attend Wanderers v Arsenal at ANZ Stadium on Saturday, July 15 — about 12,000 tickets more than for Sydney FC v Arsenal at the same venue on July 13.

It’s a stunning confirmation that the Wanderers remain one of the A-League’s most influential franchises despite the well-documented misbehaviour of a small group of fans.

SYDNEY FC ONE STEP CLOSER TO TITLE

A TOAST TO NO UFC

YOUR columnist had the pleasure of sitting next to former Cronulla centre Russell Richardson at the Sharks’ 50-year gala ball on Friday night. He has done very well for himself in retirement and owns two pubs and two nightclubs in Newcastle. We had one big thing in common — a dislike for UFC. Richardson even advertises on his Facebook page that UFC events will NOT be shown on his premises.

SIMONA BAN A WRONG CALL

THE last player thrown out of rugby league for gambling problems tragically took his own life. That’s why calls to place a life ban on Wests Tigers star Tim Simona are so wrong. He’s 24, he’s stupid and he’s done the wrong thing — but he’s also a human being. God willing, we never lose another Ryan Tandy. An “indefinite’’ suspension with an opportunity to return in 18 months to two years, providing he has undergone counselling programs, is the best outcome.

JAMES ALL STUDIOUS

A LOT of rugby league players retire, don’t know what to do with themselves and quickly find drama. Not Bulldogs skipper James Graham, who is setting himself up for life after footy. The 31-year-old front-rower recently completed his level one, two and three coaching courses and is now embarking on sport science studies. He is also making a big impression in the media at Fox Sports, where he appears on NRL 360 on Tuesday nights with Wests Tigers skipper Aaron Woods. Opportunities will be endless when he gives the game away.

LUKE’S SUPER KEEN

CRONULLA Sharks veteran Luke Lewis is also working hard on making a career in the media in a sign that he won’t be going to England for superannuation and a couple of farewell seasons.

Lewis recently started casual work at Fox Sports and is about to undergo extra media training to improve his communication skills.

BUILDING A FUTURE

NOT all footy players are pissing their money up against a wall. Roosters enforcer Dylan Napa has used the cash from his recent contract extension to buy his first property.

It’s a two-bedroom unit in Rose Bay and it went for around the $1.2 million mark. Just another Queenslander who has fallen in love with Sydney and life in the premier state.

Someone at the Bulldogs needs to spell check.

GONE TO THE DOGS

I TRUST there are no spelling mistakes in this story because we’re having a crack at the Bulldogs where CEO Raelene Castle needs to introduce spelling lessons so they can get the word “membership” right before their next home game.

RUBBED OUT

HE’S still getting paid $15,000 a week by the Newcastle Knights but someone at NRL HQ must have known in advance that veteran halfback Jarrod Mullen would not be playing in 2017 after testing positive to steroids. Mullen’s name and photo were conveniently left out of the NRL’s official media season guide.

The guide was printed about six weeks ago, even before his B sample came back.

DIRE IN THE SHIRE

CRONULLA Sharks’ premiership victory was supposed to give junior rugby league in the Shire a huge boost. Not so. In A-grade, traditional old powerhouse Como can’t even field a side this year. Other teams in junior age groups have had to join forces with the St George and Illawarra competitions to ensure a competitive game.

THERE’S NO E IN WHIZ KID

ANOTHER Cory Parker(without the e) is about to make his mark in rugby league. The latest version is a 19-year-old centre, wing or fullback in Melbourne Storm’s Holden Cup ranks.

GODFATHER’S BLESSING

SEA Eagles godfather Ken Arthurson is returning to Brookie on Sunday to present Gold Coast Titans recruit, 20-year-old centre Brian Kelly, with his first Sea Eagles NRL jersey before the big game against Parramatta.

Originally published as What’s the Buzz: Wanderers’ massive clash with Arsenal, and why Tim Simona’s life ban is the wrong call