Matty + The Missile in Paris podcast: Matthew Johns lifts lid on Andrew Johns relationship after Fox sisters’ emotional golds

Matthew Johns has reflected on his troubled relationship with NRL legend brother Andrew Johns and revealed the thing that ended their feud, after being inspired by the Fox sisters sharing gold in Paris.

For the first time Matthew Johns has given his most raw insight into the mending of his strained relationship with rugby league Immortal and brother Andrew Johns.

It’s the relationship that stops rugby league.

The whispers go from pubs to dressing rooms, to footy grounds and households, across the NRL and beyond.

Are the Johns brothers on talking terms or do they hate each other?

Now we can tell you the real story - and it’s inspired by the gold medal winning Fox sisters, Jess and Noeme, here in Paris.

Brothers Andrew (left) and Matthew Johns have had a strained relationship at times.

Matthew Johns is at the Olympic Games for the Matty + The Missile in Paris podcast, which has aired daily throughout News Corps wall-to-wall coverage.

Today he told James Magnussen and journalist Robert “Crash” Craddock how the vision of the Fox sisters, embracing each other and crying after Noeme won gold in the kayak-cross, triggered thoughts of his own family relationships.

“My older son Jack, such a great kid. He worries about the family too much. It worries me,’’ Matthew said about his eldest son Jack, who has played NRL for Newcastle and South Sydney.

“Dad you drink too much, all that kind of stuff. He’s taken over Trish. He’s that sort of kid. Cooper’s kind of freewheeling, but anyway. Jack says, ‘I don’t like what’s going on between you and Uncle Joey. I don’t like it. It’s not right.’ I say ‘we’re brothers’.

Matthew Johns and James Magnussen have been recording their Olympics podcast live from Paris. Picture: Adam Head

“He goes ‘no, it’s not right.’

“So one day I’m sitting on the lounge. Sunday afternoon I think it was. I’m having a couple of beers.

“He goes ‘do you want to go for a drive Dad?’ I didn’t really want to. I was watching a movie.

“I said, ‘Okay, let’s go for a drive’.

“So we hop in the car, and we’re driving.

“’Where are we going?’ And we’re driving. We’re going over the Spit Bridge.

“’Mate, where are we going?’

“As we went over the Harbour Bridge, I knew where he was taking me. So I’m sitting at the front (of Andrew’s Eastern Suburbs home), I’m in the car, and I say ‘Mate, C’mon’.

“And he said ‘get the f**k up there.’

“I went ‘okay’, I got the lift up, and he knocked on the door, and opened it up, and I gave Joey (Johns) a big cuddle.

Matthew Johns with his wife Trish and son Jack back in 1998 during his playing days. Matthew credits Jack with helping to repair his relationship with brother Andrew.

“And he (Jack) did that.

“Since then, me and Joey, there’s still a little bit of ground to make up, but you’re always brothers, that’s the thing.”

As Matthew says, like all brothers, the Johns boys have had their ups and downs.

However, the fallout became public last year when Matthew claimed that Andrew was “completely off me” after the Fox League host questioned the strength of NSW following their series loss to Queensland.

Andrew was a key advisor of the Blues team and reacted angrily by accusing his older sibling of supporting Queensland.

The champion halfback immediately stopped working with Matthew on their own SEN breakfast radio show. He has never returned.

Along with Jack, Matthew and his wife Trish Johns have a son Cooper, who retired from the NRL after stints with Melbourne and Manly.

It seems no coincidence that Matthew’s unexpected openness about his relationship with Andrew has to do with witnessing beautiful scenes that saw Jess Fox win two gold medals and then her lesser-known younger sister Noeme claim gold last Monday.

“When you’re a parent and your children are in professional sport – particularly to two of them – you just don’t get any clear air,’’ Matthew said.

“You don’t.

“You always get one that’s up and one that’s down. It’s always the way.

“You look and one’s having a great day and one’s having a bad day, and for a parent, it’s just so tough.

“I’ll give you the best example right. My two boys played against each other last year at Mudgee. Newcastle versus Manly.

Matthew Johns with his sons Jack Johns and Cooper Johns on the day they played against each other in Mudgee. Picture: Getty

“And it was special for us because my Mum and my grandmother are Mudgee girls. My grandmother was a publican there.

“So it was really nice….and everywhere they went they were like ’okay, who’s going to win’.

“For me it was a pisstake, I was saying, I’ve already read the script. This is going to go into golden point. This is going to be a draw.

“Well it went into golden point and ended up 32-all. It was unbelievable.

“But what happened is that Jack probably had his best game in first grade.

“And Cooper had one of his many stinkers.

“They walk off and they come over to me, and I grab Jack and say ‘Good on ya mate’. I said ‘that’s the best, you deserve that mate, you work your ass off’.

Andrew Johns and Matthew Johns during their playing days when they delivered the Knights a premiership.

“And I turned to the other bloke (Cooper) and said ‘you did okay’. And he said, ‘no mate I played like shit’.

“And I said, ‘No mate, you played okay’.

“Being the older sibling, I think only an older sibling knows the dynamic.

“And you look at times often older siblings carry more on their shoulders.

“The younger sibling, they’re free wheeling for whatever reason. And you become like a second father, with myself and Andrew.

“So sort of coming through the grades, you’re always the older brother. You’re always that way.

“You’re always worried about him all the time. Even though you know he doesn’t give a shit about you.”

Originally published as Matty + The Missile in Paris podcast: Matthew Johns lifts lid on Andrew Johns relationship after Fox sisters’ emotional golds