By Gabriel Knowles
March 9th 2009 @ 7:02am
Related coverage
Punish indiscretions with comp points
It’s a time when NRL fans should only be filled with an overwhelming sense of anticipation for the first round of the season proper but once again off-field dramas are taking centre stage.
Instead of column inches being filled by the build up of what should be a cracker of a match between the Dragons and the Storm this Friday night they’ve been filled with lurid allegations.
We’ve seen the return of Todd Carney in his role as the antithesis of a model NRL player despite him actually being ineligible to perform that duty anymore. It seems Carney has successfully pulled off the exact opposite of the NRL’s inspirational “Park to Premiership” campaign.
A Wests Tigers feeder team did their bit to revive memories of why the Bulldogs shouldn’t visit Coffs Harbour anymore and now the NRL has been forced to hold back some of its advertising campaign for the upcoming season pending a police investigation.
It must have been a surreal week for Brett Stewart. First it seemed he had come of age as one of the games true stars as a poster boy for the upcoming season but by the end of it he was facing sexual assault allegations.
Now he’s not only facing a police investigation there’s a chance he won’t play until the matter is resolved. Not an ideal situation for one of the games most exciting players. Unfortunately it’s becoming a regular occurrence for the games fans to be denied the chance to see the likes of Greg Bird and even Carney in action because of their off-field indiscretions.
Perhaps it’s time that the de-registration of individual players and internal club sanctions such as fines and community service stints that conveniently fit in with marketing plans are replaced by the deduction of competition points.
We know that since the Bulldogs contravened the salary cap in 2002 and had 37 competition points stripped from them that no other club has dared to emulate them. The $150,000 fine handed to the Belmore based club for bringing the game into disrepute following the Coffs Harbour incident was little more than a slap on the wrist compared to the sponsorship dollars they lost as a result anyway.
Imagine if the NRL decided to dock teams points each time they brought the game into disrepute? Regardless of what Brett Stewart did or didn’t do after he left Manly’s season launch, if there happened to be points on the line he wouldn’t have found himself in that position in the first place.
Competition points are the reason that the players train as often as they do and the reason that they hone their bodies to withstand the rigours of the game. At the end of the day it’s the reason they play the game.
Would Brett Stewart have left the Wharf Hotel in such an apparently unfit state if he’d known there was a chance his behaviour would lead to his team starting the season 20 pints adrift?
Probably not, his fellow ‘playing group’ members would have made sure he got home safe and sound.
Would the up and coming Tigers players have found themselves in a similar position if they knew that their indiscretions may have landed the team they’re aspiring to represent at the bottom of the ladder? Earning the wrath of potential teammates and fans in such a way would put paid to those aspirations anyway.
Rugby League has always thrived on camaraderie and team spirit so maybe the time has come for those qualities to count as much in social settings as they do on the field.
The onus needs to be put on the players to perform.
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Clarky said | March 9th 2009 @ 7:57am | Report comment
I wholeheartedly agree. The players don’t seem to respect anything other than competition points. Fines and suspensions don’t seem to work. Ensure clubs are docked points for indiscretions, and all of a sudden the culture of a club is of vital importance to winning a competition. Bring it on!
oikee said | March 9th 2009 @ 9:47am | Report comment
Only one problem their Clarky, what happens if all the teams are on Zero because of indiscreations. Manly will crack down on this problem, if it is a problem. The police and the club will sort it out, lets just get on with the footy.., the way we are going the under 20’s will be the main game. Be no senior players left.
Brett McKay said | March 9th 2009 @ 12:03pm | Report comment
Oikee, you raise a disturbing and fair point, but I think Gabriel might be onto something here. It certainly seems too good an idea not to look into further.
znotty said | March 9th 2009 @ 12:42pm | Report comment
What a joke,a teenager makes an allegation against a highly respected player & all we get is hysteria,NO CHARGES have been laid & a its almost certainly a bogus accusation because NO CHARGES have been laid & as for punishing employers for employees actionswe should apply it to ROAR then if your boss is getting fined for the crap like this mabye your form will improve,I for one am sick to death of blanket coverage of un-named unproven teenage girls accusations against our footballers.
What a joke.
Clarky said | March 9th 2009 @ 1:09pm | Report comment
znotty – according to the reports, he was arrested and not charged after refusing to be interviewed. He has supplied a DNA sample. The girl’s father is adamant something happened. Stewart now says he can’t remember but is worried. Hmmm, yes sounds like the teenage girl is making it up.
If you are a high profile person (sport or otherwise) then you have to expect that any slip-up will make headlines. End of story.
Searly said | March 9th 2009 @ 2:55pm | Report comment
Oh give me a break! Competition points? While we’re at it, we could enact legislation that says the value of a company’s shares will be automatically halved whenever one its employees farts at an after-work p*ss up!
Znotty is dead right. Why on earth can’t we just leave these things up to the cops and let everyone else just get on with it?! If it’s found to be based in fact and he’s found guilty, let the law deal with him as it would with any other member of society. Until such time, he’s innocent as far as I’m concerned. And I’m pleased to see that that seems to be Manly’s position on the matter thus far too.
Rah Rah Rasputin said | March 9th 2009 @ 2:58pm | Report comment
Just a question…
How do you put a value on these “indiscretions”?
Is it 4 points for pissing on someone’s leg, 8 points for jumping on cars, 16 points for glassing your girlfriend in the face?
In this case, if the accusations prove do prove to be true, I’d hate to be David Gallop having explain to the media that after hours and hours of deliberation the NRL (probably via some special board made up of ex players) had decided that docking Manly 37 competition points was an adequate penalty for one of there player committing sexual assault.
I’m sure that will be awfully comforting to the young girl and her family.
Something is seriously wrong with Australia in 2009 if the docking of competition points acts as a greater deterrent to committing criminal acts then the possibility of going to prison.
znotty said | March 9th 2009 @ 3:17pm | Report comment
Yes thats right if i make an accusation like “that person hit me” the police arrest them & when there`s no evidence no charges are laid,2nd i bet Dad says “something happened” what Father wouldn`t ? & so what if Stewart cant remember that just goes to show that nothing happened in the first place & what slip up? ..no charges have been laid,Stewart has not “slipped up” you have by writing it in the first place.
year after year we have false rape & sex attack claims aimed at our players & the reason is because idiot journo`s jump up & down about fair game & high profile well your a joke & if this allegation is proven false you should apologize to Stewart for publishing unfounded accusations from drunken teenagers.
wallythefly said | March 9th 2009 @ 7:29pm | Report comment
znotty, if its true will you apologise for publishing unfounded accusations about the teenage girl?
znotty said | March 10th 2009 @ 12:24am | Report comment
wallythefly…fair comment but i haven`t published anything ROAR has & thats my point.but your right i should not have said “drunken”
Tim said | March 10th 2009 @ 2:16am | Report comment
@wally – if it isn’t true, will the girl apologise for publishing unfounded accusations about Stewart? Will the media? Will -anyone-?
The Answer said | March 10th 2009 @ 7:35am | Report comment
I’m with Rah Rah.
Sorry gabriel, I can’t see how this would work other than being some sort of feel-good factor to make everyone think the world would magically become a happier place.
The Bulldogs weren’t charged with anything, that seems to have been forgotten, so what do they gets stung with?
Surely it shouldn’ just be down to allegations?
And the Tigers players all came from their feeder team , so if guilty does the first grade team cop the hit?
What is worse, a cam shepherd, todd carney panel beating session against a player getting pissed in a pub?
Let’s leave the tables to reflect the actions on the field and the cops to sort out the stuff off it.
The Answer said | March 10th 2009 @ 7:39am | Report comment
Tim,
I don’t like the chances of what you were saying coming out. There was an article snuck in the back of the sports pages of the Herald about how the police cheif in charge of the Bulldogs case never thought there was anything in it and thought his colleagues simply got carried away investigating big stars months after it had all blown over.
This of course didn’t fit in well with the Magnay’s, O’Hallorans et al who ahd nailed their colours to the flag early doors. They still bring it up every chance they get despite no player at the club every being charged.
There is little humility in modern journalism so don’t expect them to say sory if they’ve dragged you through the mud.
Tim said | March 10th 2009 @ 7:54am | Report comment
The Answer,
My point exactly. The case already carries the stench of media beatup – the single eyewitness report says that a heavily drunken Stewart crash-tackled the girl in question, yet somehow the papers are talking about sexual assault and rape – and we’re buying into it in spades with articles like this. This article hasn’t been thought through properly, or been written with any consideration of practicalities and logistics – it’s a just an outlet for the writer’s indignation rather than a serious attempt to propose a solution to the NRL’s ‘problems’.
Ben said | March 10th 2009 @ 6:36pm | Report comment
http://www.leaguehq.com.au/articles/2009/03/10/1236447208112.html
According to this he’s been formally charged, although there’s no statement/quotes from police, so it may just be a media beatup