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David Gallop proved yesterday exactly why the NRL can’t go around waving a big stick at its naughty kids all the time. The NRL CEO also dispelled the myth that they’ve behaved like giant hypocrites this pre-season. For once, he must be feeling pretty good.
Gallop cleared Benji Marshall of everything that falls within his jurisdiction and left the rest to the courts. The Wests Tigers five-eighth won’t be suspended and will be free to play in round one against the Bulldogs on Monday night at ANZ Stadium.
Marshall was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm this week after an alleged altercation outside a McDonalds on George Street in Sydney.
For those who aren’t familiar with the spot, let’s just say you see more civilised interaction between mammals at the zoo than you do at that intersection.
Certain sections of supporters, Manly Sea Eagles fans to be more exact, would’ve been quite happy to see Gallop throw the book at Marshall.
They’ll also be, no doubt, venting their frustration around the watercooler today over what they perceive as inconsistent punishment from head office.
In 2009, Manly fullback Brett Stewart was given a 4-match-ban by the NRL, following the Sea Eagles season launch. Stewart was charged and later cleared of sexual assault. So why was he suspended in the first place? And why has Marshall been let off the hook?
Well, this is what Gallop had to say yesterday:
“Comparisons are often made, but those comparisons are not necessarily apples with apples. Certainly this is a very different situation to the situation that we dealt with two years ago with Brett Stewart. In that situation there was clear evidence of misconduct on the night that was separate to the allegation of sexual assault.
“We left the allegation of sexual assault to the court to determine, but we acted in relation to the misconduct that happened earlier in the night.
“That’s a clear and stark difference with the situation that we’re dealing with now with Benji Marshall.”
Gallop is saying that the NRL didn’t suspend Stewart because of the charge, as many believed. They suspended him because he was drunk at a club function where he was representing the region and the NRL.
So does this have any similarity to the situation involving Marshall?
Let’s put the fact that Benji Marshall is a nice guy aside. Lets also forget the fact, for a minute, that he’d just helped raise a quarter of a million dollars for a cancer foundation.
The fact is he wasn’t guilty of misconduct of any sort from the time he arrived at the fundraiser to the time he tried to get a mc-snack, according to the NRL.
To take action in relation to the assault charge would be ridiculous as Marshall is yet to have his day in court.
If they did anything then that would be judging him guilty.
“What can be said at this stage is that Benji Marshall has been charged with assault,” Gallop said. “But there’s no evidence of any other misconduct on that night which would lead us to looking at misconduct other than the assault charge.”
“That puts us in the situation where the facts are in dispute in relation to the assault and it will clearly be a matter that needs to be determined by the court.”
“At this stage therefore the club isn’t in a position to take any action and we accept that, and we’re in a similar situation.”
Cue the angry mob with pitchforks! Before you light them up though, consider the fact that Gallop is 100% right.
The other pre-season problem was Todd Carney’s decision to drive to a meeting with Roosters CEO Nick Politis after having a few drinks the night before. Can the club just arm him with a booklet full of cab charges for a while?
He was stopped at 7am and blew 0.052.
The NRL’s decision not to suspend Carney enraged Manly coach Des Hasler. He couldn’t understand why Stewart was suspended and Carney wasn’t.
But Carney has been punished, just in a different way. The playmaker must stick to a strict five-point plan or his career is over.
I suspect Hasler was also struggling to reconcile how a man who was the face of the game at the time gets what he perceives as heavier punishment than a man who was once barred from the NRL for a year.
“He has gone low range PCA on a Saturday morning. As I said last week, it’s an inadvertent mistake by him not a deliberate piece of conduct,” Gallop said.
That’s where it gets a little grey. Carney was still punished, but not with matches. He was given a program that helps a long-running problem. Did Stewart need a five-point-plan instead of a four match-ban?
Probably not.
Gallop’s decisions may not be popular with everyone. In fact they’re rarely popular with anyone. But in the case of Benji Marshall, he has got it spot on.
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