I hope the Roosters stick by Todd Carney. We all appreciate he has a history, but blokes who have issues need to be supported.
Patience may be running out, but on this occasion it looks as if he has done nothing that the good majority of Australian adults wouldn’t do on any given weekend – and that’s have a beer with a mate.
No-one condones bad behaviour but in this particular instance the focus and attention on Carney seems to be all out of proportion.
Carney had no idea what was going to allegedly happen with his team mate, Anthony Watts, when they parted company. And I don’t think last year’s Dally M award winner should be lumped in the same basket or hung out to dry.
No question, these days public figures have to be holier than thou and young guys have to be so careful.
It’s hard to believe how different the territory is since I debuted in the NRL little more than a decade ago.
It was very much a professional sport then, but it was a lot more relaxed and the older guys didn’t mind a beer during the week. That doesn’t happen these days.
The sport is practically a victim of its own success. As the TV ratings rise, the sponsorship dollars increase and more fans get in behind the game, there is a corresponding increase in the level of public scrutiny.
We seem to be living in a fishbowl. Just having a night out at a restaurant or going supermarket shopping can result in being captured in the “Seen Around Town” section of the local newspaper.
It’s a bit sad it’s gone that way, but this is the digital age and all these new forums for information sharing aren’t going away. We simply have to live with the additional pressure and be intelligent about where we go and how we act.
All the NRL clubs are striving to upskill players to cope with today’s environment, from appreciating the power of Social Media through to socialising responsibly and looking after mates.
But it’s difficult when our business is so transparent, its work force is so high profile and the stakeholders are so passionate, from the media through to fans.
Friends often regale me with amazing stories about the goings on in their work places, but you’ll never read about them in the papers or catch the shenanigans on the TV news. There is simply not the level of interest in their companies compared to ours.
It’s tough on rough diamonds like Todd Carney, who has been given opportunities and punishments in equal measure over the past few years.
In my view he’s been dealt with by the courts and is starting from a clean slate. I appreciate he’s broken a pledge not to drink, but any punishment must fit the particular crime.
He doesn’t need more judgement. He needs support. And I desperately hope he receives it.
ptovey01
Roar Pro
He is a germ and brings down our sport. Get rid of him.
Rueben
Guest
Absolutely, I'll agree I'm speaking purely in hypotheticals when it comes to him being let off if he were fully licensed however I still thought it was worth mentioning. Although it takes this topic right off track, I believe the system is crap. I don't know why we can't have a system like the US where you do a roadside sobriety test to show you still have the motor skills required to drive because simply some people can handle 3 beers and be perfecty alert enough to drive and some others can have 1beer and barely be able to walk.
Brett McKay
Expert
Rueben, you're dealing in semantics. Carney is a P-plater and as such cannot have ANY alcohol in his system when driving. Spin it however you need to, but the fact remains he blew over his legal limit and was charged and found guilty accordingly.
mick h
Guest
the guy has massive problems he is an alcoholic and he needs help. he has broken team rules regarding injuries he does not deserve to be sacked he needs to be fined and stood down from playing. the roosters management is partly responsible he should have been watching his teammates in gosford not out with watts. the roosters need to show strong leadership with this issue.
Rueben
Guest
I have it on good authority that was the reading given roadside, not the reading that was given when he was taken to Waverly police station where he was charged with low range drink driving with a reading of .03. Smh clearly chose the higher reading not the one he was actually charged for
DS
Guest
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/magistrate-amends-sentence-on-todd-carney-20110406-1d3na.html "The 2010 Dally M medallist recorded a blood alcohol level of .052 about 7am on Saturday, February 26."
Rueben
Guest
It's actually been proven time and time again that a big greasy breakfast after a night out drinking will significantly drop your bac level. I do agree with you that he's put himself in this situation after his behavior in the ACT however that was years ago and he's done his time and now every asshole wants to jump on his back for every little thing that happens around him whether he's directly responsible or not
Rueben
Guest
No, it was a little over .03! Maybe you should get your facts straight before calling others liars, and those doubting the big breakfast theory there has been extensive proof both by universities and science shows (myth busters for example) that it will make a positive difference after a night of drinking
mel
Guest
as u say carney is pushing his luck, but if it wasnt for watts would we have heard about it? the answer is most probably no. also he left the pub and got home safely with no antisocial behaviour. his contract should not be torn up for that. i believe they should stand him down and help him seek appropriate help and let him come back into the game at his own will. i think tearing up the contract will only send him into a down hill slide and get worse. so standing by him through this is the best option to get him well and back playing again
Bluemarine
Guest
Carney needs to be sacked. Cmon ppl how many times can one person get off??? He deserves everything he gets. I know where he is from and nothing ever changes. A LEOPARD NEVER CHANGES HIS SPOTS...
Ken
Guest
We've got to be careful here, the idea that Carney would have been fine if he had breakfast is the kind of urban myth stuff that gets people in trouble. It would have made no significant difference if Carney had eaten breakfast or not. Shedding a blood-alcohol level is almost solely based on time. I want to agree with the sentiment that Carney is under ridiculous scrutiny but I can't help thinking that he's bringing it on himself again. Last year was a great one for him, he stayed off the booze (apparently, at least he didn't get caught) and his career flourished. I think most people were willing to write the drink driving thing off as easy to make mistake, albeit one that a man of his experiences should have known to avoid. This time he's broken no laws but he had given his word to his employer (that pays him quite handsomely) and gone off drinking anyway. He got 'another' second chance with the drink driving incident by trading off the goodwill from last year, that's all used up now though and I think the Roosters should let him go.
DS
Guest
Absolute rubbish Rueben. The only reason he had a positive sample was not having breakfast? Get your figures straight for a start. His reading was .052 which is illegal even for a fully licensed driver. By his own admission he had 8 to 10 drinks, the reality was probably many more - he took a gamble knowing full well he'd be above his legal limit of 0 and got caught. I hope you don't expect anyone rushing to your defence if you're caught above your own legal limit by that much. The irony is that Carney was apparently driving to meet Politis about his drinking problem - the guy deseves no sympathy. Even if not illegal, he's done plenty wrong this time too.
Rueben
Guest
Everyone's forgetting too that not only this time has he done absolutely nothing wrong but last time he was in trouble it was for drink driving where he didn't go out get hammered and drive home, but rather had a few drinks, stayed at a mates place and drove home the following day after a nights rest. The only reason he had returned a positive sample when breath tested was because he neglected to have breakfast that morning. Also his reading was .03 which meant if he was a fully licensed driver he would have been waved on his way by police and we never would have heard a thing about it. I feel sorry for carney because the bloke only has to raise an eyebrow and the media go nuts