Mark ‘Piggy’ Riddell retires
Rugby league legend Rex ‘Moose’ Mossop sadly passed away on the weekend, and Mark ‘Piggy’ Riddell announced his immediate retirement from the game. Whilst you cannot compare a loss of life with a mere retirement, both pieces of news are connected by the fact that each individual was a true character of the game.
In an age of sanitised athletes who are scared to say anything controversial, ‘Moose’ and ‘Piggy’ were throwbacks to a different time. To be fair, Mossop actually was from a different time, while Riddell’s love of a beer and a good time seemed out of place with the professionalism of today’s game.
Mossop was a dual international, representing Australia in both rugby union and rugby league, but it was league that he will be forever be linked to, playing 136 games for the Manly Sea Eagles, 8 games for New South Wales, and 9 Tests for Australia.
After he retired in 1963, he became a successful rugby league commentator for over 20 years, famous for his honest, blunt and uncompromising style. He never held back on his harsh criticism of referees, players and coaches, much to enjoyment of his viewers. He was also notorious for being parochially one-eyed when it came to his beloved Manly club.
Mossop was the king of tautologies, and could always be counted on delivering gems such as ”the referee’s giving him a verbal tongue lashing” and ”he is running sideways across the field, without making forward progress”.
He was also never far from controversy, and his attitude could best be summed up by the man himself: ”I’ve got an opinion on every conceivable thing. Like it or lump it.”
More recently, Mossop decried the state of the modern Australian male: ”Too many Australian men are pathetic specimens: short of wind, flabby, beer-gutted and most of them, too weak to knock a sick girl off a toilet.”
Personally, I’ll always remember Mossop by his iconic catchphrase: “I’m flabbergastered!”
It was sad day for rugby league on Saturday, as Mossop passed away, aged 83.
Meanwhile, Sydney Roosters forward Mark Riddell announced his immediate retirement from the game on the weekend. The popular hooker, nicknamed ‘Piggy’, is leaving the game mid-season, but will stay on with the Roosters in an official capacity, helping out coach Brian Smith.
Whilst a good player, Riddell gained notoriety for his laid back approach to the game, which manifested itself in his humour and his fitness.
He never took himself, or the gym, too seriously and this earned him many fans.
The following excerpt from one of Piggy’s weekly Sun Herald columns does more justice in describing the man than I ever could:
“My weight has been a constant talking point, so it wasn’t a total shock when Laurie Daley sat me down for a serious chat about my diet. It was early in my career at St George Illawarra and Loz, then the assistant coach, wasn’t impressed after I rocked up to pre-season training after a particularly festive Christmas.
“It didn’t take long to work out that the amount I was drinking – rather than eating – was the cause of the problem.
“I can still remember Loz’s reaction when I told him that I regularly put away 20 or so schooners in an average week. I could see the concern written all over his face, but I thought he took the news pretty well. ”Well, Piggy,” he said. ”At least you’re being honest.”
We danced around the issue for a bit and, just as I was about to walk out the door, I decided to come clean. ‘Well, if we’re being totally honest,’ I mumbled before scurrying away, ‘I probably put away about 20 or 30 bourbon-and-Cokes as well’.”
Piggy certainly was, and will remain, a character.
Both Moose and Piggy were fantastic for rugby league. Fans could connect with both individuals because they weren’t robots churning out the same tired clichés of other rugby league personalities.
They were unique, engaging and interesting.
You may not have always agreed with Moose, and you may not have approved of Piggy’s physical conditioning, but you certainly knew their name and you talked about them with friends.
Personalities of their ilk are suspiciously absent from today’s game.
Where have all the rugby league personalities gone? Professionalism, the rise of political correctness, and an administration that’s heavy handed with individuals that don’t toe the company line, have all ensured that true characters are very rare in the modern era.
It’s why many fans were disappointed by the news that Phil ‘Gus’ Gould had signed on with the Penrith Panthers, as they feared it would spell the end of Gould’s outspoken ways and passionate rants.
Rugby league would be well served by remembering that personalities can be just as important to the sport as physical talent.
Vale Moose and Farewell Piggy.
Todd Slater
Guest
Many people who write about league these days are nothing more than gossip columnists, full stop. News limited has perpetuated a lot of stories over the years to sell papers. John Quayle was great at diffusing media driven gossip & often had it handled in house, long before the media ever got wind of it. The players today are great athletes no question, but the majority are completely devoid of any character, many for fear of being ripped apart by an ever voracious media. David Gallop does a pretty good job on the whole but often his wafer thin skin is revealed as he 'reacts' to another media driven storm in a teacup, which more often than not is a beat up from the tabloid terror. Dallas Donnelly, Bob 'The Bear' O'Reilly, Artie Beetson, Chicka Ferguson, Tom Raudonikis, Peter Jackson etc all the great characters that made the game so much more interesting are now nothing more than memory as today's players are programmed & owned by the NRL to act in a dull robotic manner at all times. Will we ever see another 'Moose' or 'Piggy' ? Don't bet on it. The game has no room these days for players like that & is all the poorer for it.
M1tch
Roar Guru
It was really goodbye Riddell back in 2008? Before he went to super league..he really has struggled big time this year for the roosters
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
Hear, hear..............
Ryan O'Connell
Expert
Totally agree Michael. There are members of the media that feed on the slightest little issue or story, and it scares players off being 'themselves', or speaking from their heart. Instead everything is measured, calculated and considered. The irony is that the characters gives the media plenty of stories, but the way the media then portrays that story usually puts the player in a bad light. The media is biting the hand that feeds them.
Michael
Guest
Well its a Catch-22. There would still be characters in the game if they players were allowed to be themselves. Unfortunately due to the media backlash of being themselves, all players from any code is taught to reign it in and be politically correct. Otherwise the media latch on. And now the media is suggesting we don't have characters. So what do we want? Its as much of a case of what the public is demanding and what is the backlash associated with a character. If a guy comes out and says about another team "Yeah I hate that team, I really want to smash them"...then that one line gets broken down, phychologists come in to discuss frame of mind, the media get on him saying "hate it such a strong word". Gossip columnists like Bec Wilson then say lines like that bring down the game...and as such an innocent line which in the old days was part of the course in creating genuine rivalry is now not allowed to be in the public domain. Its as much the media's fault in slamming players for every single little thing they do, as is the NRL for being heavy handed and teaching them to be robotic due to the fear of the backlash from a biased media who only looks to sensationalise and report on bad things, rather than good things. Case in point - Michael Jennings yesterday gets fined $10k for having a beer & that gets reported. Penrith yesterday announced Centrebet Stadium for this week will now be called McGrath Foundation stadium and announced that fundraising ventures to be in place all week. That doesn't get reported...anywhere in any paper...I ask you the question...what is more significant? What deserves to be reported more? The answer to that question...is why you don't have characters in the game today.
Ryan O'Connell
Expert
Great story Dean! It's an overused term, but Moose was certainly a character. There is also a great story about Piggy getting a cab all the way to Newcastle to he could have a drink with Joey Johns and Brett Finch. By the time he got there, they'd gone to bed, and he turned around and got a cab back to Sydney!
Hoy
Roar Guru
It is a shame that characters have gone. What I am more upset about is that there is noone in the game that is able to speak their mind and call a spade a spade. The age old "full credit to the boys, we hung in there etc..." I hate hearing that crap week in week out.
Dean - Surry Hills
Guest
Ryan it's uncanny how you've pieced The Moose and Piggy in the same article. I was having a lengthy conversation with a great mate last night, whose father is critically ill after suffering a stroke on Friday night. He was running McDonalds in Kings Cross for Ronnie Coote back in late eighties. They annually had McHappy days where celebrities would show up free of charge and work on the front counter, and a dollar from the sale of each Big Mac would go to a selected charity - quite often Ronald McDonald House. Rex " The Moose" Mossop was a regular, as was Frank Hyde (who would jump on several buses and a train to attend), and Peter Jackson the QLD Origin legend. He has some great enlarged black and white photographs with Ron and the entire crew hard at work. If you recall, the Big Macs back in those days were served in a styrofoam container, and took up a large chunk of space in your brown paper bag. At the end of the days work, each volunteer would take home a small sample of McDonald's cuisine. Rex, had a different method entirely. He would grab one of the large McDonalds garbage bags - and instruct crew members to fill it to the brim with Big Macs. My mate says they must have shoved fifty- plus burgers into his take-away carrier each and every year. What Rex did with all of these burgers was anyones guess. Did he have a special relationship with Piggy Riddell ? Did he discard the lettuce and buns, and feed the meat to his two boxer dogs? Did he whack them in the chest freezer at home, and bring them out on special occasions? I'd love to be able to get to the bottom of this "Moose Mystery".
Damo
Guest
Exactly. And just like Michael Clarke they are more worried about their 'brand'.
Rabbitz
Roar Guru
"Where have all the rugby league personalities gone? Professionalism, the rise of political correctness, and an administration that’s heavy handed with individuals that don’t toe the company line, have all ensured that true characters are very rare in the modern era." That coupled with the overwhelming belief of entitlement (not to mention stupid hair-do's and tattoos) has meant that to a lot of (now former) league fans have switch off. The player used to represent the bloke down the road, or the local brickie or copper. Now they are seen as over-indulged pampered w-anchors. They have gone from being characters to caricatures