Even the most ardent of supporters has had a gutful of NRL players and their off-field antics.
Over the weekend the Sydney Roosters stood down State of Origin star Michael Jennings after he was arrested and charged following an alleged incident involving police.
On the surface it doesn’t sound like the worst crime in the world, but when does it end?
It wouldn’t be the same if three or four players weren’t done for DUI in a season, another couple involved in a street fracas here or overseas, throw a domestic violence issue, alleged problems with illicit drug supply for good measure, and who could forget Todd Carney’s ‘bubbler’.
When will players cop the tip? When will the NRL harden its stance on offenders who continually drag the sport’s reputation into the gutter?
The game now has an Integrity Unit, but South Sydney’s pre-season drama in Arizona was hardly investigated at all, it took the work of a journalist to obtain the police report on the matter because the club and players involved tried as hard as they possibly could to sweep the matter under the carpet.
Trying to keep dramas ‘in house’ at clubs is hardly new; it’s been happening since Dally Messenger first laced up a boot. But what’s the point of having an Integrity Unit if they aren’t going to thoroughly investigate issues and come back with a decent penalty to deter future offenders?
In the vast majority of cases, the problems are related to the abuse of alcohol. Clubs should have the ability to insert a clause in a player’s contract that if they are caught in an alcohol-related incident that it gets added to the banned substance list for them. Any future offence should result in a mandatory suspension, or see the player’s contract torn up.
It’s time for players to wake up to themselves – and spare me the talk about alcohol and drugs being a society issue and these are just young men who are going to make mistakes. Everybody is responsible for their own actions.
I guarantee if you went up to an apprentice carpenter or bricklayer on a building site and offered them $600,000 for the next 10 years of their life they’d find a way to curb their social behaviour in a bid maintain that high level of income. Why should NRL players be any different?
Officials need to adopt a hardline stance regardless of how talented the player may be to show others what levels of behaviour will not be tolerated.
Of course everyone deserves a second chance and each case should be treated on its merits, but are you more likely to reoffend if you spend two years out of the game on no pay? Why should one club be weakened for having the guts to sack a star player only for another to be allowed to pick them up six months later after a supposed ‘rehabilitation period’?
Consistency of penalty is also issue: Paul Gallen gets slugged with a $50,000 fine (later reduced on appeal) for an offensive tweet, yet vision of Konrad Hurrell involved in a sex act sees him cop $5000. Who arrives at these decisions and why isn’t there more transparency involved in explanation of this process?
We keep hearing about how much more physical the game is and how much harder players train. They also get very well paid for it. However, broadcasters are also paying more for TV rights, sponsors are tipping in more cash and fans are paying more to attend games.
They, quite rightly, expect to see a higher level of professionalism on and off the field.
The moment you sign an NRL contract is the moment you cease to exist as a normal human being, and if players aren’t prepared to act with a higher level of responsibly then they should find themselves another profession.
Vhavnal
Roar Rookie
No, i'm saying there are bad boys in afl, football and nfl and the theory to deny these "bad boys" their pay packet is the ONLY way to cull this rising problem..
Samtwocan
Guest
I think people who regurgitate boring nothing stories that have been flogged to death should be banished from this blog for a minimum of one month and not allowed to contribute until they come up with something original ... I'll go back to sleep now , reading this has made me tired.
Reason
Guest
Typical hyperbole because it's a RL player. RL is held to higher standards than every other sport.
peeeko
Guest
it looks like we have a new guy that goes around NRL threads bashing the game. to say there are no bad boys in afl, football and nfl - please do some research
big J
Guest
These men are professionals and they should be acting in such a way at all times. Just like in the Military you are a representative of that team/brand 24/7 and being a professional player you should act in a matter that reflects a postive percption at all times. If footy player plus drinking out on the town equals total dickhead than dont drink, it is that simple. I understand that these boys like to party after a game, there is no problem with that, but they always have to be in control of what they are doing and not allow themselves to be caught up in a situation that brings the game and themselves into disrebute. Too many times have these players done the most stupid stuff for stupid reasons. And when they do the book and whatever else should be throw it them. Fines, suspendsions, benchings, loss of contracts whatever takes until these boys learn to pull thier heads in.
Adsa
Guest
I have done worse than Jennings when I was his age and on the drink , so I try not to get upset about this type of behaviour.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
If politicians,lawyers,journalists,teachers,accountants,police,businesspeople, et al on the few occasions get a DUI charge,does that mean the rest of them fall in the same category.We saw an example of one after a heavy drinking session ane the Tv TV cameras on hand ,hardly a youthful person. Human nature being what it is,and the exuberance of youth will always have the odd one falling between the cracks.And I do not care what code it is,none are exempt.To suggest otherwise is delusion of the highest order. I remember Brett Stewart being pilloried from pillar to post before a fair trial,he was found innocent and the finger pointers crawled back into their holes saying nothing.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Simply showing a year by year crowd stat is one thing.delving a little deeper another.Player behaviour had minimal effect.People have habit of forgetting when their team is performing well. For example Monday night football only became part and parcel of the NRL scheduling in 2007,two years after the record year of 2005. I also note in 2007 there were SFA NRL matches played in the bush at smaller venues. e.g. Mackay in 2012,in 2013 Mudgee,Cairns & Mackay,in 2014 Waikato,Cairns,Darwin 2015 Bathurst Albury and Cairns.Just to name a few ,which has a crowd influence due to smaller venues away from home. In 2007 the Titans came into the NRL and had a big average assisted by having a home game at Suncorp.2009/10 made the semis: 3rd in 2009 and 4th in 2010.They got themselves in a $35m debt as of March 2012.The problems with tradesmen happened in 2011. Anpther point Clipper overlooks ,depends on which clubs are given Monday nights .Usual high drawers such as the Dragon ,their fans do not attend Monday nights as yesterday will attest.The Tv stations ATM have the say 9 with Monday night first pref and then Fox 2nd.IN effect year to year is not comparing apples with apples. Sunday afternoon live NRL came into being this year,much bigger TV ratings than the delayed ones. He likes to mention the Tv ratings,yet fails to note in 2014 Melbourne had 426,000 viewers in SOO2 and this year 2015 491,000 with SOO2.TV NRL ratings are down in some and not in otherssucvh as Sunday afternoon.Apparently Merlburnians are not too concerned with the actions of a few idiot players,they have had their share at times. Performances of Parramatta and souths this year both high TV drawers have not helped,and neither did the Eels in prior years. Worth noting a couple of other codes with so called" impeccable behaviour" have had crowd drops this year as well as worsening TV ratings. And they get(rather than the Tv station) to nominate their preferred preferred match times and have consistent. venues. I note I am under moderation,because I ( a rl fan)dare to analyse Clipper's( a non rl fan) stats which I did not disagree with on face values, however provided a little analytical research which throws another light on the subject matter..
clipper
Guest
Reesy, yes you could be right that it might not be a result of the issues raised by Ralph, but the TV ratings are also down this year, so those people not turning up live aren't automatically watching on their lounges. There's not as many live games on TV as AFL, and they still get good crowd numbers.
Reesy
Guest
Doesn't the occasional misdemeanour make the game more interesting anyway? It's all part of the soap opera and the media love it.
Reesy
Guest
Clipper, yes based on these figures average crowds appear to be down since 2004 by on average 709 people. However I don't think this evidences the issues raised by Ralph. Crowd attendance is not a function of a single variable nor is it the sole measure of success of the game. Keep in mind that there are more games live on TV now as well. I've chosen the comforts of my own lounge more than once for a live game this year when ten years ago I would have gone to the game if my team wasn't on live. I'm not condoning poor player behaviour either. Just a bit over the doomsdayers and the media moral high brigade.
Jamieson Murphy
Roar Guru
#0dayswithoutanincident
Cugel
Roar Rookie
I think that if every little misdemeanour didn't have busybodies clutching the pearls and howling at the moon every time, the problem would go away.
Charles NSW
Guest
The problem is we are dealing with human nature! As such people do silly things from time to time This is why there will always be people getting fined for one thing or another
Vhavnal
Roar Rookie
To assume NRL had any "reputation" is wrong..as turbodewd mentioned, its their "culture" ..to assume that NRL will remain problem free in yeas to come is really pushing it..the best way to hurt players who keep bringing disrepute is to hit them where it hurts the most, their pay packet....same goes for any sport..Carney ended up in UK rugby league probably earning much less than what he was earning here, Rugby union clubs RARELY take league players with attitude or bad history so when you punch a player where it hurts them the most, only then they will learn....applies to Football, AFL and NFL too..
turbodewd
Guest
Alas this is rugby league culture - drinking a lot and gambling. I cant see it changing. They just need to tone it down one notch. I mean NRL crowds are going backwards in one of the richest and biggest cities in the world. what does that tell you?
Charles NSW
Guest
All of us including footballers are subject to the laws of the land and penalties are in place if found guilty! If there are further laws in place such as the football code have then that is part of their acceptance to the code We need to understand people are human beings and are subject to doing the wrong thing from time to time Providing laws are in place what more can we do except give guidance how to stay on the right track
steveng
Roar Rookie
Yes, but they have their names which is then leaked to the press and then all s**t breaks lose. These guys should be taught and warned upon the commencement of their contracts, and there should be a very strict and common clause written into every RL players contact, that any improprieties will not be tolerated and that they will be severely punished. In Jennings case, he is a very experienced player and surely he knew what the consequences are and will be if he got caught by the Police and arrested. Surely these guys are not that stupid, but then again some are and that is why the NRL are having so many problems with alcohol and players binging on it.
clipper
Guest
Here is the evidence - remember don't shoot the messenger. The crowd averages are the lowest since 2004. The first SoO was down 500k on last year, the average TV ratings are down this year. The one off Melbourne SoO was higher, but they can't do that all the time. Year Average 2015 15379 2014 15905 2013 15940 2012 16423 2011 16273 2010 16406 2009 16069 2008 15591 2007 15750 2006 15600 2005 16468 2004 14670
Reesy
Guest
In my opinion Ralph, NRL players are etrememely well behaved by comparison to those in other professions (a point I'll get in a second). They are on average generally better educated than players of past eras and give up their time off the field doing various forms of charity and community work. I've never seen an NRL player knock back a hospitalised kid in need of a lift or one simply looking for autograph. Con Scortis does a piece today in the Roar on reality v perception which you should read. He beat me to the punch and took the steam out of most of my reply (so won't repeat Con's points). You mention young apprentice carpenters or bricky's would be better behaved on similar coin. I disagree Ralph. Over the last 18 years I've seen and experienced first hand the forms of entertainment highly paid lawyers, accountants and stock brokers get up to in their downtime - it's the type of stuff that would make Conrad Hurrell, Michael Jennings and even Todd Carney look like church poster boys. There would be plenty of carpenters and bricky's doing the same thing if they had similar disposable incomes. There will always be the occasional NRL player who acts like a boofhead and steps out of line. These offenders need to be appropriately dealt with. The media loves a misfit though even though they pretend to be the moral police. I'm yet to see evidence of dwindling support for the game. TV ratings have never been higher and State of Origin 2 just broke Australian TV audience records. I bet Michael Jennings' mishap does not cause the ratings for State of Origin 3 to drop. Anyone willing to take that bet?