Played golf with Gary Freeman the other day because 25 years ago this week he was the first Kiwi to win the Dally M Medal, picking up the votes of Daily Mirror journalists ahead of a coterie of the game’s champions including Terry Lamb, Mal Meninga and Allan Langer.
Didn’t see him play? Friend, get onto YouTube. He was a ripper, ‘the Wiz’. A hoot to watch play.
Like his great rival Ricky Stuart, Freeman was competitive to the point of madness. He was wiry and tough; a classic ‘annoying’ halfback: lippy, full of gob.
And if a referee had – in his opinion – made an error, he would let them know.
“Oh, mate, I didn’t miss ‘em,” he smiles as we golf around my home track, Long Reef Golf Club, on these our Lord Mr Lillee’s northern beaches.
“If they made a mistake I’d remind them all game. Tell them they owed us. I had a good relationship with most of them. Others, not so much.”
Freeman’s reputation as something of an agitator could precede him.
“One game I played, this referee, I won’t name him, we’re just about to kick off and he’s reminding the chasers to stay onside,” says Freeman.
“Y’know – ‘Left side, stay onside, right side, stay onside.’ And then he barks, ‘And you! Number seven! You stay onside! [Laughs] We hadn’t even kicked off!
“And then all through the game he’s into me, hammering me, telling me what to do. ‘Get onside’, ‘Get off him’, all that.
“By the end of the game I’m about to feed a scrum and he tells me to put it in straight. By then I’d had enough. So I gave him the ball and told him he could feed it. I said: ‘You’ve been telling me what to do all game, you show me how it’s done. You feed the bloody scrum.’
“Then I walked off, stood to the side of the scrum while both packs of forwards are packed in and wondering what’s going on. And the ref’s standing there with the ball in his hands, and me telling him to feed it.”
Freeman loves his footy. He’ll watch all eight games across a weekend.
And so if Tony Archer and any of the referees would like his advice, it is this:
“My strong advice is that we’ve let the rules go so far,” he offers. “Next year I think they should sit all the coaches down and the refs should tell them: this is how we’re going to referee the game.”
And how should that be?
“To the f***ing rules! Play the ball with your foot! Play the ball straight! I’ve seen guys play the ball sideways. The other day, Andrew Fifita played the ball, he was facing the sideline.
“Before next season I would sit down all the coaches and point out all the errors, all the things that aren’t being done, the things we’ve let slide.
“And I’d tell them: this is being fixed, and this is being fixed, and so on.
“Get rid of the grey areas. If you don’t play the ball with your foot: penalty. See how many guys do it then.
“Might sound like a small thing. But you adjudicate to the rules you’ll have a better game.”
Old school?
“People will say it’s old school. I don’t give a rat’s arse! There’s massive grey areas. No-one knows what’s going on. They’re miked up with the bunker, two touchies, commentators on their back.
“People can handle referees making mistakes – players make them. But if refs are calling each play, making each decision as they see it, people will cop it. They mightn’t like it. But they’ll respect you for making the call.”
(Photo by Getty Images)
As a player Freeman was an ornery man who lived to challenge norms and change perceptions. There were shades of jockeys Shane Dye and Jimmy Cassidy about him. Like them, Freeman loved to stick it up big brother.
And by the time he arrived at Leichhardt Oval late in 1987 he was a seasoned, 25-year-old league man. He’d notched six Tests for the Kiwis and was thus eligible to be signed in the NSWRL.
He would play two successful seasons with Balmain, reaching grand finals in 1988 and ’89. In 1990 the Tigers finished in a playoff for fifth in a season dominated by Canberra, Brisbane and Penrith.
And their window was gone.
In 1991 the Tigers signed Alan Jones as coach. The former Wallabies man brought a former Wallaby with him, Brian Smith, whom Jones made halfback.
Freeman was put in reserve grade.
Freeman obviously didn’t agree. He was the captain of New Zealand. Smith had never played rugby league.
Ask Freeman about it while wandering the golf course and he’ll tell you he doesn’t want to talk about it. He’ll tell you he’s moved on.
“I’d prefer to remember the good times,” he says.
And then talks about the bad ones anyway.
“I went to [CEO] Keith Barnes and said, ‘I can’t do this anymore, I’m out of here’. Keith told me, ‘Wiz, give it time, it will work itself out.’
“But I was adamant; I’d had enough. I walked out there and then. Then I went home and told my wife. She said, ‘Why’d you do that for? You should’ve at least been paid out.’ I said, ‘Stuff ‘em – it’s not about the money’. She was like, ‘Well, that’s very noble but what do you now for money?’ And I was like [laughs] … ‘I’ll think of something!’”
He rang around. Found an ear in Mark Murray and Jack Gibson at the Roosters. He found some luck: a bloke in a gym, George Yiasemides, was watching him train and offered some advice.
“He told me I was doing it all wrong,” says Freeman. “I was like, yeah whatever mate. But he said, ‘Let me look after you for a few months, I’ll set you right’. And he did. And he was outstanding. By the time footy season came along I’d never been fitter.”
The Roosters’ season started brightly with Freeman polling Dally M votes in eight consecutive games. But when their ace big man Craig Salvatori was suspended for six weeks for headbutting, the Roosters slipped off the pace.
Gibson barred Salvatori from training. You wonder did it unsettle the side. Regardless, “you didn’t argue with Jack,” says Freeman.
Easts won their last game 56-16 against Souths. But all that was left was Mad Monday and the Dally M. How was the night of nights, Wizard?
“It was in the morning,” says Freeman. “John Fahey was premier, presented me with the award. It was great. I’d gone from the year before, being cut loose to playing my best season under Jack and Mark.
“And being the first Kiwi to win the award was huge. Alfie Langer came third, Terry Lamb ran second.
“And I was New Zealand’s sports personality of the year [laughs] – voted by the fans! Fantastic.”
Ian
Guest
One cue I reckon the refs should pay attention to is tacklers looking to check their defensive line before moving. If they have time to look (or listen for a call) then they didn't move off immediately. Penalty.
Boz
Guest
They managed to do it properly for most of the game’s history. Perhaps today’s players are just dumber.
Dr Yes
Guest
Agreed. Funnily enough, I'm pretty sure that's the number one focus of the refs too - reduce the haphazard. Just that some don't see them as having that goal. Zooming right out, can see that from day dot, the 'greatest game of all' has been about evolution. RL is progressive, Union conservative (stick with the 1800's rules). Could come up with a list as long as both arms and legs. Professionalism, 13 men-a-side, 6 tackles, 4 point try / 2 point goal / 1 point field goal, 10m rule, marker rules, uncontested scrum, bomb defence (not tackled mid-air), 40-20 kicks, corner-posts in play, extra time, 4-man 8-change bench, zero tackle, the bunker, shot clocks & timeouts, yada yada... Without openness to gradually tweaking/changing rules, it wouldn't be half the game.
Simoc
Guest
I doubt the players play the ball wrongly on purpose. Generally after a big hit the world is a bit of a pendulum for the next 5-10 secs while you're trying to recalibrate, with everyone yelling at you to play it quickly.
Boz
Guest
I will agree that change is needed. I don't think there is too much wrong with the rules of our game. Hopefully the time is coming where their haphazard enforcement will end.
Dr Yes
Guest
Full credit for what you're trying to achieve. Sounds great - limit the wrestle. But the answer doesn't fall out of the current rules. 'Immediately' is undefined and refs currently interpret as 'at earliest opportunity'. Innermost tackler removes once they're physically able, as the other few players move off. Result: at least 5 secs. Can't be 'next to immediate, e.g. 0.1 seconds' because that would mean penalising every tackle - need time to move muscles and joints and roll/lift away. In case you're thinking 'immediately' means a time limit, well that's not spelt out either, and you can't have one ref using 5 secs and another 2 secs. Settle on 3 secs by defining as such? Ok for 1 or 2 man tackles. What about 3 and 4 man? Might implicitly outlaw them? Stacks of times a player's arm slides under an armpit in a legitimate tackle and the attacker wedges them against the ball. A delicate extraction to prevent either strip or needlessly penalising an innocent man (according to the word of the rules). Also introduces a juicy carrot for attacker to milk a few penalties - lie on / entwine with the defence, which is legal. Not that you can milk carrots. As the rules stand the wrestle is legal. As the player's still making a little progress, assisted by the defence, the defence can wrap anywhere between shoulder and toes. Then held is called, and the defence is allowed to remove according to what's physically possible. Change is needed.
Boz
Guest
" And what rule defines that, exactly? Glancing through them, there’s no definition of ‘quick enough’" From the International Laws of the Game: Section 11. The Tackle and the Play the Ball Item 10. The play-the-ball shall operate as follows: (a) The tackled player shall be IMMEDIATELY released and shall not be touched until the ball is in play. Didn't look very hard did you?
Dr Yes
Guest
" If they don’t get off quick enough" And what rule defines that, exactly? Glancing through them, there's no definition of 'quick enough'. The rules are too concise to describe anything in the areas of timing, reasonable effort, etc. End up going full circle and needing invent a defiinition - i.e. an interpretion/policy issue, especially around the ruck & play the ball. Can't have different refs applying significantly different interpretations.
Boz
Guest
Stop making excuses for the referees. If they don't get off quick enough - blow the whistle. Soon enough they will need to change their technique to ensure they don't get too tangled up, and that they don't have too many players in the tackle. You're just advocating for the refs to throw their hands in the air and say "it's all to hard".
Dr Yes
Guest
" Call tackle or release, and if they haven’t let go quick enough, blow the whistle." But when there's 4 behomeths legitimately & deliberately entwined through every crevice of the attacker before 'held' is called, it's impossible for the ref to penalise when they take 5-10 seconds to unravel the mess, all the while putting on the act that they're moving as fast as they can. We've seen it happenning for years - the refs have tried to push back, but the twisting of the technicalities are quite simply too smart.
V.O.R.
Guest
Quick play the balls lead to results and Andrew Fifita is playing tunnel ball with impunity. It has gone too far when players can do this repeatedly in a semi final.
Boz
Guest
You have eloquently explained all that is wrong with the game and the way it is refereed. "Creating common interpretation policy for all refs" is a classic example. If you can understand English, the rules are well written and easy to understand, no interpretation should be needed. You have presented Harrigan as example of why "game management" should be strived for, because he is regarded as one of the best referees. However, you fail to acknowledge, that Harrigan himself has stated that in his early days, he would blow many penalties, and players soon learnt that he wouldn't let them get away with anything. Only then, once his reputation was established, was he able to blow less penalties, as players would transgress less. And for your last point, the refs have done very little in the last 12 years regarding the grapple. It's not hard. Call tackle or release, and if they haven't let go quick enough, blow the whistle. You seem to suggest that because the coaches promote slowing the ruck, there is nothing the referees can do? Really? You also say they "are rewarded, whether a penalty is blown or not", basically saying that a penalty is no longer a deterrent. This is nonsense. Penalise them, and they will soon learn. If they don't, 10 in the bin.
Mike Gordon
Roar Rookie
It's the "butterfly effect"-the sensitive dependence on initial conditions-from little things big things grow! Players should play the ball with their foot while facing the opposition goal posts. Show some bloody respect for the ball and the game. Nice to see one or two players doing it over the past few weeks. Maybe defence won't feel so desperate to cheat the 10 m as they all too often are on and on it goes...
GD66
Guest
Well, that's saved me bursting into print. Agree with both the yapping, and the refs' ceaseless efforts at mateship with all the nicknames. Cowboys #4, Souths #11 etc will do nicely, thanks.
Dr Yes
Guest
"So when did the game change to allow the refs to pick and choose what they penalise?" Refs are always picking and choosing what they penalise. It's the nature of the beast. Unavoidavble. A player seen to be deliberately going over the limit will have harsher standards applied than a player making a temporary loose action without noticable impact to the game. Onfield behaviours don't come with a 'facebook hover label' of legal or illegal. Rather they stretch the gammut of all shades of grey between the two. The referee decides the acceptible cut-off point - greatly using the rules, but also considering intent and context on the field. The referees boss has been assisting this to occur correctly for 20 years - by creating common interpretation policy for all refs. Ensures an even, common, blanket-standard across all games. Fact is, the rules on their own are way too concise to give this - needs much more detailed instructions. An example - a ball hits the ground due to a genuine strong accidental collision after the tackle (not a loose carry) and the ref calls play-the-ball anyway. Was very regular in the 70s. Another example - Greg Hartley constantly calling players re offside, kick-chasing, dirty play, etc, i.e. warning before pinging. As long as each side had fair involvement. It's just recognition of the fact that some situations can be very messy and blowing the pea out of the whistle may suit neither the game nor either team. Of course, Harrigan was renowned for player management. He's also often named as the best ref of all time. But we're talking grapple and play-the-ball here. For about 12 years the refs have tried to police the letter of the law within grapple tackles. Frankly, it hasn't worked. It's just made the game messier and more frustrating, and often the transgressor has been advantaged. The coaches are too skilled at training the "hold-up and 20 second waltz with 3 or four players hanging all over". They are rewarded for this whether a penalty is blown or not - play is massively slowed. You can read many complaints about it, on forums such as this, from years past. It has impacted play. Whether a player plays-the-ball with foot or not is quite minor in comparison. The proof is in the end-results. We've seen an uptick in flowing play this year - see the Storm, Broncos, Roosters, Sea Eagles and even Parra for examples.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Yeah good point. I think we've probably gone too far in the 'let it flow' direction though and are in need of a bit of a recalibration.
Womblat
Guest
Freeman was awesome, wasn't he. And one tough little b***ard. Remember when Greg Dowling buried both his knees into his face and smashed all his teeth? I think Dowling got like 10 weeks and here's Freeman smiling to the tabloids after the game with teeth like stalactites, all over the shop, lining up for the following week. In my opinion, alongside Mark Graham, the best Kiwi player ever. And someone worth listening to.
Boz
Guest
So when did the game change to allow the refs to pick and choose what they penalise? You're saying that because they are too scared to blow a penalty for defenders not releasing the tackled player, it's OK for the tackled player to play the ball however he wants? Perhaps too, because the defence isn't back the whole 10 metres, we should allow the attack to get away with a forward pass? In my book, two wrongs don't make a right. Ref the bloody rules as they are written.
AGordon
Guest
Freeman's a champion bloke but yapping the refs was not one of his finer efforts. It's been going on for ages I know, but it's now to the point where every Tom, Dick or Cameron thinks a decision is really an excuse for a debate. Freeman's also right; get the res together with the coaches early next year and tell them the rules are going to be applied properly. The other thing the refs MUST stop is calling players by name. The game has become all too matey which is part of the reason for everyone yapping when a ref makes a decision.
Dom
Guest
Great point. I like the notion the article is getting at but the growing belief that refereeing will be "fixed" by making guys play then ball with their foot (among other things obviously) seems a little simplistic.