Ricky Stuart’s post-game press conferences have long been a thing of legend, the source of headlines, amusement and multiple fines, but his performance on Saturday after his team turned up their toes against a depleted Panthers side was one for the ages.
What did Ricky think he was going to achieve with his unprecedented personal attack on Penrith’s fill-in, Jaeman Salmon? Did he think it was somehow going to help his team in their increasingly forlorn bid to make the finals?
Did he think it was the right message to send to his team? Did he think he was going to get away with it? Did he think at all? The answer to any of the questions posed beginning with “did he think” is a resounding “no”.
I’ve been following rugby league and other sports for longer than Ricky’s been alive, and I can’t recall a similar incident where a coach of an elite team verbally attacks a player from the opposition.
No doubt there have been some, and I’m sure one of our many correspondents will point them out, but this was totally unprecedented even for someone that so obviously wears his heart on his sleeve as Ricky.
I wonder if the Canberra legend would have launched a similar attack against a fellow coach, a referee, bunker official or NRL administrator?
I think not, although he has previously suffered from foot in mouth disease, even leading to the end of his tenure as Kangaroos coach in 2008 after verbally spraying match officials the day after Australia lost the World Cup final to New Zealand.
(Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)
Following that disaster, Stuart apologised, was heavily fined and then fell on his sword, leaving the door open to continue his coaching career, but if early reports are to be believed, Stuart’s not backing down this time around, and is standing by his rant.
Funnily enough, it was only a couple of months ago that Stuart said he was “lost for words” after the Raiders’ second-half capitulation to the Warriors.
Even after the controversial 2019 grand final loss to the Roosters, he said: “You all saw it. None of us here will be commenting on that tonight. It’s not the time to talk about it.”
Perhaps he should have run that deflection again on Saturday instead of opening this very messy can of worms, as I suspect that some defamation lawyers are meeting as I write this to determine the likelihood of Salmon taking action against Stuart, and what their share of the settlement might be.
So, where does this leave the Raiders club, their fans, the team’s finals aspirations and the players who look to their coach for guidance? Surely the club can’t continue to be tainted by Ricky’s brush every time he has a brain fade, and surely the players deserve better than a coach who increasingly resembles Mr Hyde rather than Dr Jekyll.
How can any Raiders player be sanctioned for their actions going forward if this is the example set by their coach?
Ricky looks tired and increasingly more gutted every time the Raiders let victory slip from their grasp. He’s been at the Raiders for nine years now without success, and alarmingly is contracted for two more, so perhaps it’s time for a new coach with both a fresh mindset, and some new ideas to take the reins.
I wonder if the Raiders board have had that telephone hook-up yet to determine whether Ricky has their full support?
sheek
Roar Guru
Rob - yep. Have we all become bleeding hearts?
Tony
Roar Guru
That was for systematic salary cap abuse
Richard POWELL
Roar Rookie
All of Melbourne copped it in 2010
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
Interestingly there has been very little reaction from Raiders supporters on their website - while its being discussed there isn't a mountain of posts demanding his sacking. And the club has come out and said they didn't condone what he did and would support whatever punishment the NRL dished out. But there is no indication of outrage and putting Ricky on notice. Given the personal nature of what happened a decade ago I suspect people are cutting him some slack. Reading between the lines it sounds as though there was more than one incident involving Salmon and members of Ricky's family so it may have been more serious than one isolated incident. He's been punished. We move on. Will be interesting to see how the Raiders players react against the Dragons on Sunday. I have feeling they'll put in a big performance for the coach.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
You are right. I doubt we would have heard anything on this if the Raiders had won. You could tell Ricky was angry - he was simmering after the loss and trying his best to deflect questions thrown at him about the poor performance. I suspect the mention of the Starling incident provided the opportunity to vent it. He obviously has anger management issues and this is another example. The bloke has been coaching for 20 years but is still coming to grips with how to handle losing. But it appears there is something deep rooted from ten years ago that involved Salmon and his family - the full details of which we are unlikely to see. He just picked the wrong time and place for the outburst. Its obviously a deeply personal matter that should not have been aired when it was. It may require some conciliation between Salmon and Ricky's family to fully address but that's for them to determine. Kent and the NRL know the full details about what happened but Ricky has chosen not to fully disclose them which is his right.
Rob
Guest
So it's fine to abuse someone in a public forum and just fall back on "it's my opinion"?
Pete
Guest
He's ingrained that culture in the club and it's fans as well. It's easy for him to deflect rather than look internally and potentially realise that the modern game has passed him by.
Rob
Guest
I don't understand the whole "reacting as a father" excuse. The referees handled what happened on the field as well as they could IMO. Salmon did nothing to provoke Ricky or bring up whatever it was that happened before he was even a teenager. He was reacting as a coach who's team were dominated by an understrength Panthers team. Does anyone really believe that he would of made the comments if the Raiders won?
Tony
Roar Guru
Let's see
Chris
Guest
You can’t just say anything you like about another person to the media & expect that that’s all good. It’s also not up to the person that you’ve defamed with your slander , to prove that a statement made about them is incorrect. Many a payout in court are based on those facts.
sheek
Roar Guru
Tony, Defamation is overrated. The rabid right & looney left abuse each other every single day. Mindless, loud, empty vessels on social media criticise anyone who doesn't confirm to their own ignorant, narrow ideology. What would make NRL so precious?
Tony
Roar Guru
All he may need to prove is that ge was defamed
Tony
Roar Guru
Fair enough
sheek
Roar Guru
Ricky Stuart is entitled to his opinion, & if he thinks this bloke is a "weak-gutted dog" then that's his opinion. It's up to this bloke to either ignore the comments or prove them wrong. Sticks & stones may break my bones, etc. It's called toughening up.
DP Schaefer
Roar Rookie
Nope, he might run out of weak Dragons to roast....(sorry boys. But)
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
Short answer - yes. But he needs to control his emotions after a loss.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
I don't think he has suddenly fallen out of favour Tony. The board just endorsed extending him by an extra 2 seasons - so I think you are inventing possible scenarios that are very unlikely to happen. I'm sure the board wouldn't be happy about Ricky's bizarre outburst but its not as though he's made a habit of this recently. The Raiders are just outside the 8 - and have won 8 out of their last 11 games - including a win away against the Storm - its not as though they are a basket case wallowing at the foot of the table. They've also beaten the Roosters and the Sharks twice this season. And its not a bad recovery after losing Hodgson for the season after 10 minutes of the first round and their new recruit Fogarty for the first 14 games before the season even started. If they win a couple of those close games against the Warriors, Cowboys and the Broncos they are probably sitting comfortably in the 8.
Conan of Cooma
Roar Rookie
I've been saying it for years - Ricky Stuart is all about Ricky Stuart, no one else. If something goes wrong it's not Ricky's fault. If the team loses it's not Ricky's fault. If he fails as a coach it's not Ricky's fault. If he says something bad about someone it's not Ricky's fault. The funny thing is that, all in all, Ricky isn't to blame to here. It's the absolute idiots that keep giving him coaching positions.
Tony
Roar Guru
:laughing:
Choppy Zezers
Roar Rookie
Tony Murdoch. Or Turdoch for short (just be careful with the pronunciation and spelling)