South Sydney Give Jason Taylor The Boot

South's Coach Jason Taylor has been sacked. Was it fair?

Jason Taylor, one of the greatest goal kickers in rugby league history, has been given the boot from his coaching role after an incident at South Sydney’s end of season function.  Former first grade coach John Lang has been appointed to take over in 2010. Read more »

Brett Seymour Sacked: Breaking Glass is Bad Luck

Sacked Cronulla Sharks player Brett Seymour

Three strikes and you’re out! That’s the message National Rugby League (NRL) team the Cronulla Sharks have given Brett Seymour and the 24-year-old has discovered that breaking glass does bring bad luck.

Today, the Sharks announced that Seymour was going to be sacked and the club’s chief executive Richard Fisk said that they had considered all the options for their troubled half-back.

“We have worked with Brett Seymour both internally and with counselling support and unfortunately those effort have not been embraced. The Sharks have gone through a difficult period and it is important for us to ensure the brand is protected,” he said. Read more »

I Now Doubt Benefit of the Doubt

Jarryd Hayne in Origin 1: Should this have been a benefit of the doubt decision?

A crucial decision in the opening State of Origin match has cast a doubt on whether the ‘benefit of the doubt’ rule favouring the attacking team in rugby league should continue or be scrapped.

Video referees took close to ten minutes and viewed numerous replays in the opening State of Origin match at Etihad Stadium to figure out whether NSW winger Jarryd Hayne’s foot made contact with the touchline Read more »

Good Decision Referees!

NSW Rugby League Referees will donate $10 000 to Down Syndrome NSW

2009 has been a season of turmoil for the National Rugby League (NRL) and for all league supporters. Finally I am pleased to say there is something good to talk about. It’s not another sex scandal and no it’s not a high profile player engaged in another act of drunken stupidity.

Arguing about and questioning a referee’s decision in rugby league is a favourite past time for many of the game’s supporters. However, no one will argue that the decision by the referees to donate $10,000 this weekend to Down Syndrome NSW is anything but right!

Refereeing can be a thankless job but it is nothing compared to the tireless work of those caring for our sick and needy. Read more »

NRL Sex Scandal - Should Matthew Johns Have Been sacked?

Matthew Johns before the sex scandal became public

After some of the poor behaviour of NRL players was very publicly displayed on ABC’s Four Corners programme on Monday night it makes me mad that these carefree blokes just don’t seem to get the message.

2009 is shaping to be the worst for scandals and unsavoury incidents for rugby league.

First of all I will preface this article by saying that any bloke involved in non-consentual sex should be prosecuted criminally. The issue of group sex when consent is given or the participants are not told to stop is more of grey area.

Matthew Johns has been stood down from Channel 9 and NRL Read more »

Where Did Loyalty Go in Rugby League?

Brett Finch during happier times at Pararmatta

This week in Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) competition we witnessed another blow to the game. When did it become acceptable to the NRL for a player to walk out on his contract four weeks into a season and then resign with another club for the remainder of 2009??

This is the scenario that faced Western Sydney club the Parramatta Eels last week.

Brett Finch wanted to Read more »

Are They Professionals Or Just Pissed?

Brett Stewart - NRL alcohol fury

Another year and it’s another group of drunken rugby league players disgracing themselves and the game. It has reached a point where some league bosses are calling for a complete alcohol ban.

Why is an alcohol ban needed you may ask? Well the answer is that some of the players are just not professional, they’re just pissed!

Rugby League supporters will defend the game to hecklers that follow the AFL or Rugby Union but it has reached a stage when even the fiercest supporters have to admit that some of the NRL players are just boofheads.

After one round of the 2009 National Rugby League (NRL) competition the game has again been Read more »

Bird’s Test Jumper May Fly South

Greg Bird - NRL career over?

Australian, NSW State of Origin and Cronulla Sharks five-eighth Greg Bird’s latest blunder will probably cost him a chance of representing Australia in the upcoming World Cup and may see him deregistered from the NRL. With Canberra Raiders Terry Campese blitzing the competition, he deserves to get the nod from Australian selectors.

Bird was charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm on Sunday (24 August 2008) by NSW Police for allegedly Read more »

Tim Smith: Sports Stars and Their Mental Health

Tim Smith struggling with mental health issues

The rugby league world was rocked recently when former NRL Rookie of the Year, Tim Smith, decided to walk away from the game after an ongoing battle with bipolar disorder.

Bipolar formerly known as manic depression is a mental condition where sufferer’s mood swings can be extreme. Typically they have very high highs, and low lows.

Tim Smith missed training with his Parramatta Eels team mates. He eventually arrived and addressed his team mates after the scheduled training session. He told them he had returned to the paddock too early and needed to take some leave to deal with Read more »