May 13th, 2019

May 13th, 2019

PAUL GALLEN writes exclusively for Wide World of Sports and will appear on 100% FOOTY tonight with James Bracey, Phil Gould, Ruan Sims and Neil Breen. Watch on Nine at 9.40pm AEST!

How you’re dealt with by the NRL largely depends on your profile as a player. I was told that directly by a former NRL chief executive: Dave Smith.

That was when I got in trouble for swearing at the NRL on Twitter late in 2014, after we’d been through an incredibly difficult couple of years at Cronulla.

I copped a $50,000 fine and was banned from the Kangaroos for a season over one tweet. The fine was later reduced to $35,000 and the ban was overturned on the condition that I undertake personal development courses; which as it turned out, is one of the best things I’ve ever done.

But in handing down the penalty, Smith told me, ‘It’s your profile that’s got you in this much trouble’. His rationale was that because what I did made the front page of the paper and led the news, a heavier penalty was warranted.

I did it; I don’t shy away from that. But for one tweet sent off the back of two years of pent-up frustration, I got one of the biggest fines in NRL history; because I was a high-profile player.

That’s what happened to Mitchell Pearce in 2016 when he copped the biggest player fine ever seen in rugby league: $125,000 ($50,000 suspended), plus an eight-game ban.

Paul Gallen is tackled by Mitchell Pearce during his time at the Roosters. (AAP)

It was a crazy time; there were people, including former players, calling for Mitch to be suspended for the whole season. One NRL adviser even called for a life ban.

As Smith said, it’s the player’s profile and how much media attention an incident creates. It was clear to me from the start that the NRL overreacted in Pearcey’s case.

As they’ve now admitted, the fine and the suspension were both excessive. That admission surprised me a bit; the NRL don’t usually admit when they’re wrong and I’m not sure how it helps now. For the record, Smith had resigned as chief executive by then and Todd Greenberg hadn’t yet been appointed; John Grant was overseeing things as ARL Commission chairman.

I was one of the first people to publicly stick up for Mitch, saying at the time: "I'm a close personal friend of Mitchell's, I like the kid a lot. My biggest thought at the moment is for Mitchell's well-being.

"He hasn't hurt anyone. His actions have only really hurt himself I believe.

"People make mistakes. We all make mistakes and unfortunately when it involves us guys, those mistakes generally appear to be bigger. The environment we live in today is an absolute fishbowl and people are willing to profit out of that and things can go wrong very quickly, as is what has happened in this case.”

Pearce's 2016 Australia Day scandal

It was far from the world’s biggest crime; it wasn’t even a crime, just a silly moment after drinking on Australia Day. A moment that someone decided to film, perhaps illegally, so that they could make a quick buck and tell their mates they got a footy player in trouble. Ordinary stuff from that person.

I remember when I first heard about the story. I thought I was going to see something pretty dramatic on television.

Mitch was intoxicated, he put himself in a silly situation with that dog … but settle down. He was hurting no one more than himself. It was one of those incidents where living with the shame and embarrassment was almost punishment enough.

I thought he might have deserved a small sanction; the incident should never have been filmed but because it was, it reflected badly on the game. Instead, we got a massive penalty that Mitch has said changed his life. We also saw the Roosters go from three consecutive minor premierships to finishing 15th; it wrecked their season before it had begun.

All over an incident behind closed doors on Australia Day that hurt no one. That should tell you how big an overreaction it was and you can put it down to the fact that the incident involved Mitchell Pearce.

Like with myself, some positives came from it. Mitch learnt from it and grew as a person. He’s doing great things now up in Newcastle. We should all be happy about that.

Mitchell Pearce in action for Newcastle. (AAP)

NRL WRONG TO BAN FOLAU

Another high-profile player making NRL-related headlines currently: Israel Folau.

I don’t agree with what Israel said or did recently in rugby. And for me, a key point was that he did exactly what his employer told him not to do. I thought that was arrogant on his part.

I don’t support the views that have gotten Israel into trouble; I want to make that very clear. But I also don’t agree with the ARL Commission coming out already and saying that Israel’s not welcome back in rugby league.

For me, sport is about forgiveness and redemption. People make mistakes in life all the time. It’s a given; we just try to move on and get better.

Israel is not a bad person and I don’t think there’s genuine malice in him. For the NRL to completely shut the door on him and say that there’s no place for him in our game … I think that’s at odds with rugby league’s message of inclusiveness. It directly excludes Israel for his religious beliefs.

Israel Folau. (AP)

It would be a case of the league setting strict contract conditions for Israel which make it clear that the NRL wants to promote inclusiveness. I don’t like that they’ve just shut the door on him. I don’t think it’s right.

And to be honest, it is a matter of principle, not about the NRL getting a good player back. Good players come and go, and it’s amazing how rugby league always manages to replace them.

Who would have ever thought that we’d have Andrew Johns, an Immortal, then another player of that calibre immediately afterwards in Johnathan Thurston? That we’d lose Greg Inglis and already have Latrell Mitchell?

Folau speaks in Sunday service

We’ve let blokes back into the NRL after they’ve committed some pretty serious crimes. We’ve offered them a second chance.

Israel might have done the wrong thing but he committed no crime. Shutting the door on him is the wrong thing to do.

To be honest, the discussion is probably all academic. I think it’s highly unlikely that Israel will try to come back to rugby league.

Israel Folau during his rugby league career. (AAP)

NO-FAULT RULE ALSO NO-WIN

For far more serious allegations than those involving Mitch and Israel, the NRL this season introduced the no-fault stand-down policy.

There are no winners with this new rule. I look at both sides, I understand both sides, and it’s hard for me to say exactly whether I do or don’t support the policy.

I understand how frustrated a stood-down player would be if they’re innocent. Sitting there unable to play would be torture for them.

But the NRL needs to protect the game when they’ve got people talking about potentially pulling out millions of dollars in sponsorship, should players accused of serious crimes take the field.

We had an awful pre-season with far too many ugly headlines. We were not just talking about blokes having a blue at a pub. The NRL had to do something.

Dylan Walker is yet to play this season after a no-fault stand-down. (AAP)

But then you’ve got Dylan Walker missing nine games for Manly before being found not guilty. The NRL will likely reinstate him this week.

Jack de Belin will likely also find out this week if his court challenge to the stand-down rule has been successful, and whether the policy will continue in its current form.

Had Walker been allowed to play while he was before court, the NRL would have been threatened with major sponsorship withdrawals. Now that he’s been found not guilty, the NRL is being asked if it was fair that he was stood down.

Again, it’s a no-win situation; but for the NRL, protecting the integrity of the game is their No.1 responsibility.

It’s a tough issue for the game and no surprise that it’s still being debated.