{"id":389161,"date":"2024-04-29T20:05:14","date_gmt":"2024-04-29T20:05:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=389161"},"modified":"2024-04-29T22:05:10","modified_gmt":"2024-04-29T22:05:10","slug":"nrl-treading-dangerous-path-as-trindall-penalty-weighed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=389161","title":{"rendered":"NRL treading dangerous path as Trindall penalty weighed"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NRL<\/a> is weighing up a suitable punishment to be imposed on Cronulla<\/a> playmaker Braydon Trindall, but it's impossible to find a penalty that's consistent with some of the previous off-field indiscretions committed by players in the game.<\/p>\n

There is talk of a four or five week suspension which most would agree is fair, however when you compare that to the eight week ban imposed earlier this year on Spencer Leniu – who directed a racial slur at Ezra Mam<\/a> – it raises the question; what's worse?<\/p>\n

There is absolutely no excuse for Leniu using the term "monkey" in the heat of the moment to describe another player on a football field, but Trindall has allegedly broken three laws by driving a car with an expired licence while under the influence of alcohol and an illicit substance<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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I've covered stories in the past on 2GB where other drivers in the same condition have either hit and killed people on the roads or left them with serious injuries. It starts to make you question whether four or five weeks is an adequate penalty.<\/p>\n

\"Cronulla<\/p>\n

The integrity unit has become judge, jury and executioner when it comes to these decisions before they are ratified by the NRL chief executive, which at the moment is Andrew Abdo.<\/p>\n

Previous CEOs have ruled with an iron fist, including Todd Greenberg who imposed an eight week suspension and a $125,000 fine on Mitchell Pearce in 2016 for simulating a sex act with a dog at a boozy house party on Australia Day.<\/p>\n

Greenberg has since conceded Pearce's penalty was "overcooked"<\/a> and the league got it "wrong" when it slapped the Roosters playmaker with one of the most severe and significant penalties in the game's history.<\/p>\n

Sadly, we now compare every punishment to the one imposed on Pearce.<\/p>\n

Some of the more recent off-field indiscretions involve Dylan Brown, who was convicted of sexually touching a woman<\/a> on a dancefloor at a popular Sydney bar on June 3, 2023.<\/p>\n

The Parramatta playmaker was handed a seven week suspension and a $20,000 fine<\/a>. I was critical of the league allowing him to make his return to the game in the weeks after the "women in league" round.<\/p>\n

Watch the 2024 NRL premiership live and free on Nine and<\/strong><\/em> 9Now<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Emotional<\/p>\n

I said at the time – while filling in for Ben Fordham on the breakfast show – "how can we allow this bloke to waltz back into rugby league this year, let alone after the women in league round, when he's been convicted of sexually touching a stranger on the dancefloor? How can the NRL approve it when at the same time the league supports organisations like White Ribbon which is aimed at stopping violence against women?"<\/p>\n

I still maintain Brown should have been rubbed out for the remainder of the season.<\/p>\n

Reece Walsh was arrested in Surfers Paradise in September 2021 after disobeying a move-on order from police. The 19-year-old was searched and found in possession of a small amount of cocaine. The fullback was fined $5000 and suspended for two games by the NRL.<\/p>\n

Talatau 'Junior' Amone was found guilty in court for his role in a rooftop hammer attack on a Wollongong tradie<\/a> in December 2022. The judge sentenced him to a two-year intensive corrections order and 300 hours of community service. The NRL and St George Illawarra terminated his contract.<\/p>\n

NRLW player Caitlin Moran landed herself in hot water for posting a photo of the Queen after the monarch's death in which she described her as a "dumb dog"<\/a>. Abdo handed down a one-week suspension which equates to a fifth of the season.<\/p>\n

Are you starting to understand the discrepancies and the lack of consistency when it comes to the punishments imposed by the NRL?<\/p>\n

The more serious criminal charges are dealt with under the no-fault stand-down policy, which was introduced by former ARL Commission chairman Peter Beattie and then-CEO Greenberg, who made clear that players would be stood down if they are charged with a serious criminal offence.<\/p>\n

\"Amone<\/p>\n

The criminal offences that apply to the policy are those with a maximum jail term of 11 years or more. We've seen recent examples of it being used amid the sexual assault case against Jack de Belin – which resulted in hung juries in two court cases – and his St George Illawarra teammate Amone who was charged with assault.<\/p>\n

The policy put in place is adequate when ruling on whether a player should be allowed to continue in the game while a criminal case hangs over their head, but what happens once the case has been determined by the courts?<\/p>\n

What will the NRL do with Braydon Trindall after his case is heard in court on May 17?<\/p>\n

It begs the question; is the NRL imposing penalties that fit the crime or punishments which meet the outrage from the community?<\/p>\n

Let me know your thoughts by sending through an email to the WWOS radio show on 2GB by<\/strong><\/em> clicking on this link<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Wide World of Sports Radio is heard from 6pm AEDT on 2GB 873am with Mark Levy and co-hosts Brad Fittler (Monday), Paul Gallen (Tuesday) and Ken Sutcliffe (Friday).<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The NRL is weighing up a suitable punishment to be imposed on Cronulla playmaker Braydon Trindall, but it's impossible to find a penalty that's consistent […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":389163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/389161"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=389161"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/389161\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":389167,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/389161\/revisions\/389167"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/389163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=389161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=389161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=389161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}