All the latest National Rugby League News from all 16 NRL clubs.
The New Zealand Warriors have called a press conference for Wednesday where it is expected that they will announce that Ivan Cleary will leave the club at the end of the 2011 season and take up the vacant coaching role at the Penrith Panthers next year. When people asked me who I wanted to coach…
Phil Gould was named the Penrith Panthers “general manager” with much fanfare a number of weeks ago. Soon after his appointment, Matthew Elliott was told he would no be the clubs coach beyond this season and the clubs CEO decided to “retire”. Then things went quiet… That all changed yesterday when Gould must have decided…
There is a lot of talk today about the Cronulla Sharks, with some wanting them axed from the competition. The first team I ever remember supporting was the Cronulla Sharks. My first favorite player was a young bloke they called “ET”. My first jersey, as a four year old, was a little Sharks jersey. I’m…
The Penrith Panthers needed someone who knew Rugby League. They needed someone that knew the club needed rebuilt at all levels. They needed a guiding hand, and yet, they also needed someone who wasn’t worried about results at first, they just needed to re-establish the club. To make things right again. It doesn’t matter what…
How many halfbacks in the NRL right now can take the game by the scruff of the neck and drag his team kicking and screaming to victory? Chris Sandow has just signed a $550,000 a year deal to play for the Parramatta Eels, and good luck to the young bloke. Sandow is someone that plays…
Optimism is the most important emotion for a sporting fan. Without it, supporting a team is a soul destroying process. You can have optimism no matter where you sit on the ladder. The team in first place give their fans hope that they can go on and win the title. The team at the bottom…
Today has been a glorious day in the history of Penrith Rugby League club, for today, we have finally, officially, got rid of Matthew Elliott as coach of the Penrith Panthers. Elliott was told on Tuesday morning that he would not have his contract renewed at the end of the year. Not long after, the…
How many chances should you give a person? Nothing in life is ever black and white. As much as we wish we could, you can’t put the behavior of people into nice, neat little boxes. Everything is a degree of something, and therefore, when it comes to giving someone another chance, everything comes into consideration….
I always felt as though Wayne Bennett left the Brisbane Broncos is a fairly average position. Basically when he left, the club needed to completely rebuild itself. It’s highest paid player was getting on and would never be around once the youngsters kicked on. Thats not Bennett’s fault, that’s just how Rugby League works. The…
South Sydney hooker Issac Luke had a bit of a situation on his hands recently. For what ever reason, he had a falling out with his player agent, and that meant that he had to put his upcoming contract negotiations on hold for quite some time. Luke is the current New Zealand test hooker, he…
I’m not going to talk about how good of a player Darren Lockyer was. If you have eyes in your head, you could see what he did. You don’t need me to talk about how good he was! Last season there was a lot of talk that the Brisbane Broncos wanted to groom Lockyer to…
In three years time Jamal Idris will be 23 years old. That is a year younger than Greg Inglis is right now. He will be playing in a Bulldogs side that will have been together for a number of years and grown as a premiership force as a result. He will have earned a number…
I wasn’t going to write this. This web site has always been one that a general fan of the game can come to a feel like they will get a taste of all the flavors our game has to offer. I might be a Panthers fan, but you don’t come to this site and get…
If you wanted to see why the Melbourne Storm are the best Rugby League club in the world, you just had to be watching the television on Saturday afternoon. It started with their Under 20’s team. The Melbourne Storm is the team to play for if you are a youngster looking to make a name…
The start of a new Rugby League season brings expectations. Everyone starts with the same number of wins, the same number of losses, no baggage and for the most part, injury free. The first few weeks of a season don’t make or break a campaign, but they are telling. You can see who has come…
If you head down to my local McDonald’s with ten of your mates, find a Kiwi bloke and start racially abusing him, you better expect to get punched in the face. Do me a favour though… If that is how you get your kicks, and you do end up being punched in the mouth while…
How could I describe the soul crushing exercise that is following a club coached by Matthew Elliott? Let me put it this way… I would quite happily watch Penrith get off to a win less start to the season, getting thrashed in every game, having no chance of making the finals and losing players to…
I was just like you ya know. Knock me down with a feather, Todd Carney was caught drink driving? Really? THAT Todd Carney? Todd Carney, yes that one, blew a Blood Alcohol reading of 0.05. That is the very limit of what you can have with a full license, but Carney only has a provisional…
In Newcastle, its not about what you know, its about who you know. The Newcastle Knights have been run for a very long time on the basis of just keeping everyone happy. Forget professionalism, forget winning, forget accountability….none of that matters. Just as long as everyone iust having a good time and they can all…
If you read this web site on a regular basis, you know what I think about the state of the Newcastle Knights. They are a glorified pub team. The place is run for the enjoyment of the players and who cares about things like professionalism or accountability. In steps Nathan Tinkler, who is very rich,…
Remember last week when I said everyone in Brisbane was going batshit crazy? Well it seems the fun hasn’t stopped yet! Ivan Henjak was sensationally fired last night a few weeks out from the kickoff to the 2011 season. He will be replaced by assistant coach Anthony Griffin, who has only been given a deal…
Reports today in the Sydney Morning Herald and Daily Telegraph have linked a number of high profile managers with the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal. It has been alleged that managers signed off on two different documents, an official NRL contract, and a second contract that gave their clients, the players, the added extras that…
Yesterday the Gold Coast Titans gave the ultimate show of support to their coach John Cartwright. You can not fault the job he has done since the Titans entered the NRL a few years ago. They were competitive in their first season and over the last two years they have proven to be one of…
If your city was flooded for a week, you’d probably go a little bat shit crazy too. Thats the only way I can rationalize what has been happening in the Brisbane Rugby League scene recently with all sorts of things happening that make no sense at all. The randomness, the bitter feuds, the weird stories,…
He had only just arrived back in Australia after being delayed by “Visa Problems” but it didn’t take long for Brian Carney to throw in the towel and retire from Rugby League all together. Carney cited a loss of passion for his sudden retirement and to his credit he said he didn’t want to just…
I remember talking to a former Super League club coach a number of years ago and he said to me that during the off season, you’d be amazing at home much weight some players can pack on. In fact, even during the course of a couple of weeks on the sidelines through injury, a player…
I am a big supporter of the salary cap because quite simply, when the salary cap is working, every supporter can go into any given season knowing their team could be winning the Grand Final in 8 months time. The salary cap has two basic functions in Rugby League. The first function is to limit…
I’ve written many times before about the shambles that is the Newcastle Knights, club whom it seems only exists for the enjoyment of the playing roster. We’ve seen in the past player revolts because certain players have not been retained. Its amazing to think that only a few years ago the playing roster went berserk…
This is what it all comes down to… The Melbourne Storm, who still have Greg Inglis under contract, are happy to release him from his contract to play for another NRL club because it will help them with their salary cap issues. The thing is, they want him to pay a legal bill the club…
Its official, Joel Monaghan has apologized for the picture taken of him performing a sex act with a dog. He will be sacked by the Canberra Raiders some time over the next few days. There isn’t really much more that can be said about this whole thing. I mean, obviously pissed or not, Joel Monaghan…