- Broncos fullback has been hit with a $3000 fine
The standard you walk past is the standard you accept, and the NRL has just condoned headbutts as minor infractions – but only as long as you’re a rugby league superstar.
Broncos sensation Reece Walsh will only get a fine of $3000 for his deliberate headbutt on Raiders forward Hudson Young during Sunday’s wild finals match.
It was bad enough that referee Ashley Klein didn’t send Walsh off for what he did, no doubt costing the Raiders the game. But referees act in real time and if the bunker didn’t have the courage to recommend a send-off, the presiding referee had his hands somewhat tied.
But the NRL match committee had time to ponder the right course of action and it’s going to hand down a fine – utterly meaningless to Walsh, who only wants to play in the preliminary final in two weeks’ time.
By not suspending him for a deliberate headbutt the NRL has put star power ahead of doing what’s right.
The league’s top brass prefer to cop criticism such as this column rather than lose the chance to let Walsh run riot against the winner of the Bulldogs vs Panthers clash.
Pictured: The moment Walsh headbutted Hudson Young during the Broncos’ win over Canberra on Sunday
Referee Ashley Klein sin-binned Walsh (pictured) instead of sending him off, but there was worse to come from the league’s officials on Monday morning
Walsh was allowed to return to the field to play a starring role in his team’s incredible come-from-behind victory – and will now be able to star in the preliminary final
What sort of message does that send to younger players? Children who look up to Walsh and want to be like him? The NRL has failed the test of decency with this callow call, proving that some players are more equal than others.
Does anyone seriously think your average NRL player would have only copped a fine for a deliberate headbutt?
If Walsh had been headbutted by Young, rather than the vile act occurring the other way around, I doubt Young would have been playing this coming weekend against the Sharks.
It’s a case of double standards.
Even if the NRL can point to past offences where the punishment for a like-for-like infraction received a similar penalty, that’s no justification.
Two wrongs don’t make a right.
Any deliberate headbutt should wipe a player out for at least one week if not longer. Sending a deterrent is how the game ends such unwanted acts of aggression.
Ratings and the attraction of Walsh playing outpointed upholding standards parents would like to see their children’s idols held to.
Walsh (pictured) is an idol to young fans, who have effectively been told it’s OK to headbutt opponents in the face
Fans predicted the NRL would not ban Walsh because he’s such a big star. Sadly, the league’s decision proves their conspiracy theories are correct
Walsh may well have been suspended if this happened mid-season, or perhaps even if the Broncos had lost the match.
But not now. Not at the expense of Walsh missing the game that the Broncos will play to decide whether they make it to the grand final.
It’s also a case of appeasing Queensland, a state desperate for another Broncos title. Wiping Walsh out would have put that at risk, too.
The NRL is under constant siege for bad behaviour by some of its players, both on and off the field.
The selectivity with which it comes down hard on some players and some teams but not others ruins the integrity of the game.
I’m not some anti-rugby league critic. I watch almost every game every weekend.
On the field, Walsh is a sensation not to be missed. Watching him perform his magic is mesmerising. But there is a line and headbutting an opponent sails right over it.
A suspension was the only acceptable outcome.
Just watch as the powers that be bend over themselves to justify their weakness. Trawling through past examples of offences to provide officials with a veneer of credibility for their gutless response to Sunday’s game.
None of it passes the pub test. Money talks and Walsh is a money maker for the NRL.
They want him on the field, almost no matter what. They should be ashamed.
