The NRL, misbehaving players and code destroying headlines go together like peanut butter and jelly. If there is something the NRL have tried to shake but never will, it is the reputation that some players carry with them.
You know what I’m speaking about. Just ask the weird people who don’t follow rugby league about their thoughts on rugby league players: ‘Druggies, alcoholics, grubs, women abusers etc.’, sounds more like a casting call for a Scarface remake rather than a NRL roster.
So, after what seems like the longest off-season in NRL history, another player has been in the headlines for the wrong reason. Ben Barba has been sacked by his new club, the North Queensland Cowboys without a game to his name, after allegedly caught on CCTV being violated to his Partner, the mother of his 4 daughters. I commend the Cowboys and NRL's swift action of sacking Ben Barba after viewing the footage.
After all, Barba was on his third strike already and was on an extremely tight ship. Is it one thing to get in a fight with one of your teammates, is it another thing to test positive to cocaine twice but to physically assault a woman in such a public place like a Casino is completely unforgivable. Ben Barba now joins a long list of NRL players whose reputation overtook their ability to preform on the field.
This troubled talent must hold the record for most NRL clubs at eight. Bulldogs, Cowboys, Broncos, Rooster, Storm and Tigers all gave him a chance but couldn’t make it work.
Taumata was sacked from several clubs including Penrith where he was found guilty of stealing a prescription pad from the Panthers club doctor. He was unable to settle at any club after brief stints and now at 29 his career is well but over.
What can you say about Todd Carney that hasn’t been said before. A one-time Daly M medallist and NSW and Australia representative, Carney could mix it with the best of his day. However, his troubled past always found a way to catch up to him.
After several alcohol fuelled controversies and a second and third chance given by the Roosters and Sharks respectively, it all came crashing down when he was photographed in that ‘bubbler incident.’ Ask the people who know Todd and he is the nicest guy when he is off the drink. There was some brief hope that he would sign with the Cowboys last year but that came to nothing after he choose family over football. Hopefully we see him in the NRL one last time to redeem himself.
The former NSW and Australian representative quickly fled Australia after was caught in compromising position with dog during Mad Monday in 2010. The controversy was too much to bare for the centre and asked for his immediate release from the Raiders and has been hiding in Northern England purgatory ever since.
The only current NRL player on this list but Josh Dugan’s reputation often overshadows his on-field efforts. There must be something in the water down the federal highway as past Raiders players are becoming a frequent mention. His rap sheet peaked when he posted that now infamous pineapple cruiser photo to Instagram accompanied by a middle finger to his coach.
Then Dugan, along with Blake Ferguson were black listed from the current NSW team after breaking team protocol and sneaking off to have a beer away from their origin teammates. He is on thin ice now and if another scandal comes up it would be hard to imagine if a club would rescue him.
Barba has been in the headlines this week for all the wrong reasons. His fairy tale NRL return was cut short after the former Dally M Medallist was banned by the league for assaulting his girlfriend at a Townsville casino on Australia Day.
It came three years after the star fullback tested positive for cocaine and was indefinitely banned. After finally working his back through a dominant Man of Steele campaign in the Super League and receiving a lifeline from the North Queensland Cowboys, Barba really blew it this time. Sometimes, a player can have all the talent in the world but not the commitment to the cause.