Video refs to explain decision

Video referee Steve Clark. Source: Gregg Porteous / News Limited

THE NRL will revolutionise rugby league forever on Friday with under-pressure video referees to publicly explain their decisions to millions of Channel Nine viewers.

The Daily Telegraph can exclusively reveal that video refs will be called upon to explain each contentious decision to television fans for the next two NRL rounds and then throughout the finals series. 

After a decision is reached, Nine viewers will then hear audio from the video refs revealing why the decision was made and which rules were employed. 

Play will not be stopped, the video ref's explanation running for between five to ten seconds.

If the system is successful over the final two rounds, the NRL will look to play the video ref's audio through the public address system at every NRL ground for fans attending games. 

Channel Nine and Fox Sports, the game's two broadcasters, have approved the plan.

Nine and Fox Sports commentators will discuss the controversial try, as usual, before then handing over to the video referee.

The senior of the two video referees will make the announcement.

"We are looking at ways of expanding the communication process around video referee decisions," said NRL head of football Todd Greenberg. 

"We hope to achieve a greater level of transparency for the fans in relation to decisions made by the video referee.

"It's important to point out that it won't mean that everyone will agree with decisions that are made, but they may at least understand the basis for the decision that was made. 

"This will be in place for all matches in round 25 and if it's well received, we will consider other opportunities to also feed audio into our stadiums for the members and fans during the finals series. 

"It's important rugby league continues to be innovative and progressive and this continues with our overarching vision to be regarded as a sport that is both entertaining and engaging at all levels." 

Video referees have been under fire over the past two years.

They were involved in a number of blunders last season, culminating in the sacking of NRL referee co-coaches Bill Harrigan and Stuart Raper. 

Their decisions may not improve but at least the public will be aware of the reasons behind each verdict.

Friday's game at Allianz Stadium between Wests Tigers and South Sydney will be the first time viewers hear from the video referee. 

"It sounds like a great innovation," said NSW State of Origin coach Laurie Daley.

"The fans have always wanted to know why decisions are made from the video referee's box and now they will.

"It is all about the game being transparent.

"It will be great the viewers – they will be involved in the game and the video ref's will probably be more understood too."

An on-line Daily Telegraph poll, which attracted more than 10,000 respondents,- actually gave the NRL video referees some support. 

Asked what was worse - the NRL video referee or cricket's DRS – only 20 percent voted for the rugby league version.

Cricket's DRS attracted nearly 36 percent of the vote.

Fans have not exactly given new Referee's Coach Daniel Anderson a strong endorsement.

Nearly 38 percent admitted the standard of refereeing had gone down since Anderson took over this year.

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Brooks could have saved Benji

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BENJI Marshall should have stayed with the West Tigers.

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He has made a mistake moving to rugby union and that became clear to me watching the Tigers beat the Dragons at the SCG last Saturday. 

The Tigers, at long last, have found a halfback who will fill the huge hole that Scotty Prince left when he went to the Gold Coast all those years ago. 

Last Saturday, young Luke Brooks controlled the game, took responsibility for the result and simply let Benji be Benji.

It was Marshall's best game for 18 months.

I've always been a Benji Marshall fan and have monitored his career closely.

I was lucky enough in 2005 to be asked by then Tigers coach Tim Sheens to come on board as a kicking coach in the weeks leading up to the grand final and what a pleasure it was to watch this young exciting team at close range. 

They played with so much confidence.

Benji was the star, he had a charisma about him, a healthy arrogance and his halfback was the much respected Prince.

In those few weeks I learnt a lot about both men.

Benji was as difficult to tie down at training as he was during a game. 

You'd set up a kicking drill, Benji would involve himself for a few minutes and then he'd be off down the other end of the field joking with the forwards, or practising his footwork or one of his many tricks or flicks. 

Prince was much more stable and focused. 

He would practice his kicks over and over. 

Kicks from 10m out, putting the ball in the in-goal, kicks from 20m, 30m out and long kicks, landing the ball in the corner of the field. 

Benji was the maverick. Prince was the general.

In that 2005 grand final win, the highlight reel moment will always be Benji's miraculous flick pass for Pat Richards to score ... unforgettable. 

What's much easier to forget is the man who constantly kicked with quality, keeping balls in the opposition in-goals, long kicks into space. 

The man who put his forwards one on one with defenders and who talked his team around the park and to victory ... Scott Prince. 

When Prince left 12 months later to join the Gold Coast, Tim Sheens turned the team over to Benji Marshall, it was time for Benji to go from maverick to general. 

He has never quite been able to do it. 

Sheens put in a number of halfbacks over the years, but none were able to do what Prince could do and that was take responsibility of the team, take responsibility for the result and let Benji be Benji. 

So Sheens even threw Benji the halfback jersey. 

He never looked completely comfortable.

The transition from being a 'flair' player to team leader is one that very few can make.

For Benji to go from being a player who prowled around the field picking and choosing moments to impose his brilliance, to being a player who talked the team into position, set up plays for others and controls what happens on last tackles, is a monumental shift in mindset, bigger than people think. 

When Brad Fittler played alongside Greg Alexander at Penrith, Alexander took responsibility for the team while Fittler side-stepped his way through defences with carefree abandon. 

Freddy would play with a rare confidence and a youthful smile.

Fittler's move to the Roosters in 1996 was successful but none-the-less very difficult. 

Freddy was now team general and the winning and losing sat on his shoulders. 

Playing against Fittler I saw how that weighed on him. 

At times he struggled for form, the burden too much.

It took him a long time to really make that transition.

When the Roosters finally won the grand final in 2002, Freddy talked about the enormous weight being lifted off his shoulders.

In the past two seasons that same weight has eroded Benji's confidence.

Benji has not become a bad player, he is simply unable to be the player the Tigers needed him to be.

Last week, Luke Brooks took the team from Benji and the weight was lifted. 

The more confident Brooks got, the more the old Benji returned. 

Brooks the general and Benji the maverick.

What a shame a salary cap technicality won't allow Luke Brooks to take his place alongside Marshall on Friday night.

And what a shame Benji won't be around next year to play alongside a young man who was about to allow him to return to peak powers.

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Penrith paid for Earl's injections

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THE Penrith Panthers have admitted paying $1160 for Sandor Earl to be injected with supplements in 2011 as the NRL's drugs-in-sport investigation claimed its first major scalp.

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But Panthers Group boss Warren Wilson was on Thursday night adamant the club was unaware Earl's medical bills related to banned peptide CJC-1295 and said the NRL star had gone off-site without Penrith's consent.

In a watershed day that could blow the Australian Anti-Doping Authority's seven-month investigation into rugby league wide open, the NRL hit Earl with a provisional suspension relating to the use and trafficking of CJC-1295.

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News Corp can reveal that a Sydney doctor with a direct link to sports scientist Stephen Dank injected Earl 12 times during 2011 and billed the Penrith Panthers Group $1160.

Penrith Panthers Group boss Wilson confirmed Earl visited doctor Ijaz Khan's Injury Care clinic in Cabramatta after suffering a shoulder injury when contracted to the Panthers in 2011.

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"When we first heard about it (in June), we looked for invoices under the doctor's name but couldn't find any," Wilson said.

"Then we Googled his name and we found the clinic (Injury Care). We found (12) invoices from that clinic for treatment to Sandor Earl, totalling around $1,000.

"They weren't paid until January 2012 because the club wasn't in the best financial shape at that time.

"They were also sent to Panthers Group and not the football club. When we found them we forwarded them to the NRL's Integrity Unit to investigate.

"We left it in the hands of the NRL. We've since conducted a review of our procedures, because there was a player going off-site for treatment without any authorisation from the club.

"That's a problem, not just for Penrith, that you can't control players once they're away from your care.

"We've completely changed our procedures as a result and no one is to get any treatment - or pay any invoices - unless it's authorised by the doctor.

"This player has done something individually wrong and if he's found guilty of trafficking then I hope they throw the book at him."

Panthers general manager Phil Gould confirmed to News Corp in June that the club had referred the Earl issue to the NRL's integrity unit.

Dr Khan's Cabramatta Injury Care Clinic has previously featured in relation to Dank and the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Agency's drugs-in-sport investigation, with the Cronulla Sharks billed by the clinic for blood tests at the start of 2011.

At the time the blood tests were conducted, Dank was in the process of implementing the supplements program that has landed the Sharks in the crosshairs of the ongoing  ASADA investigation.

Crucially, CJC-1295 is one of the peptides the Sharks stand accused of using, according to the independent report compiled by Dr Tricia Kavanagh and detailed by News Corp in May.

Kavanagh's report led to coach Shane Flanagan being stood down for a fortnight and four staff members being sacked by the club's previous board, before the new board headed by Damian Keogh opted to overthrow the decisions.

Trainer Mark Noakes, who has since been reinstated against the NRL's advice, provided a statement naming CJC-1295 and GHRP-6 as the peptides that the Sharks allegedly used.

So given Earl has been issued with an infraction notice for the use of CJC-1295, Cronulla's place in the finals remains a bone of contention among rival NRL clubs.

Dank has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing or giving athletes banned substances.

Earl joined the Panthers at the start of 2011 and spent the majority of his tenure injured or playing NSW Cup for Windsor Wolves.

He then switched clubs to the Canberra Raiders midway through last year and went on to star in the 2012 finals.

The winger, renowned for his combination with Blake Ferguson, started this season strongly before being dropped to NSW Cup and then recently re-emerged in the NRL.

In May, Earl announced he would be leaving the NRL at the end of this season to play French rugby for second division club Pau on a one-year contract worth $220,000.

That contract is now up in the air given that the World Anti-Doping Agency's code can also be applied in European rugby.

Sandor Earl promo Source: Supplied

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Ryan vows to tone down SBW jibes

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BEAU Ryan has offered to tone down his impersonations of Sonny Bill Williams if the Roosters superstar is genuinely offended by his Footy Show antics.

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The Sharks winger regularly pokes fun at the champion forward on his light-hearted SBW TV segment where he also takes off Benji Marshall, Sam Burgess and Kevin Rudd. 

Ryan says he will stop the moment Sonny Bill asks him too.

SBW went looking for Ryan in last Monday night's game at Shark Park, collecting him with a shoulder charge.

Ryan went off suffering from concussion after another big hit later in the game. 

"I spoke to him after the game," Ryan said. 

"It's all fun and he was alright. 

"Obviously they were filthy because they lost. I just shook his hand and said hope your family is well, stuff like that. 

"He just said to be careful with a few of the things I said. The day he taps me on the shoulder and says don't do it, I'll stop. 

"I guess it's lucky for me the shoulder charge is banned because he would have come looking for me more often.

"I'll probably ease up. He's a good guy. I respect him and think he's the best player in the game.

"Look, if he pulled me aside and said stop it, I would."

TOP EIGHT FINALS RACE EXPLAINED 

Footy Show executive producer Glenn Pallister says he was surprised by the reaction on Monday night.

"Everyone knows Beau hasn't got a vindictive bone in his body," he said. 

"He's a very respectful man who laughs with people, not at them. 

"He would never purposely be disrespectful to someone of Sonny Bill's stature." 

Like Ryan, Sonny Bill is on the Channel Nine payroll to make regular appearances as part of a third-party deal with the Roosters. 

Nine supremo David Gyngell was involved in the contract negotiations with Nick Politis to get SBW back to the NRL this year.

Ryan has the most popular segment on the Footy Show and enjoys a cult following from women and children.

"I guess it puts a bit of pressure on myself but I don't mind that," he said. 

"It's all light-hearted and people enjoy it. 

"I don't want to offend anyone. I'm just trying to make people laugh. As long as no-one gets hurt. I don't think I'm saying anything too derogatory.

"I do it to Benji, Sam Burgess and Sonny. I know Sammy Burgess didn't mind it and all the Souths boys loved it. 

"Maybe I'll keep it light hearted with the blokes I know best like Benji, Robbie Farah and Gal.

"They're easy enough targets."

Ryan knew before Monday night's game Sonny Bill would come looking for him and he joked about it with Sharks team mates in the build-up. 

"I told Gal I was going to run straight at him and he said 'good luck,'" Ryan said.

"Maybe I do have a target on my head.

"I guess my sort of stuff hasn't been done before.

"Matty Johns in his last year did a bit of this stuff and Wendell did too. 

"As long as people understand ... I respect all my opponents ... and we're just trying to have a bit of fun." 

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NRL considers suspending Fergo

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THE NRL integrity unit will consider suspending tormented Blues Origin star Blake Ferguson after yet another serious off-field incident came to light on Thursday.

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And even his minder, boxer Anthony Mundine, is running out of patience with the wayward star.

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In another eventful day for the NRL's most troubled footballer, it was revealed Ferguson had been caught speeding and driving a car while his license is suspended. 

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He lost his ACT license for demerit points recently then last Saturday was again pulled over by Goulburn Highway Patrol officers for travelling at 128kph in a 110kph area. 

He was issued with a Field Court Attendance notice to attend Moss Vale Local Court on October 21.

Sources have confirmed he passed a breathalyser test and there was no suggestion he had been drinking.

"He was very co-operative and the police had no issues with his demeanour," said senior sergeant Allan McCulloch, the head of Goulburn Highway patrol. 

Ferguson's minder, boxer Anthony Mundine, told The daily Telegraph he was unaware of the driving offences.

"He hasn't mentioned anything to me," Mundine said.

"I have spoken to Blake about his activities last weekend. He needs to get himself sorted.

"I'm trying very, very hard with him."

The NRL integrity unit will call for a report on Ferguson's latest incident next week.

He is also to appear in Waverley court next week on indecent assault charges from a Cronulla nightclub. He has pleaded not guilty. 

And NRL source said senior officials were closely monitoring the situation. 

It is highly unlikely the NRL will register a new contract with another club until his matters have been dealt with in court. 

"The integrity unit looks at all incidents that involve the police," a spokesman said.

Ferguson's contract was deregistered for four weeks earlier this year over the indecent assault charges.

Ferguson, 23, has had a string of indiscretions this year, mostly alcohol-fuelled.

Having been kicked out of a music festival last December during the off-season, he was in March fined $10,000 over an infamous rooftop drinking session with Josh Dugan, who was subsequently sacked from Canberra. 

Ferguson was also charged on June 18 over the alleged indecent assault of a woman in a Cronulla nightclub, costing him his NSW jersey for the second State of Origin game. 

He has pleaded not guilty in court, with the matter adjourned until September 3. 

Last weekend he invoked the rage of teammates and fans by coming to Sydney to hang out with Todd Carney rather than attending a Canberra game against Manly, which the Raiders lost, putting their finals hopes in grave danger. 

Ferguson and Carney were photographed by a fan at the Clovelly Hotel the night before the game. 

Post-match, caretaker coach Andrew Dunemann claimed Ferguson was fit to play, which the star denied, saying he had an ongoing hip flexor problem. 

Ferguson was not selected this week and has gone AWOL from the Raiders. 

He has almost certainly played his last game for the club and is desperate to return to Sydney. 

His uncle Anthony Mundine has been acting as his mentor and manager to try to keep his promising career on track.

Ferguson recently spoke about his hopes of turning his life around. 

"I owe to grassroots football because I know a lot of these kids idolise me," he said. 

"I have been setting a bad example but I want to change that. I can't keep playing up and giving them the wrong impression."

A meeting with superstar Sonny Bill Williams over dinner at an Eastern Suburbs restaurant recently gave him new hope.

"I've met Sonny Bill him a few times," he said.

"You go back to when he was a young guy in football before he left overseas.

"He was a bit of a problem child too. I look at him and think, if he can do it, I can do it.

"It's going to take a lot of commitment and I'm willing to do that. I can't just say that, I've got to do it."

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How text messages exposed Sandor

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SANDOR Earl threw himself at the mercy of ASADA after text messages from several mobile phones framed him for a network that distributed peptides and other prescription drugs.

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Almost seven months since the "Blackest Day in Sport" press conference, the Canberra Raiders winger became the first footballer to be handed an infraction notice after being charged with trafficking and using performance-enhancing substances. 

Earl faces a ban of four years to life, but is striving to have the penalty reduced to 12 months after electing to stand down immediately and provide ASADA with extensive information about his activities. 

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In a flash press conference announced Thursday afternoon to avoid leaks, NRL boss Dave Smith declared that Earl had admitted in an interview with ASADA on Tuesday to using and trafficking banned peptide CJC-1295.

"Admissions were made regarding the use and trafficking of peptide CJC-1295," Smith said. 

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News Corp can reveal ASADA's file against Earl does not implicate any other NRL players or athletes bound by the WADA code.

His lawyer Tim Unsworth said the trafficking charges against Earl could still be contested. 

That charge is two-fold and begins with controversial sports scientist, Steve Dank, the investigation's central figure. 

Earl first met Dank while playing for the Penrith Panthers in early 2011, when the sports scientist was assisting the club with its GPS and Hypoxi programs.

But it wasn't until Earl had a double shoulder reconstruction midway through that season that the pair began to discuss a different form of treatment.

In August 2011, Dank referred Earl to a clinic in Cabramatta run by Dr Ijaz Khan to administer injections to help quicken his recovery.

News corp understands the injections were banned peptide CJC-1295. 

Mr Unsworth claimed Earl had been assured the substance was WADA-approved.

"Sandor was under the instruction of a medical practitioner," Unsworth said. 

Earl received 12 rounds of injections over a two-month period, during which time he transported a prohibited substance between Dank's office in Mascot and Dr Khan's clinic in Cabramatta.

"Sandor basically picked up something from Dank and took it to Dr Khan," Mr Unsworth said. 

"It was entirely for his own use." 

ASADA believe this trip constituted one of the elements of the trafficking charges against Earl. 

But the anti-doping watchdog also possessed text messages from Dank's phone and others that implicated Earl in further trafficking activity. 

The text messages suggested that Earl was the "middle man" in several transactions that do not involve other NRL players or athletes bound by the WADA code. 

It's understood those transactions involved prescription drugs, as well as WADA-banned substances, and took place for a period of time after Earl's initial consultations with Dank and the Cabramatta clinic. 

Mr Unsworth said there was no evidence suggesting Earl had distributed or sold the drugs, but the wide nature of the NRL's Anti-Doping Policy definition of "trafficking" meant the charge could still be laid. 

Earl was initially interviewed by ASADA on August 4 over allegations he had merely used banned peptides. 

The trafficking accusations were first raised during that interview, but Mr Unsworth objected because the more serious claim was not raised in Earl's initial interview notice. 

He was issued with a second interview notice and re-interviewed the following day. Earl was confronted with the text messages and other evidence of trafficking during that meeting.

Struggling emotionally all season, he elected to stand down immediately in the hope of returning to action as soon as possible. 

Should Earl be successful in obtaining the "substantial assistance" defence and only receive a one-year ban, he will be eligible to return on August 28, 2014.

He did not expect the development to be made public on Thursday, but the NRL wanted to act immediately to avoid the media from breaking the development first. 

As NRL boss Dave Smith's announcement stunned the sporting landscape, the player was meeting Raiders officials and declined to comment.  

Dank has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing with regard to the supplements programs. Dr Khan declined to comment.

Sandor Earl promo Source: Supplied

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