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Small-time NRL clubs fake injury list

adamkungl

Immortal
Messages
42,955
A dishonour roll for small-minded, loser-attitude NRL clubs and coaches who are they don't want their players in rep football so they can preserve their chance of scraping 8th position and getting flogged in a week 1 final.
One of the most impressive features is always the number of current and former rep coaches who don't let their players play rep footy, some even complaining they don't have enough rep players.

2019 International Weekend

Canberra Raiders - Ricky Stuart

Jordan Rapana - New Zealand
Joe Tapine - New Zealand
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad - Cook Islands

NZ Warriors - Stephen Kearney
Tohu Harris - New Zealand
Kodi Nikorima - New Zealand

Parramatta Eels - Brad Arthur
Mitch Moses - Lebanon
Michael Jennings - Tonga

Penrith Panthers - Ivan Cleary
Josh Mansour - Lebanon

Wests Tigers - Michael Maguire

Alex Twal - Lebanon

South Sydney Rabbitohs - Wayne Bennett

Adam Doueihi - Lebanon

Newcastle Knights - Nathan Brown

Mitchell Pearce - NSW

Who am I missing? Or are there some legitimate injuries in this bunch.
 
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Burns

First Grade
Messages
6,037
Were the Lebanon players injured or just not bothered? Haven’t seen any official word on Mitchell Moses, and he is the player that has been used in all the promotional material.

I thought Sione Mata’utai (Newcastle)would have played for Samoa.
 

League Unlimited News

Administrator
Staff member
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7,623
Moeaki Fotuaika (Titans) has withdrawn from the Tonga squad.

Edrick Lee (Knights) has been withdrawn from Queensland's Origin side due to a quad strain.
 

Matua

Bench
Messages
4,528
I'd suggest that any Origin ones are genuine injuries. Origin rules the game there's no way a club stops a player from playing in mate against mate, maaaaate.
 

The Great Dane

First Grade
Messages
7,723
Canberra Raiders - Ricky Stuart
Jordan Rapana - New Zealand
Joe Tapine - New Zealand
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad - Cook Islands

I can't speak for the other clubs and players, but to be fair all three of those guys are playing busted and in a perfect world wouldn't be playing in the NRL let alone representative games, but the club is getting to the point with injuries that they'll have to ask for cap dispensation to field a team. There was a point a couple of weeks ago when the club had roughly $4.5 million dollars of the cap sitting on the sidelines injured.

I can also assure you that if there was a role reversal and it was Cotric coming back from an injury early, like those guys are, and he had been announced to play for the Blues in game two, that he'd be sitting it out just like they are, it's just the position that the club is in at the moment.

So yeah in at least the Raiders case it's not what you are making it out to be.
 

Matua

Bench
Messages
4,528
if there was a role reversal and it was Cotric coming back from an injury early, like those guys are, and he had been announced to play for the Blues in game two, that he'd be sitting it out just like they are
I'd likely call bollocks on that. I'm as annoyed with the Warriors who are 'my' club when they do it so don't feel the need to defend yours out of loyalty.

If a guy isn't fit enough to play a test a club shouldn't be running him into the ground and if a club can't cover for rep players under their cap then they need to manage the cap better - and in the odd case when there are multiple injuries then that's just bad luck.
 

The Great Dane

First Grade
Messages
7,723
I'd likely call bollocks on that. I'm as annoyed with the Warriors who are 'my' club when they do it so don't feel the need to defend yours out of loyalty.
I'm not defending them out of loyalty, I'm just telling it like it is.

They really have all just come back from injuries early when in a perfect world they wouldn't have, and really are all busted.

If you doubt it you can look it up for yourself, it's not a secret, it's all well reported.
If a guy isn't fit enough to play a test a club shouldn't be running him into the ground and
It's not the club that's running them into the ground it's the NRL... The NRL's doctors clear them when the Raiders doctors say they need a few more weeks (Bateman is the most widely reported example of this), the reason for that is twofold-

1. The NRL don't want to allow cap dispensation for injuries unless they have absolutely no choice.

2. The NRL need the club to field a competitive team every week to meet their obligation of 8 games a week.

So yeah, you're getting angry at the wrong people.
if a club can't cover for rep players under their cap then they need to manage the cap better
99 times out of 100 they could cover for rep players, they're just in that 1 in 100 situation this year where all the most expensive marque player and rep-players (with the exception of Papa, Simple Jack, Whitehead, and Croker), to the tune of literally half the cap, are the ones going down injured all at roughly the same time.

I mean Joey Leilua literally hurt his neck (bulging disc if I remember correctly) while asleep in bed.
The Raiders are just having one of those years with injuries.

and in the odd case when there are multiple injuries then that's just bad luck.

Your right it is just bad luck. Bad luck for everybody that's involved.

It just is what it is and there's no point getting angry at the Raiders about it.
 

KeepingTheFaith

Referee
Messages
25,235
Tohu Harris has been playing with a knee complaint since round 5, however last week he limped off early in the second half against the Tits and didn't return.

Legit injury but no doubt will play the next club game.
 

Springs09

Juniors
Messages
1,903
It's not the club that's running them into the ground it's the NRL... The NRL's doctors clear them when the Raiders doctors say they need a few more weeks (Bateman is the most widely reported example of this), the reason for that is twofold-

.

Oh right so the NRL forces the players to play do they? The NRL doctors name the squads every week? Stuart wants to rest them but the NRL doctors say they are okay so he reluctantly has to play them?
 

yakstorm

First Grade
Messages
5,293
There are some legitimate injuries in that list. Tohu Harris hasn't trained properly for almost five weeks now and has had to leave games early, including last Friday's against the Titans, he honestly shouldn't be taking the field for the Warriors, let alone the Kiwis.

Rapana and Tapine have had well documented injuries and like Harris, would struggle in what is going to be a very physical Test against Tonga.

Pearce, I honestly feel doesn't want to play for NSW at the moment. He is trying to get on with life in Newcastle, enjoying some good form with a team on the rise and just doesn't want to become the scapegoat again for another potential NSW failure.

Adam Doueihi I believe pulled himself out of the Lebanon Test, which for a player who has missed a large amount of football with a serious ACL injury isn't completely unexpected. Bennett, outside of the Anthony Milford scenario a few years back (which there was something more happening there), has never stood in the way of players playing Rep Football.
 

betcats

Referee
Messages
23,441
Bennetts players were always coming up with one game injuries when city country was on.

Pretty sure Mansour pulled a heartstring, don't blame him id take a week off over playing for my second nation.
 

latingringo101

Juniors
Messages
585
It honestly comes down to personal drive. Lebanon and Cooks don't play regular RL games unless the NRL or RLIF set it up for them. The other teams have had for quite a while now yearly tournaments set up for them which encourages players to stick with those teams.

Nigeria and Jamaica shows how having a well organised domestic board can help encourage heritage professionals to play for their retrospective nations.
 

Matua

Bench
Messages
4,528
There are some legitimate injuries in that list. Tohu Harris hasn't trained properly for almost five weeks now and has had to leave games early, including last Friday's against the Titans, he honestly shouldn't be taking the field for the Warriors, let alone the Kiwis.

Rapana and Tapine have had well documented injuries and like Harris, would struggle in what is going to be a very physical Test against Tonga.

Pearce, I honestly feel doesn't want to play for NSW at the moment. He is trying to get on with life in Newcastle, enjoying some good form with a team on the rise and just doesn't want to become the scapegoat again for another potential NSW failure.

Adam Doueihi I believe pulled himself out of the Lebanon Test, which for a player who has missed a large amount of football with a serious ACL injury isn't completely unexpected. Bennett, outside of the Anthony Milford scenario a few years back (which there was something more happening there), has never stood in the way of players playing Rep Football.
If a player plays club matches week on week while injured it doesn't make that injury any more legitimate when they're stood down for a test match ... it's stupid that a player can be fit week after week and as soon as a test match arrives they're no longer fit to play. Harris is a red herring, he aggravated his injury enough this weekend to look legitimate but the fact is he shouldn't even have been playing.

@Great Dane, as Springs09 notes, so Stuart is being forced by the NRL to play all these guys. Bahahahahaha. Also, if you want to claim those players are busted you need to question why your team are playing them while busted. That's not good from a team or individual point of view.
 

adamkungl

Immortal
Messages
42,955
Have to question the motives of clubs forcing players to grind through injuries but pull them out of representing their country.
The fact that they are already injured, if true, makes it worse rather than better from a player welfare perspective.


Watch this space - if Tonga v NZ becomes an *annual* big money draw, the niggling injuries will magically disappear. Clubs (should) know that preventing players from earning rep cash will see them looking for a new club quick smart.
 
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