2001 - Bad Sport Award, the winners are.........

[imported_TaxiDriver_]

2001 has proven beyond doubt what I have always suspected, the Brisbane Broncos and a fair share of their fans are the epitome of bad sports. Mr Bennett is no super coach, he is a good coach who has been blessed with more talent to choose from, more resources and power behind him than any of his peers. The advantage the Broncos have over every other club in the league can not be understated, year after year of having all of QLD to recruit from, year after year of salary cap rorts, year after year of poaching talent from weaker and less resourced clubs, these guys should have won double the premierships they have won. This year is the first year they have been somewhat tested through this mythical injury crisis, sure they have lost a few players, but what club hasn’t ? What you don’t hear Wayne and the Broncos tell us is that despite this "crippling" injury toll, they still had 6 Australian test players and ten SOO players on the field in their game against Parra. How many did Parra have ? Can you name another club with so many Aussie rep players ?? How does the club, it’s fans and Wayne react to a losing run with all this talent available ? Blame the injuries and spit the dummy by refusing to talk to the media week after week. The fact that they beat up this injury crisis for the whole year and still managed to get so many rep players on the field is proof enough that Brisbane MUST have a second club, but we all know the Broncs wont have a bar of that, that would be too much like a level playing field. The Justin Hodges saga, the citings of rival players, the moaning about judiciary inconsistency are all issues that prove the point, but I don’t have the time to elaborate on right now.

 

[imported_Mystery Man]

"Mr Bennett is no super coach, he is a good coach who has been blessed with more talent to choose from, more resources and power behind him than any of his peers."

- That's purely a subjective opinion, but I doubt that you're in much of a position to make that call (by all means, correct me if I'm wrong). What is well known is that many of the people who have played under him think the world of him and even those who have had little or no time being coached by him (eg Andrew Johns, Paul McGregor) have the utmost respect for him.

I don't know any hard facts, but I'd imagine that some of the big Sydney clubs (eg Parramatta) would have as many resources at their disposal.

"The advantage the Broncos have over every other club in the league can not be understated, year after year of having all of QLD to recruit from,..."

- The Gold Coast and North Queensland had all of Queensland to recruit from, as well,and have been nothing but dismal failures. Also, there is nothing to stop other teams scouting Queensland for players. If they don't, it's their own fault.

"...year after year of salary cap rorts,..."

- Please provide evidence (speculation will not suffice).

"...year after year of poaching talent from weaker and less resourced clubs,..."

- The Broncos do not buy any more players from rival clubs than any other team. The vast majority of their stars come through their development system. Having said that, a lot of players find the Broncos to be a desirable club to play for (why else would Andrew Johns say that the Broncos were the only club, outside of the Knights, that he would play for?).

"...these guys should have won double the premierships they have won."

No, the Broncos players are just human like everybody else and are not invincible. Also, there have been some other truly great teams around during the Broncos existance (Canberra, Manly, Parramatta, Penrith).

"This year is the first year they have been somewhat tested through this mythical injury crisis, sure they have lost a few players, but what club hasn’t?"

- The Broncos have been through an injury crisis, and it was anthing but mythical. They lost Ben Ikin, Phil Lee, Scott Prince and Kevin Walters - all playmakers - for the season. They were without Shaun Berrigan for much of the season. Even their most recent five-eigth, Ashley Harrison (a lock), didn't play in their last game. They lost their best forward, Gorden Tallis, for the season. They have also had numerous other injuries - DeVere, Webb, Walker, Corvo - which have made things difficult.

"What you don’t hear Wayne and the Broncos tell us is that despite this "crippling" injury toll, they still had 6 Australian test players and ten SOO players on the field in their game against Parra."

- True, but Chris Walker, Dane Carlaw and Brad Meyers are all young players who only made their Origin debut this year. They may have potential, but they're anything but established stars. In addition, Michael DeVere (who has played all of one Origin) was making his comeback from injury. But there is more to being a good team than having quality players. The Broncos lacked cohesion, due to injuries, loss of form (yes, they're allowed to have form slumps), and inexperienced players. They are not perfect athletes.

"How many did Parra have ?"

- Parra are a better team than the Broncos. Perhaps you should give them a bit of credit.

"Can you name another club with so many Aussie rep players ?? How does the club, it’s fans and Wayne react to a losing run with all this talent available ? Blame the injuries and spit the dummy by refusing to talk to the media week after week."

- The injuries can't be ignored. To do so would be ridiculous. Now, I don't know for sure, but it is thought that Bennett has refused to talk to the media over the "Justin Hodges issue". I have never heard it suggested that it was over the Broncos form.

"The fact that they beat up this injury crisis for the whole year and still managed to get so many rep players on the field is proof enough that Brisbane MUST have a second club, but we all know the Broncs wont have a bar of that, that would be too much like a level playing field."

- No, they didn't beat up the injury crisis. It happened. It was a fact.

As for a second Brisbane club, I agree. I never thought it right that Brisbane were given a monopoly. Having said that, Shane Edwards has publicly said that if the NRL was to put a second Brisbane team in the competition, the Broncos would not stand in their way. I should add that he said that the Broncos do not agree with it and that they don't believe that Brisbane could sustain a second team (I don't agree with this), but the point was that he publicly said that they would not oppose such a move.

"The Justin Hodges saga, the citings of rival players, the moaning about judiciary inconsistency are all issues that prove the point, but I don’t have the time to elaborate on right now."

- Hodges had done virtually nothing all year. He was a young, potentially good, player who was being groomed to take Wendell Sailor's position. He didn't get a great deal of game time and added little to the Broncos chances of success. When it was discovered that he wasn't going to be at the Broncos the following year, Bennet made the (in my opinion, correct) decision to stop wasting the club's time in developing him. The reason that it was a saga, was because the media made it into one.

The Broncos never cited a player, but they did publicly complain about Craig Smith, and, based on previous statements that they have made, I agree that it was hyprocritical.

As for their "moaning" abouting judiciary inconsistency, I find it amusing that you chose to single them out when plenty of other clubs have publicly complained, and it is a commonly held belief that the judiciary is inconsistent.

 

[imported_TaxiDriver_]

Mystery man, in response That's purely a subjective opinion Public forums are about discussion and opinion, are you the only person entitled to one ? I don't know any hard facts, but I'd imagine that some of the big Sydney clubs (eg Parramatta) would have as many resources at their disposal. Not a chance – the Broncs have Newscorp behind them, ever heard of conflict of interest ? How the hell do we get away with the people who own the game owning a club ?, $$$$ and power aside no other club has a monopoly over an area as big as the Broncs have. The Gold Coast and North Queensland had all of Queensland to recruit from, as well, and have been nothing but dismal failures. Also, there is nothing to stop other teams scouting Queensland for players. If they don't, it's their own fault. And when a team does recruit from the area (ala Hodges), your coach spits the dummy, drops the kid to park footy and threatens the same to any other kid thinking of going. Ahhh, the ethics are wonderfull. Please provide evidence (speculation will not suffice). Double digit rep players in your side year in, year out is proof enough. The Broncos do not buy any more players from rival clubs than any other team. The vast majority of their stars come through their development system. Having said that, a lot of players find the Broncos to be a desirable club to play for (why else would Andrew Johns say that the Broncos were the only club, outside of the Knights, that he would play for?). Would you guys have won 92 and 93 if you hadn’t poached Lazarus ? You don’t think poaching Tallis got you a couple of comps ?, ahhh the wonderfull ethics again, "let’s pay the man $100,000 to break his contract and sit on the sidelines. Other players,how about Ikin ? How about Prince (you take the best player form the worst side and have the hide to state that you don’t have open slather on all Qlds best talent), How about Mundine ? Need a hooker !, let’s poach one of the best in Priddis. This is just a fraction of some of the names the Broncs have poached and somehow fit in under the cap. Why would Joey go to Brisbane ? because he knows they are the only club with open slather on the cheque book, to player with 14 other rep players and win a comp. The Broncos have been through an injury crisis, and it was anthing but mythical. They lost Ben Ikin, Phil Lee, Scott Prince and Kevin Walters - all playmakers - for the season. They were without Shaun Berrigan for much of the season. Even their most recent five-eigth, Ashley Harrison (a lock), didn't play in their last game. They lost their best forward, Gorden Tallis, for the season. They have also had numerous other injuries - DeVere, Webb, Walker, Corvo - which have made things difficult. The Dragons played the first half of the year with ten first graders out, injuries cost the dogs in the semis, the rooster copped key injuries at key times. The Broncs replace an injured player with a SOO player off the bench, other clubs find a kid in the reggies, yep I can see how the injuries played so much havoc on your side. True, but Chris Walker, Dane Carlaw and Brad Meyers are all young players who only made their Origin debut this year. They may have potential, but they're anything but established stars. In addition, Michael DeVere (who has played all of one Origin) was making his comeback from injury. But there is more to being a good team than having quality players. The Broncos lacked cohesion, due to injuries, loss of form (yes, they're allowed to have form slumps), and inexperienced players. They are not perfect athletes. Thanks for this last comment, any other club would be stoked at having SOO reps in their team, but it’s not enough for you bronco boys, nope they need to be seasoned rep players before you consider them anything to be excited about. Bennett has refused to talk to the media over the "Justin Hodges issue". I have never heard it suggested that it was over the Broncos form. Bennett couldn’t hack the heat caused from the slump, thats why he played mute. Questions on Hodges need to be asked and answered, his actions were despicable and should not be ignored. As for their "moaning" abouting judiciary inconsistency, I find it amusing that you chose to single them out when plenty of other clubs have publicly complained, and it is a commonly held belief that the judiciary is inconsistent. On its own, I would have ignored it. This was the icing on the cake. The Broncs will always be the scum that almost destroyed my game. Greed, lack of ethics, leech like behaviour epitomises that club and I will forever detest them for their actions. Is my view tainted by this blind hatred of such scum ? probably it is, but yours is obviously tainted by your love for your side.

 

[imported_Mystery Man]

"Public forums are about discussion and opinion, are you the only person entitled to one ?"

- Of course not, where did I ever say that?

"Not a chance – the Broncs have Newscorp behind them, ever heard of conflict of interest ? How the hell do we get away with the people who own the game owning a club ?, $$$$ and power aside no other club has a monopoly over an area as big as the Broncs have."

- Roy Masters has a written a number of articles on the Broncosfinances - none of them favourable. He has, in at least one of these articles, written about where the Broncos finances come from. From what I recall, there was no mention of any additional funding, outside of the annual NRL grant (that all clubs receive), from News Ltd. Now, of course, I don't know the inner workings of the Broncos, but I don't see too many reasons as to why News Ltd would pour unnecessary funds into a football club. If you want to read up on Masters' articles, try http://www.smh.com.auand http://www.leaguehq.com.au(if it still exists).

As for News Ltd owing part of the game (or the Broncos), I don't agree with that at all. But I was responding to your comments about Wayne Bennett, so I don't really know why you've gone so far off track.

I've already commented about the Broncos' so-called "monopoly" over Queensland, and the failure of the Gold Coast and North Queensland to take advantage of it - why have you ignored this?

"And when a team does recruit from the area (ala Hodges), your coach spits the dummy, drops the kid to park footy and threatens the same to any other kid thinking of going. Ahhh, the ethics are wonderfull."

- That has happened once. As I said, I totally agree with Bennett's decision. I find it hypocritical of him to go on about loyalty, but that's another issue all together.

"Double digit rep players in your side year in, year out is proof enough."

- No, it's not. Without real proof, your claims have no credibility.

"Would you guys have won 92 and 93 if you hadn’t poached Lazarus ?"

- Maybe not. So what? I never said that the Broncos never bought anybody. I said that most of their players come through the development system of the club. And, by the way, what is wrong with it? They offered him a contract and he chose to come to the club. It's been happening for years, is done by all clubs, and will continue to happen.

I'm sure that most St-George-Illawarra fans will be happy if they sign Brett Kimmorely.

"You don’t think poaching Tallis got you a couple of comps ?, ahhh the wonderfull ethics again, "let’s pay the man $100,000 to break his contract and sit on the sidelines."

- Tallis was given the option of going back to the Dragons. It was his choice to sit out the season.

"Other players,how about Ikin ?"

- Ikin was coming back to South-East Queensland no matter what. He didn't like NSW. Why wouldn't the Broncos sign him? It's hardly "poaching".

"How about Prince (you take the best player form the worst side and have the hide to state that you don’t have open slather on all Qlds best talent),..."

- Now you are speaking shit. Prince chose to leave North Queensland. He didn't want to play for them anymore. Once he was on the open market, the Broncos made him an offer. So did other clubs. He chose to come to the Broncos.

"How about Mundine ?"

- Mundine had been wanting to go to the Broncos for some time. He approached them.

"Need a hooker !, let’s poach one of the best in Priddis."

- More shit-speaking. Priddis was Canberra's second-string hooker. He left to go to the Adelaide Rams. They folded. He then came to the Broncos. He was not one of the best hookers. He developed into one of the best after he came to Brisbane.

"Why would Joey go to Brisbane ? because he knows they are the only club with open slather on the cheque book, to player with 14 other rep players and win a comp."

- No, the reason that he said that he wanted to go to Brisbane was to play under Wayne Bennett. He very nearly left the Knights.

"The Dragons played the first half of the year with ten first graders out, injuries cost the dogs in the semis, the rooster copped key injuries at key times. The Broncs replace an injured player with a SOO player off the bench, other clubs find a kid in the reggies,..."

- I don't ever remember saying that injuries have not effected other sides. I just believe that it is ridiculous to ignore the fact that they also effected the Broncos. Once again, those State of Origin players, that you speak of, were nobodies last year.

"yep I can see how the injuries played so much havoc on your side."

- I'm glad to hear you finally concede a point.

"True, but Chris Walker, Dane Carlaw and Brad Meyers are all young players who only made their Origin debut this year. They may have potential, but they're anything but established stars. In addition, Michael DeVere (who has played all of one Origin) was making his comeback from injury. But there is more to being a good team than having quality players. The Broncos lacked cohesion, due to injuries, loss of form (yes, they're allowed to have form slumps), and inexperienced players. They are not perfect athletes. Thanks for this last comment, any other club would be stoked at having SOO reps in their team, but it’s not enough for you bronco boys, nope they need to be seasoned rep players before you consider them anything to be excited about." - You've completely ignored my points and how they related to your original comments. "Bennett couldn’t hack the heat caused from the slump, thats why he played mute. Questions on Hodges need to be asked and answered, his actions were despicable and should not be ignored." - Once again, that's just your opinion. I'm not arguing your right to have one, but you state it as if it is fact, and that is wrong. You have no proof to back up your statement outside of speculation. "The Broncs will always be the scum that almost destroyed my game. Greed, lack of ethics, leech like behaviour epitomises that club and I will forever detest them for their actions. Is my view tainted by this blind hatred of such scum ? probably it is, but yours is obviously tainted by your love for your side." - Speak for yourself. I have tried to be completely objective in this discussion. There have been many things that the Broncos have done that I have disagreed with. In my two posts on this thread, I have been happy to agree with you on certain points, and point out others where I have not agreed with the Broncos. I don't follow the Broncos blindly, and I certainly don't follow Wayne Bennett blindly.

 

[imported_TaxiDriver_]

I'd like to ask you a few questions,

1) Do you really believe the Broncs are under the cap ?

2) Do you believe that your club acted in the best interests of the game with the Hodges incident ?

3) Do you believe that given the sheer number of international and rep players in your team, any injuries, while still impacting the side,have less of an impact on your team than other clubs.

4) Has Bennett has promoted the game in a positive light with his petulant attidute to the media ?

5) Do you find it a coincidence that players have been cited and suspended for actions that are part and parcel of a contact sport after comments by your coach (other SL clubs have also been guilty of this), while players from your side have escaped any attention for high tackles, late forearms and head butting ?

6) Do you belive that Brisbane taking the best talent from the weakest clubs is in the best interests of the game ?

 

This message has been deleted by the author.

 

[imported_Mystery Man]

1) Do you really believe the Broncs are under the cap ?

- I don't know the details of Brisbane's contractual situation, with its players, any better than any other team, so I wouldn't really know. One thing that I will say is that they only have four established "star" players in their team - Lockyer, Sailor, Tallis, and Webcke - and Sailor is leaving next year. Priddis, DeVere and Ikin were considered solid players, but not anything special, when they signed their last contracts, and the first two only made their Origin debuts this year. It is unlikely that they were on an excessiveamount of money. As for the all the other representative players in the team -Walker, Tuquiri, Civoniciva, Meyers, Carlaw, and Webb - excepting Tuquiri and Civoniciva, they were all nobodies last year. They all made their representative debuts this yearand are young players who would not be on a lot of money. Berrigan is in the same boat. The Broncos also let go of Thorn, Carrol, and Hancock last year. Priddis is also leaving the club (it should be noted that he publicly stated that he would have been prepared to stay at the club for significantly less money than what he could have gotten at any other club). Taking all this into account, there is a very good chance that the Broncos are under the salary cap, this year. In recent years, that wouldn't have been the case, but the same could be said of many teams.

2) Do you believe that your club acted in the best interests of the game with the Hodges incident ?

- They acted in the best interests of their club, and, in my opinion, that was the right thing to do. I really can't see how the relegating of a "nothing" player affects the "interests of the game", either way.

3) Do you believe that given the sheer number of international and rep players in your team, any injuries, while still impacting the side,have less of an impact on your team than other clubs.

That is probably a fair point, and can be backed up by the fact that the Broncos were still within one game of the grand final. However, it was the amount of injuries, and the fact that many happened to half-backs and five-eighths that was the real killer. Of course, as I have already said, many of the representative players in the Broncos are only very young, and they did not perform well following origin. While I have no doubt that injuries did have had an effect on the Broncos season, I also believe that lack of experience and poor form also contributed.

4) Has Bennett has promoted the game in a positive light with his petulant attidute to the media ?

I think Wayne Bennett's behaviour has been pathetic. It reminds me of the time when he didn't like something written about Tony Carrol in an origin program, and decided to blame every journalist in existance for it.

5) Do you find it a coincidence that players have been cited and suspended for actions that are part and parcel of a contact sport after comments by your coach (other SL clubs have also been guilty of this), while players from your side have escaped any attention for high tackles, late forearms and head butting ?

I don't buy into conspiracy theories, whether they be against News Ltd, the "Southerners", or whoever else.

6) Do you belive that Brisbane taking the best talent from the weakest clubs is in the best interests of the game ?

I don't believe that Brisbane do this. I take it that you are referring to Scott Prince, and I have already said that he was not going to be playing for the Cowboys this year, regardless of who he is now playing for.

 

[imported_TaxiDriver_]

Gordon Tallis put his name to this article, what an arrogant f**k. I believe the article fits in well with this thread.

<table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="100%" border=0> <tbody> <tr> <td>Tallis: True grand final was last week </td></tr> <tr> <td>Sportal</td></tr> <tr> <td align=right></td></tr></tbody></table> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="100%" border=0> <tbody> <tr> <td>

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</td></tr></tbody></table>Injured Brisbane captain Gorden Tallis believes the 'true' grand final was played last weekend when the Broncos lost to Parramatta, rubbishing the NRL for billing Sunday's Eels-Knights grand final as a dream match. Writing in his regular column for the Courier Mail, Tallis wrote, "I think it (grand final) should be a beauty but I wouldn't go as far as to call it a dream match." "I reckon the true grand final was played last week when the Broncos took Parramatta to the wire," said Tallis. <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=right border=0> <tbody> <tr> <td> <center> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width="100%" border=0> <tbody> <tr> <td align=middle>&lt;IFRAME border=0 name=frame1 marginWidth=0 marginHeight=0 src="http://ad.au.doubleclick.net/adi/home.sportal.com.au/league;sz=150x180;ord=2001928288F9" frameBorder=no width=150 scrolling=no height=180 target="_blank"&gt; language="JavaScript1.1" SRC="http://ad.au.doubleclick.net/adj/home.sportal.com.au/league;abr=!ie;sz=150x180;ord=2001928288F9"&gt; &lt;/SCRIPT&gt; &lt;NOSCRIPT&gt; &lt;/NOSCRIPT&gt; &lt;/IFRAME&gt;</td></tr></tbody></table></center></td></tr></tbody></table> "That was the match-up between the current premiers, us, and the new minor premiers, them, and it was a match that really delivered the goods, which can't be said of all the finals matches played this year." His comments came a day after NRL chief executive David Moffett hung up on a Brisbane radio station when pushed about the treatment of rugby league fans outside of Sydney. The Test forward, who abandoned a bid to make a comeback from a neck injury against the Eels, said he didn't care if he was accused of being biased. Moffett has not won any fans in Queensland with his defence of staging the grand final on Sunday night to accommodate broadcaster Channel Nine. Before hanging up on Greg Carey's 4BC sports show last night, Moffett told Queensland listeners it was a public holiday in Sydney and people didn't have to worry about going to work or school. Moffett struggled to explain why Queenslanders couldn't watch last weekend's clash between Brisbane and Parramatta live, despite the match being played in Sydney. Tallis, who suggested referee Bill Harrigan handed the Eels a piggy-back ride on a 7-1 penalty count against the Broncos last weekend, continued to express the anti-Sydney sentiment. The straight-talking Tallis, who has criticised the NRL's judiciary this season, said Parramatta would win the grand final because they had the "tools" to limit the options of Knights skipper Andrew Johns. "Parramatta is a team well-equipped to shut down specific players and I reckon they can shut down Andrew Johns on Sunday," he said. "For that reason alone I'm tipping the Eels to win, and win quite comfortably."</td></tr></tbody></table>