News Drugs, sex, domestic violence: football's dark cover up

[blue bags]

Staff members at Souths have also been accused of ignoring Burgess's alleged indiscretions.

Among the major allegations were claims about an incident inside the Burgess home at Maroubra, in Sydney's east, in November 2018 when the father-of-two was behaving erratically.

A former teammate of Burgess is due to be questioned by police over Zoom this week from the UK, where he is playing in the English Super League.

Jason Clark was the person Phoebe Burgess turned to during the 2018 incident with Sam at their home, The Australian reported.

Evidence Clark gives to police could form a key part of the investigation into Burgess and South Sydney, as well as the team's medical staff.

Burgess embraces former Rabbitohs team mate Jason Clark after a match in September 2018

Phoebe Burgess (pictured) looks downcast amid allegations against her ex-husband Sam

A close friend told The Daily Telegraph that Burgess was particularly upset about the allegations regarding his marriage to ex-wife Phoebe Burgess (The former couple are pictured together at a David Jones event in Sydney on February 7, 2018)

Clark had attended the couple's house along with Burgess' mother Julie, who had brought Sam and older brother Luke home from a city hotel.

Mr Hooke and his wife Sarah were also reportedly at the house.

Detectives have already interviewed Phoebe and visited several relevant locations, including an underground car park where Burgess allegedly received medical treatment.

A pharmacy linked to the club's doctor Andrew McDonald has also reportedly been visited by police.

Souths co-owner, Hollywood star Russell Crowe, could be called to give evidence before the NRL inquiry.

Burgess has been holed-up at his home in Coogee, in Sydney's east, since the allegations were published.

He has been left 'devastated' by the accusations against him, a close friend told The Daily Telegraph.

Burgess at a Rabbitohs training session in Canberra in September 2019. A source close to him said he has been left devastated by the allegations

American waitress Oak Schuetz addresses Sam Burgess dating rumours
WHO ARE THE BURGESS FAMILY?
JULIE: A former high school deputy headmaster, the matriarch of the family is renowned for defending her four boys, always. She followed her sons to Australia in 2012 after they had established careers with South Sydney

MARK: The boys' father died in 2007 at age 45 after a long battle with motor neurone disease. While their towering height comes from Julie, Mark is credited for giving the boys their brawn and toughness.

LUKE: The oldest of the four boys, he is known to his brothers as 'Biffa'. Luke moved to Australia in 2011 to play for South Sydney. He began dating model Yolanda Hodgson and the couple have a daughter Grace, but split in 2019.

SAM: The first of the family to make the move to Sydney, he quickly became a key part of the Rabbitohs outfit. After a few years together he married Phoebe Hooke in 2015, before their public split in late 2018. They have two children, Poppy and Billy.

TOM: Tom and his twin brother George are the youngest members of the family. He was the last of the family to move to Australia in 2011. He is engaged to Tahlia Giumelli and the couple are currently expecting a second child.

GEORGE: The 28-year-old has returned to England to play in the Super League having married wife Joanna in 2016. The couple have three children under the age of three.

Tom, George, Luke and Sam Burgess stand on either side of their mother Julie after their first appearance in first grade together in 2013

'He is angry and feels like he doesn't have a voice,' the friend said.

'[The allegations are] something that is abhorrent to him, which makes it all the more harder to stomach.'

Burgess retired last October after a spate of injuries but stayed at the club, where he has been working as a development coach.

Souths CEO Mr Solly has said he knew nothing of the allegations made by The Australian until being contacted by journalists.

Club coach Wayne Bennett said was also unaware of the allegations.

'I've been here since 2018 and I knew nothing about it until I'd been told in the last 24 hours,' Bennett said.
Burgess and ex-wife Phoebe during happier times at the 2016 Dally M awards in Sydney

Burgess (pictured with ex-wife Phoebe) has stepped down from his coaching role at Souths and denied all allegations

'I have never had a player or any staff member talk to me about it in any shape or form.

'They are allegations. When we get all the facts together and see this at the end of the day, we will take another position on it and make another statement.'

Ms Burgess remains with her family in Bowral, caring for the two young children she shares with Burgess.

Her manager Sharon Finnigan said: 'Phoebe is trying to get by and manage and care for her two children… She is doing her best as a single mother.'

The former couple married at Phoebe's parents home in December 2015 and separated in December 2018, weeks after the birth of their son Billy.

The couple had rekindled their relationship by April 2019 but split again last October.

Their divorce was finalised in April. They also have an older daughter, Poppy.

Share or comment on this article:
Sam Burgess attends Bondi training session with brother Luke

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...ends-Bondi-training-session-brother-Luke.html

 

[Brutus]

Horsehead city

 

[Reflector]

Have a look at the old mans head. It will come to you. There is a hint in your avatar.

I can't think of a NSW player born in Taree in that timeframe who bears the resemblance. Either that or I'm going completely cold on this one...

 

[soc123_au]

I can't think of a NSW player born in Taree in that timeframe who bears the resemblance. Either that or I'm going completely cold on this one...

The old mans head didn't help? The time frame is a current player. The year I quoted would be when said player was conceived.

 

[THE CHAMP]

The old mans head didn't help? The time frame is a current player. The year I quoted would be when said player was conceived.

If the old mans head is a hint I’m gonna say Jerome Luai because his face is just as punchable

 

[Canard]

Id say there is some career limiting behaviour exhibited by some of the Cowboys officials.

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/se...s-on-explosive-complaint-20201030-p56a5o.html

 

[YoHadrian]

Looks like the back office staff ladies & players are notches on their respective headboards up the Cowboys. Not really unusual in a NRL club though to be fair.

 

[mave]

Will be interesting to see the fallout for the Cows from NRL HQ.

And then even more interesting to see the lack of fallout for Souths.

 

[Canard]

Looks like the back office staff ladies & players are notches on their respective headboards up the Cowboys. Not really unusual in a NRL club though to be fair.

That part I'm not interested in.

It's the alleged provision of prescription drugs, and the subsequent actions.

 

[taipan]

Notice the Herald has become like other rag papers the D.T., scandal digging in order to sell.

That being stated,if the allegations are 100% ,and the NRL Integrity unit sat on them, heads that were on deck back then ,need to roll.

Worth noting( in context ) ch9 top exec(owned by the Herald group) 4 times over the limit D.U.I . show story "oh I shouldn't have driven,I'm bad ",all forgotten the next day.

D.T employee when hit and missed does some panel beating on a park car or cars.No publicity of any consequence.

Humans we are a weird lot.

 

[Chimp]

Notice the Herald has become like other rag papers the D.T., scandal digging in order to sell.

That being stated,if the allegations are 100% ,and the NRL Integrity unit sat on them, heads that were on deck back then ,need to roll.

Worth noting( in context ) ch9 top exec(owned by the Herald group) 4 times over the limit D.U.I . show story "oh I shouldn't have driven,I'm bad ",all forgotten the next day.

D.T employee when hit and missed does some panel beating on a park car or cars.No publicity of any consequence.

Humans we are a weird lot.

I seem to remember some rumours in the papers a couple of years ago about a top Cowboys player having an affair with a staff member, and it being dismissed as a salty ex-partner of the female staff member causing issues - I’m guessing this is the same people involved, just with added salt.

 

[taipan]

I seem to remember some rumours in the papers a couple of years ago about a top Cowboys player having an affair with a staff member, and it being dismissed as a salty ex-partner of the female staff member causing issues - I’m guessing this is the same people involved, just with added salt.

Yep.
The thing is you can't cover up things these days good or bad, and anyone who does is naive to the extreme.Phones everywhere,people looking to make a quid,s ocial media, it sells, and people get hurt in the end.

 

[Twizzle]

^^^

The National Rugby League's integrity unit has been accused of turning a blind eye to an extraordinary complaint lodged more than a year ago involving a star player's toilet tryst, an aggrieved husband who was given prescription medication by a club official and the club's doctor who then provided a false medical certificate.

In a lengthy complaint to the NRL's integrity unit, which has been obtained by the Herald, one of the North Queensland Cowboys' star players is alleged to have "committed a sexual act with another person (not his wife) in a public toilet in one of Australia's busiest airports."

The team had played an away game in mid-2018 and the players were returning to Townsville via Brisbane airport.

The husband of the woman allegedly involved in the incident has made the complaint to the integrity unit via his Brisbane lawyer John Sneddon.

The man was distraught and furious when he discovered a message from the star player to his wife about their toilet tryst in the Qantas lounge which occurred on Father's Day 2018.

Alarmed at what could become a public relations nightmare, the woman, who is employed by the Cowboys, contacted the club's then football manager Peter Parr for help.

"On becoming aware of our client's knowledge of the sexual act," Mr Parr gave the husband prescription medication "to help him cope with the shock," said Mr Sneddon in his complaint to the NRL, first lodged in October last year.

Unbeknown to the husband, the tablets Mr Parr gave him were Valium.

Dr Chris Ball wrote a medical certificate for the husband.

Mr Parr, who is currently the manager for the NSW State of Origin team, admitted to the Herald that he gave the husband the tablets. Mr Parr said that on the night of September 5 the husband was at Mr Parr's home in a very distressed state.

Mr Parr denied that the tablets were his or that he knew they were Valium. He claimed he had "swung by the doc's" place on the night to get something to help the husband sleep. "They weren't mine. I don't have Valium in the house. Panadol and cough medicine is all I have," he said.

The husband, a long-haul truck driver, subsequently tested positive for benzodiazepine as part of a routine workplace drug test.

Dr Chris Ball, who runs a sports clinic and is the team doctor for both the Cowboys and the national team, came forward to claim – falsely – that he had personally consulted with the husband on the night of September 5, 2018.


"[The husband] had experienced a family crisis and was stressed and unable to sleep," said Dr Ball in a medical certificate to be provided to the husband's employer.

To explain the lack of any written prescription for the medication, Dr Ball stated in the medical certificate that he "does not prescribe benzodiazepine medication" and that on this occasion "I gave [the husband] a sample quantity of four diazepam [Valium]…tablets to help facilitate sleep."

On September 25, Dr Ball was contacted by a medical officer on behalf of the truck driver's employer. That doctor noted the "recent prescription for benzodiazepines on the background of acute crisis and poor sleep" and requested further information as to the "medical fitness" of the husband to continue his job as a truck driver.

On his Sports Clinic NQ letterhead, Dr Ball replied the same day, "I have not prescribed any more medication. He is sleeping well and is not needing ongoing treatment or medication."

Guidelines issued by the Australian Medical Association, stipulate that "Doctors who deliberately issue a false, misleading or inaccurate certificate could face disciplinary action under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law."


Mr Sneddon, whose client has never met Dr Ball, disputed Mr Parr's claim that the football manager left his home late at night to go to Dr Ball's premises to obtain medication for the husband.

Mr Sneddon has provided the medical certificates to the NRL and has informed the NRL's integrity unit that Dr Ball is the subject of an investigation by the medical watchdog AHPRA (Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency).

AHPRA and the OHO said that due to "confidentiality provisions" they were unable to comment to the Herald on individual matters.

However, Mr Parr confirmed to the Herald that Dr Ball has been the subject of an inquiry by medical authorities and that he had provided the regulator with an account of what had occurred on the night. Dr Ball did not reply to the Herald's emails and calls requesting comment.

In hindsight, said Mr Parr of his provision of Valium to the husband, "I wouldn't do it again" but at the time he was dealing with "a very stressful situation."


The couple's relationship never recovered and at one stage the wife called police, expressing concerns for her and the player's safety, following her husband's discovery of the affair. No charges were laid.

Mr Parr, who was recently appointed to the Cowboys' board after stepping down as the team's manager, acknowledged that both he and Dr Ball should have informed the integrity unit about the investigation by Queensland medical authorities.

Registered NRL personnel have an obligation to report matters which may bring the game into disrepute. Given that engaging in a sex act in a public toilet is a potential criminal offence constituting an act of public indecency, Mr Parr also agreed he should have notified the integrity unit of the alleged inappropriate behaviour of the star player.

In his most recent letter to the integrity unit, dated 31 August, Mr Sneddon once again complained about the lack of action by the NRL, saying there was one rule for some players, and another rule for others.

He also noted that, since lodging the complaint more than a year ago, the NRL Integrity unit was able to investigate and impose penalties on players including Josh Addo-Carr, Latrell Mitchell and Nathan Cleary.


On October 9, the NRL informed Mr Sneddon that the matter would be "progressed" to an investigation. This came only days after explosive allegations about former Souths' star Sam Burgess were published in The Australian. The allegations, denied by Burgess, included that in November 2018 Burgess, while on a drug-fuelled bender, was injected with a liquid tranquilliser by Souths' club doctor Andrew McDonald who wrote out the prescription in another person's name.

However, the NRL unit has claimed that a lack of co-operation on behalf of the complainant in the Cowboys' matter has been the reason for the lengthy delay. "Where complaints are made to police or other regulatory bodies we are mindful not to prejudice or cut-across those processes with our own investigations," said a spokesman for the NRL.

"The NRL will progress its investigation and is unable to provide further comment," the spokesman said.

Neither the woman nor the player responded to requests for comment. The truck driver referred queries to his lawyer, Mr Sneddon, who said his client has been widely disparaged by the Cowboys in an attempt to discredit him. He said his client has lost everything.

In late 2018, the husband sent the following text message to the player's wife.


"[Name removed], I know you wouldn't like me texting you but I feel no one but you could understand how I am feeling. I only found out today [his wife] gets to keep her job at the Cowboys.

"I feel so gutted that nothing what her and [the player] have done after cheating on both of us over that Gold Coast weekend is fair. I have lost everything - my wife, family. I feel so worthless after what they have done but to know that they will still see each other at the club is so hurtful for me.

"I just can't believe Parrie [Peter Parr] is covering [the truck driver's wife's] tracks and will still let her travel with the team. I feel like no one gives a f..k about how we might feel about it.

"I guess I should just realise I am nobody and not important to anybody especially to [his wife], the Cowboys and obviously [the player] who felt my wife was also his property. I won't bother you ever again. I promise not to ring or text again. I am sorry. "

He received no reply.

 

[T-Boon]

So 40/30?
Discuss.

 

[AnonymousLurker]

Actually disappointed with Kate mclymont on the article . The whole basis of this outrage is over the sex no the drugs part . Appears the sex is consensual so no issues , if it’s such an issue can we have an expose on all SMH staff that have cheated So we can pour our outrage

 

[DRAGONZ_RULE]

See Danny Weidler article in Februray 2019, I will copy/paste the relevant part ...

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/ha...s-in-sexual-assault-case-20190209-p50wrr.html

******

JT rumours not true

Johnathan Thurston has enjoyed the well-earned benefits of fame, but there is a significant downside that has threatened to destabilise his harmonious family life.

Thurston spent a large slab of time after last season touring the country promoting his book, but in the background he has been the subject of a nasty whispering campaign that has caused his family significant distress.

Thurston’s name has been seized upon by an angry ex-husband of an employee of the Cowboys. The ex has called news outlets, starting with the Townsville Bulletin, asking for money to sell a story that has no truth to it. He has been trying to say Thurston was involved with the man’s former partner, which is false.

At least one paper had a story ready to run after the man told them his version of events. They even alerted some of Thurston’s major sponsors, including Sony. But the story was pulled when the man failed to produce the evidence.

He claims to have damning text messages. This is false. He has promised media outlets access to the information. Nothing has been forthcoming.

Johnathan and Samantha Thurston are friends with the Cowboys employee. Samantha received a call from the man and she shut him down quickly, saying she didn’t believe him. Club insiders say the man contacted them asking that his former partner be sacked, promising to let the story rest if that happened.

We understand the man is angry at the break-up of his marriage, but to drag the Thurstons into it is wrong and for people on social media to be treating it as fact is disgraceful. I’ve spent time in his and Samantha’s company and it’s hard not to admire them as a couple.

******

 

[myrrh ken]

Actually disappointed with Kate mclymont on the article . The whole basis of this outrage is over the sex no the drugs part . Appears the sex is consensual so no issues , if it’s such an issue can we have an expose on all SMH staff that have cheated So we can pour our outrage

Ah I think it's the extent to which the club tries to cover up by failing to report and then the club doctor prescribing shit he shouldn't to a non employee

 

[Perth Tiger]

Another scandal the journos have managed to uncover days before a big event! How lucky they are that there investigations always conclude right at the most opportune time.

 

[T-Boon]

Ah I think it's the extent to which the club tries to cover up by failing to report and then the club doctor prescribing shit he shouldn't to a non employee

Nobody would click on that story.
This racist old white woman McClymont should be sued by everyone in the story.
"commited a sexual act" haha. What terminology.

 

[Canard]

Another scandal the journos have managed to uncover days before a big event! How lucky they are that there investigations always conclude right at the most opportune time.

TBF, the parties involved only lodged a complaint on 25 September this year.

So if anything it's quite timely reporting