Easy pickings for Andrew Webster.
Isn't being given a drunk diversion notice 6 months after the last incident enough for the nrl/ broncos to take action?
"self-imposed" alcohol ban. lol. what the hell did he take away from the thai rehab resort? green curry?
James Roberts handed final warning by NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg
Roberts was read the riot act by Greenberg and integrity unit boss Nick Weeks. Later that day, the NRL issued a statement explaining how it could not take action against Roberts over allegations he pulled a woman's hair at a Gold Coast nightclub after the Magic Millions.
Because the nightclub did not release CCTV footage, and witnesses refused to give evidence, Roberts was not sanctioned. This is fair enough.
It's also understood senior investigator Karyn Murphy – a former high-ranking policewoman who doesn't pull any punches – spent five days on the Gold Coast and left uncertain if the incident even took place.
Yet Greenberg had the same concerns as many others in the game – excluding, it seems, the Broncos, who are more than happy for Roberts to play this season with a self-imposed alcohol ban as his "first step" towards recovery.
The NRL and clubs carry on about player welfare. It's the new buzz term of the game. The Broncos have undermined that this week.
Roberts has already been booted from two clubs because of a string of alcohol-related offences.
There's this doozy about his departure from Souths. The final straw came when he finished a training session at Redfern Oval, and then proceeded to a nearby pub and started drinking in his training gear.
We won't elaborate on what happened next but an incident that occurred while he was still in his training gear, captured on CCTV footage, was enough for the club to sack him.
So he went to Penrith. General manager Phil Gould has put together many broken souls over the years, and could see the unbelievable potential in Roberts. Thurston-like is how Gus once described him to me, such is Roberts' raw ability.
Then another alcohol-related incident occurred and he had to go.
When Roberts was thrown a lifeline by the Gold Coast Titans, he said: "I don't feel like it's my last chance, I feel like it's my best chance". He was also placed on a 12-month alcohol ban.
In 2015, he showed everyone what he was capable of. Then he walked out on the Gold Coast, using a minor stuff up with his Titans contract to join the Broncos under Wayne Bennett.
On August 17 last year, he was issued with a fine for public nuisance after he allegedly abused a female member of the bar staff at the Normanby Hotel near the Brisbane CBD.
Bouncers reportedly placed him in a choke hold, he passed out, and when he came to he got up, dusted himself off and went to another pub.
With the finals looming, he wasn't suspended but slugged $20,000 and ordered to undergo a "well being plan".
In September, he checked himself into a Thai rehab clinic and returned to training … only to find himself on the drink again at the Magic Millions, the popular race meeting on the Gold Coast held in the second week of January.
Does anyone else see a pattern here? Does anyone else believe the best course of action for Roberts is to not play football and take time out to properly deal with the very serious alcohol problem that is destroying his life and career?
We could debate for weeks the punitive action that should be taken against him, but what about doing the best for the individual? That player welfare stuff that's jammed down our throats.
The timing of all this is fitting. If there is one person Roberts should speak to, it is Mitchell Pearce.
Exactly a year ago, the Roosters captain was involved in his infamous and drunken Australia Day poodle scandal. He was rubbed out for eight weeks and slapped with a $125,000 fine. He didn't break the law – he just embarrassed the code and his club.
His punishment was far too heavy in comparison to other players who have erred in the last year. Corey Norman pleads guilty to drug possession and sends out a sex tape on social media. He receives an eight-week ban but only a $20,000 fine? Go figure.
As those close to Pearce tell you, though, he's come out the other side a better man. As those who are recovering from alcohol issues will also tell you, you're at war with yourself each day.
Roberts doesn't need a last-last-last-final warning as much as time to sort his life out.
The Broncos – who are so short on centres they are going to play Benji Marshall there – will tell you the day-to-day routine of football can only help him.
Yep. Sure. Because it's really helped him so far.
