Media executive John Hartigan has savaged the NRL for allowing Kieran Foran back into the game, lifting the lid on the troubled footballer's abusive texts and phone call to his late wife Rebecca Wilson.
"That abuse caused great hurt and pain to my wife in the last days of her life," said Hartigan, who called police following the alleged threats. "It appears the NRL has given him the green light despite his behaviour. If they really have standards, for the sake of having a supposed star in the mix, they've dropped the flag."
Foran's contract with the Warriors has been registered and he will be allowed to take the field in round three provided he passes a psychological assessment and adheres to a set of strict conditions.
It's a stunning backflip from the NRL, which had given every indication in the last six months that it was unlikely Foran would take the field at all in 2017 as he dealt with "mental illness".
Apart from being implicated in a match-fixing investigation alongside his punting mate Eddie Hayson, Foran's abuse of Wilson – the Daily Telegraph columnist who lost her battle with cancer in October – had also been a key issue for integrity unit boss Nick Weeks and his team.
Evidently, not so much now with Foran walking back into the game without sanction because it's "what's best for Kieran".
"He sent her a text first and it was just horrible – it was just sickening," Hartigan said. "She didn't get unsettled too often but this left her really distraught. Then he rang and started abusing her again, that's when I pulled the phone off her and I said, 'if you want to threaten someone, threaten me but don't threaten my wife'.
"She felt so distraught that she rang a contact at the police, and then we had two detectives in the house. We wanted him told that under no circumstances can he contact her with that disgusting nature of his threats. They said, 'No, you have to give a statement and press charges'. Bec didn't want to press charges, she just wanted him to be warned off."
Those who knew Bec understood how tough she was. She had her car tyres slashed and received appalling hate mail as she doggedly pursued some of sport's biggest stories. None of it seemed to worry her.
But I vividly recall how rattled she was the day after Foran had called her. She informed NRL boss Todd Greenberg. Foran was still contracted to the Eels, so she also phoned coach Brad Arthur. She was eventually interviewed by the integrity unit's chief investigator, Karyn Murphy, who showed great compassion.
Wilson was one of the first to know about Foran's break-up with partner Rebecca Pope and the dramatic impact it was having on his football career. Foran had contacted her about it and Wilson had agreed not to run the story for the sake of all involved.
In allowing Foran to play, the NRL again shines a light on its own hypocrisy. It slaps Mitchell Pearce with an eight-match ban and $125,000 suspension for some drunken madness involving a poodle caught on camera, but allows Foran to walk away from Parramatta and then back into a juicy deal with the Warriors.
It makes all the right noises about domestic violence and the abuse of women – but let's this abuse of Wilson just slide. We wonder what its stance would be if Rebecca were here to defend herself.
The NRLÂ was mostly worried about Foran's involvement in the NSW Crime Commission's investigation into alleged match-fixing. By allowing him to play, head office clearly believes its going nowhere and that Foran won't have a case to answer.
Meanwhile, Warriors boss Jim Doyle should stop beating his chest about finally getting his man.
Parramatta are making no comment about the Foran situation, but some are privately seething that he's been allowed to walk back in. They are particularly bemused at Doyle's comments to Fairfax Media that, "I wouldn't have released him".
A quick recap of what actually went down …
Foran had been breached for not attending sessions on his busted shoulder. They were also furious that he was spending time with Hayson in Brisbane, instead of the rehab clinic where he was supposedly dealing with his mental issues.
The Eels wanted him to go away and sort his life out, but Foran was adamant he wanted a release on compassionate grounds so he could take "indefinite leave".
He was given it, didn't have to front the integrity unit on a range of issues including the Wilson incident, and will now miss just two matches of the 2017 season before snapping up a nice, fat contract with the Warriors.
Sounds fair to me ...
Hackett's ongoing battle
This column has known Grant Hackett for most of his career, and an exchange of text messages with the fallen Olympian on Wednesday night was, well, just sad.
It came soon after he was released without charge by Gold Coast police following a disturbance at his parents' house. To say Hackett's hurting would be an understatement.
That said, his attack via Instagram on his brother, Craig, in which he posted a selfie with a bloodied eye, was uncalled for.
It was from early January, not in the last couple of days, and occurred during an incident in which Hackett was said to be under the influence of prescription drugs.
Under the spotlight: Paul Carter was thirsty on Saturday night. Photo: Getty Images
Fair dinkum avenue
Declaring that you are "off the grog" is always fraught with danger. The problem comes when people see you well and truly "on the grog".
Roosters recruit Paul Carter declared in a newspaper story on Monday that it had been 218 days since he touched a drink.
"I'm still off the drink and I'm happier that way too," said Carter, who has been cut in the past by the Titans and Souths because of behavioural issues. "When some people get too drunk, they do things they wouldn't do if they were sober. With me, I can't afford to do that with the position I'm in."
As those who saw Carter doing his best at the Coogee Pavilion on Saturday night tell you, maybe there had been a misprint. Perhaps it should've been 218 minutes instead of 218 days.
The good and the bad
Last month, I received a torrent of angry messages from some readers following a column about the Twenty20 phenomenon and while it's all well and good the baggy green must always be the priority.
Tweeted one: "This Andrew Webster f---wit is the biggest d---head in Aussie sports 'journalism'. If you don't like BBL, then please just f--- off."
I really like the Big Bash, baby, but I prefer Test cricket. Call me old-fashioned – or some of those other nouns you like to use.
Thankfully, we received a lovely handwritten letter from the retired Australian and NSW leg-spinner Peter Philpott this week and it read, in part: "The short version of the game is certainly not the way for youngsters to learn cricket. Cricket is like chess, 50-over cricket is draughts and Twenty20 is Snakes and Ladders … Snakes and Ladders is not a satisfactory way to learn chess, but it is probably more popular, primarily because all the subtleties and complexities of chess are not there. It is simply mindless fun requiring little sustained and self-discipline – the ultimate skills for success in cricket."
Mr Philpott, you are officially my new favourite person. (I tried to call your mobile, but with no luck. Happy to speak at any time.)
THE QUOTE
"I want to have a press conference, and I want him to apologise to me and the fans. There's a swimming pool full of water; it takes a while when you drain it." — Knicks legend Charles Oakley isn't quite ready to move on from his feud with team owner James L Dolan.
THUMBS UP
"My greatest pain in life," Kanye West once said, "is that I will never be able to see myself perform live." This must be the same pain superstar mare Winx feels. Her win in the Apollo Stakes at Randwick on Monday was arguably her greatest. It's going to be a big year ...
THUMBS DOWN
There's a very good reason why the World Club Series could only attract one NRL team this year – because it's a silly tournament. For all the footy crammed into an already bulging schedule, it's understandable clubs are reluctant to travel to England two weeks out from the season.
It's a big weekend for … the Swifts and Giants, who will meet at Sydney Olympic Park on Saturday night in the season opener of the new Suncorp Super Netball competition.
It's an even bigger weekend for … Mark Nicholas, who on Friday makes his long-awaited return to the Channel Nine commentary box following a mystery illness, starting with the first of the Twenty20 internationals between Australia and Sri Lanka.
Standout: Kristy De Pellegrini (far right) is ready to make an impact. Photo: Janie Barrett
We speak to the GWS Giants defender ahead of the AFLW clash with Fremantle in Blacktown on Saturday.
The thing that stands out about the league so far is its physicality. Fair comment?
It's very physical. A lot of people doubt our ability. We've had questions before about the physicality but it's up there. Most people get excited about girls belting each other. Everyone loves it. I'm known for my physicality. I'm a body contact kind of player. At this level, the girls are stronger and fitter so it's harder to make an impact.
You're doing an electrical apprenticeship?
Sure am. I'm in my fourth year at the moment. I have six months left of that before I am qualified. I work Monday to Friday, and then to training, so I am very busy.
Is it correct you were halfway up a ladder when you discovered you had been drafted?
I was. I took my lunch break early so I could watch the draft on my phone. I didn't expect to be drafted because I missed most of last year with injury. I went back to work and I was listening while I was on my ladder and my name came up.
What do the other tradies on the job site say?
Most of them know about I play. Some of them have come and seen me play before. I did a TV interview on-site the other day, and a few of the boys were like, 'what's going on here?'
I have to ask: the purple hair. That's a signature look right there.
It's a nice contrast to the orange. It makes it pop more. I saw a photo online and I wanted it and I've just kept it.
You're from Victoria initially. I have to ask who your club is ...
Essendon! I'm a Bombers girl. Dustin Fletcher, I just loved him off the back. He's a legend.
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