It's a Mother's Day plea that could end up in court: Rebecca Pope, Kieran Foran's ex-partner, wants the trolling to stop. Foran's return to Sydney can't come soon enough for Pope, and it's not just because she will have another set of hands to help with the couple's kids. Pope has been the victim of unrelenting abuse on social media and she has reached her wit's end.
This column has learnt Pope is now engaging a defamation lawyer in an effort to stop the comments.
Pope has been accused of having an affair with a former teammate of Foran and the suggestion has been that one of the couple's children is not Foran's. The false rumours were stated as fact on Sydney radio by Jackie O. After a legal letter to the radio station she made an on-air apology, but the damage has been done. The facts are these: Pope never cheated on Foran; the child is his; and Foran's overdose had nothing to do with his son. The trolling has been damaging to Pope, Foran and some former teammates.
We approached Pope for comment via a third party and Pope provided a statement, which reads: "Over the past year I have endeavoured to stay out of the media out of respect for my children, but there comes a point when enough is enough, when I can no longer just turn a blind eye to the malicious messages and comments made about myself and my son.
"The statement broadcast on the Kyle and Jackie O Show last April gave imputations of infidelity and questioned the paternity of Kieran and my son. These statements could not be any further from the truth. They are truly appalling.
"My son and I are being affected by these defamatory comments online on a weekly basis and it's been extremely upsetting to deal with.
"The reason I am making this statement is because I'm thinking of my son's future. He does not deserve to read such hurtful and disgusting lies. Both Kieran and I love him dearly."
The final straw came this week when Foran signed with the Bulldogs and she copped it again. The Bulldogs need to engage with Pope at some point; the relationship between Pope and Foran is vital to Foran's success.
Last week Foran had to juggle training with the New Zealand national side, time with his kids and meetings to work out the settlement of his relationship break-up.
Told you so: Bozo gets his man – as he always does
Cleary was never going to beat Fulton. Not many do.
The exit of Cleary, who quit on Friday, won't have any effect on the on-field performance of Trent Barrett's team.
In fact, it simply highlights the shifting role of chief executives in the modern game where the chairman and football general managers hold the big stick at most clubs, and even more so at Manly where the chairman, Scott Penn, is also the owner.
Manly have lost some very valuable back-room people. About eight have left. Something stinks in the front office. Manly have cleverly and quietly recruited well for its football department in recent times.
The highly respected Gareth Holmes is the new football manager and Quentin Pongia is the Sea Eagles' new welfare manager. They join the Barrett-Fulton team that is getting a settled and successful look. There have been whispers that former Sea Eagle, Wigan Super League premiership winner and now businessman Tony Mestrov and Andrew Hill are being looked at for the CEO role.
Suspended Kiwis captain Jesse Bromwich. Photo: Getty Images
Kiwi fiasco stark contrast to Roos
In the hours after the Sunday morning bender that landed Jesse Bromwich and Kevin Proctor in trouble, the Melbourne Storm were quick to jump down the throats of the Kiwi management regarding their apparent lack of supervision. And without inside knowledge of what happened, it was an easy conclusion to make.
But here are some of the facts. The players and families were asked back to the team hotel after New Zealand's Test loss to Australia in Canberra. They were given a late dinner – 11.30pm – where no alcohol was served and players were told they were required at a recovery session the following morning.
And here is the key point: Bromwich was told point blank not to go out and not to drink.
Who told him? The NZ team doctor. Bromwich was given medication by the doctor after the game and told drinking alcohol was the worst thing he could do if he took it. Proctor was given no such instruction.
Some members of the team left camp as they had family commitments, and only a few went out. Most of the team found out about the allegations of cocaine usage when the details hit the media.
New Zealand coach David Kidwell tried, without luck, for hours to speak to his captain. It's no wonder Kidwell drove the decision to stand down both players from the Rugby League World Cup at the end of the year. Whatever culture Kidwell is trying to build would have been destroyed if Bromwich was part of the team.
As it is, the Kiwis are at rock bottom. Their past two displays against Australia have been listless and inept. And Kidwell is under the pump. Anything less than a hardline approach wold have been unacceptable.
It's a distinct contrast to what's going on in the Australian camp. Coach Mal Meninga's approach to the Kangaroos – where the players are treated like adults and given ownership of the team – is continuing to work. I saw it first-hand on the Kangaroos tour at the end of last year and I've never seen a team function better.
Meninga surrounds himself with good people, such as former Newcastle, Parramatta and Queensland coach Michael Hagan and former Queensland half Adrian Lam, and delegates where he needs to. But Meninga steps in when he thinks the team needs a blast. His coaching and team management is a lesson for others in representative teams.
Nosy Parker
Corey Parker is one of Brisbane's favourite sons, but there are people at the Broncos who now don't want him to have a close connection with players. Not because he has done anything wrong, but because he has been acting as a talent recruiter for player manager Isaac Moses.
It's an odd job to be doing for someone who played more than 300 games for the Broncos.
One for good guys
Bulldogs star Moses Mbye is one of the genuine good guys of the NRL. He trained with the Strathfield Raiders under 10s and then ran the water for the team in their recent match-up with Leichhardt Wanderers. Mbye lives an hour's drive away and did it without any thought of being praised for doing so. The opposition team were so impressed with Moses they wrote a letter lauding him.
At a time when rugby league is copping it for players and officials using drugs, it's worth remembering plenty of good is done.
Former NRL star Craig Wing. Photo: Getty Images
Beyond Infinity
Craig Wing works for Infinity Group Australia, the company that pulled its sponsorships of the Roosters and Sharks in the wake of last weekend's cocaine scandals.
Wing, a former Roosters player, has tried to convince the Roosters not to sue Infinity, but the Roosters say there is nothing in their deal that relates to negative publicity. Ironically, the boss of the company helped Shaun Kenny-Dowall buy an investment property in Brisbane.
The Sharks are privately happy they have parted ways with Infinity.
Smart thinking
Brad Fittler's alternative view of the world is always worth listening to. The City coach certainly made an impact on Paul Gallen during camp in the lead-up to the final City-Country clash.
Fittler is anti-phones and Gallen is often trolled on social media, something he sees on his phone too frequently. Gallen listened to Fittler and stopped reading what the keyboard warriors have been saying and has been enjoying life with a clearer head.
Code of silence
It's the cross-code romance that has rocked a rugby star and has the potential to end the marriage of an AFL official.
The girl in question worked in sport, in an area under the influence of the administrator. The rugby star learnt of the news in recent weeks, but it's unclear if he knows the full extent of his partner's relationship.
This column attempted to contact the rugby star, who found out about the affair when he received an anonymous email.
There are potential implications for the sporting body involved. We have told their media people about it and have tried to contact the involved parties.
Danny Weidler is a Channel Nine news reporter.
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