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Gal sent over the edge by Maroons fan
Paul Gallen has backgrounded the night he let rip with the now infamous tweet that cost him $50k, admitting he had been drinking fairly heavily before posting the message. Talking on Triple M, the Cronulla and NSW skipper revealed a disparaging remark by a Queensland fan on Instagram set him off initially.
"I was having photos with a lot of Australians over there (in Hawaii) and I had a photo with an Australian and it turned out he was from Queensland and he had a crack at me on the actual photo and that's what annoyed me.
"I went out and met 'Pearcey' (Mitchell Pearce) later on, had some drinks and one thing led to another and then this topic come up and it sort of got me upset. More drinks went on and as I was leaving the pub later on, I got heckled and I was just filthy.
"I was in Hawaii trying to get away from it all, got back into the hotel, looked at my phone, Noyce (Sharks CEO Steve Noyce) had been sacked. Noyce had been great for us players and it upset me.
"I wrote the tweet in the hotel foyer and by the time I got back to my room, I deleted it very quickly but unfortunately it had gotten out there.
"I went overseas to get away from it and to have to put up with that stuff over there, it just frustrated me, and I acted the wrong way."
The Saints start the march in
They may have been small in number but the 'Oust Oust Peter Doust' protest group made its presence felt after marching on St George Leagues Club on Saturday.
Around 30 diehard Dragons fans walked from a local restaurant to the club to voice their displeasure at CEO Peter Doust's performance in recent years and the demise of the Red V on his watch. Further protests are planned over the next few weeks and into next year.
"This is going to be a gradual build. We are going to hold another protest in W'gong probably on the 22nd and then another at Kogarah again on the 5th December," organiser Paul Zanus revealed on Facebook.
"We are planning on doing this right through the footy season and make some real noise...we don't want our club to keep falling behind all the others."
Willie be a good fit?
Manly did plenty of due diligence on Willie Mason before offering him a new one-year deal. The Sea Eagles wanted to make sure Mason was doing all the right things off the field at Newcastle before bringing him to Brookvale.
"We were a little surprised the Knights let him go as he was one of their best players last season so we just did our research," one Sea Eagles insider told us. "And apart from the drink-driving episode, Willie's been a model citizen and a really positive influence on the younger guys. We reckon he can have the same impact on our younger players."
When it was put to Mason that he seems to have toned down his off-field antics, he wisecracked: "I'm too old for that shit now."
Richie's innings continues but he may need a runner
Channel 9 icon Richie Benaud will be nursed through the summer of cricket in a nod to his age and health after revealing he is suffering from skin cancer. He told 9 at the station's season launch on Monday: "Quite a while ago (I started) radiation, and all sorts of things like that. (I'm) coping with it very well, the doctors are pleased everything is happening, but I'm going along slowly. The cancers need to be treated, and they're treating them in the right way, so just do our best."
The beige-jacketed legend turned 84 last month and is moving a lot slower these days, especially after a nasty car accident 12 months ago.
Benaud was front and centre of Channel 9's season launch at the SCG on Monday but didn't talk to the general media, shuffling slowly up the members' stairs for lunch. His days of travelling the country covering the cricket are over, with the former Australia captain likely to have short stints in the commentary box for the Sydney Test in January. Benaud has a 'job for life' at 9 and won't be pensioned off. It will be his call as to when his officially declares his innings closed.
Keen for loot
A happy punter won a tidy $2,020 for catching four balls in the innings break at Sunday's Twenty20 international at ANZ Stadium. But there was uproar in the press box when one alert official recognised the 'fan' as former NSW and current Blacktown first grade skipper Simon Keen.
The all-rounder was plucked out of the crowd by unaware officials and never looked like dropping a ball. It's not the first time Keen has cashed in from a last-minute call to duty. He replaced Nathan Bracken three days before the Blues' 2009 Champions League Twenty20 campaign. Keen played one game and pocketed $60,000 for his troubles as NSW won the tournament. He used it for a property deposit.