Flegler to take on Storm’s hard men
NRL lawyers have finally drafted the new rules to enforce stand-down sanctions on accused rapist Jack de Belin and other alleged bad boys who have brought the game to its knees.
The Sunday Territorian has obtained a copy of the NRL legal document that will go to the Federal court on Thursday in the hope of rubbing de Belin out of the game until his court proceedings have been dealt with.
The game has been under attack since Federal Court judge Justice Steven Rares ruled last Thursday the NRL had no right to stand down the St George Illawarra forward because the ‘no fault’ policy was not yet officially in place.
Lawyers have since worked for 48 hours to draft the new rules.
The revamped player contract reads:
“If a player is charged with a serious criminal offence, he will be automatically subject to a No-Fault Stand Down Condition.
“The chief executive officer or the chief operating officer shall as soon as practicable after a player is charged with a serious criminal offence provide a notice in writing to the player confirming the appli- cation of the No-Fault Stand Down Condition and the effect of that condition.
“While the charge remains unresolved would: (i) Be detrimental to; (ii) Bring into disrepute; (iii) Be inconsistent with; (iv) Be contrary to; and/or (v) Be prejudicial to, the best interests, image and welfare of the NRL, the NRL competition, the representative competitions, the related compe- BRONCOS bolter Tom Flegler says he won’t be intimidated by Melbourne’s pack as the teenage front-rower braces for a daunting debut against the star-studded Storm this Thursday night.
Flegler will confront the biggest test of his rugby league career in the season-opener, with the 19-year-old to be tested by Melbourne front-row giants Jesse Bromwich and Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
Anthony Seibold also makes his debut as Broncos coach at AAMI Park and will be banking on the 105kg frame of Flegler to provide some punch against the NRL’s best team of the past decade.
There is surely no more brutal assignment for a rookie front-rower than facing 202cm Asofa-Solomona and Kiwi Test star Bromwich but Flegler feels calm before the Storm.
“I’ll back myself,” said Flegler, who clinched his Broncos debut following three impressive trials against Souths Logan, Wynnum Manly and NRL rivals the Titans.
“There is a heap of stuff I need to improve on, so I know I’ve got a long way to go.
“But I’ve always wanted to play NRL. I try to run hard and tackle hard.
“He (Seibold) has told me to be consistent. That’s a big one for me ... that’s what I need to work on this season.”
Broncos insiders are not surprised by Flegler’s meteoric rise.
Ever since Brisbane scouts laid eyes on the 190cm hulk from the North Queensland town of Tully, they believed Flegler had the ability to become a Test and Origin star.
Representative football is the last thing on Flegler’s mind ahead of his Storm showdown, but he has the tools to get there. titions and the other competitions or is likely to impair public confidence in them.”
The legal document was emailed to members of the independent commission on Friday night.
The commission will meet tomorrow to rubber stamp the policy that was introduced at the last meeting on February 28.