Proctor’s world has come crashing down
There’s one rule for footballers and one for rest of us
THE more professional sport becomes the more removed its players are from the real world.
The world where sensible people talk in real English, where they look in the mirror, admit their mistakes and fess up with the full story when they stuff up.
Could you or anyone you know have seriously tried the excuse that Kevin Proctor and Jesse Bromwich conjured after allegedly being caught on CCTV cameras with an alleged drug dealer.
“I could not remember what happened.’’
Really? The excuse might be half believable if they were lazing on a couch half asleep and were talking about an incident they caught out of the corner of their eye.
But there they were, in the Canberra CBD, fully upright, talking face-to-face with a man allegedly selling drugs. How could you possibly forget that?
Depending on who you are, that experience might be exciting, nerve-racking or shameful. But forgettable? No way.
Is there any danger these two men can tell the full story because until we know it the problem cannot be fully addressed?
If they were, as they said, too drunk to comprehend what was happening they are certainly quick drinkers. emma.greenwood@news.com.au KEVIN Proctor’s weekend bender has cost him a World Cup spot.
New Zealand Rugby League officials have banned the former Titans co-captain and their former Kiwi skipper Jesse Bromwich from selection in the sport’s most prestigious tournament.
And Proctor’s Gold Coast teammates have weighed in on the issue, with rising star Ash Taylor calling the actions of a man all the younger players looked up to “disappointing”.
Kiwi coach David Kidwell forecast the action before the NZRL announced the pair’s Cup ban yesterday afternoon.
“I can’t express my disappointment enough in their actions in the early hours of Saturday morning,” Kidwell said.
“We have values to uphold. They have broken my trust, their teammates’ trust and the trust of the New Zealand public.”
NZRL chief executive Alex Hayton, who on Sunday revealed the pair had left camp without revealing the incident to any team officials, said he agreed with the decision.
“The NZRL 100 per cent backs the decision not to consider these two men (for the World Cup),” Hayton said.
“We must uphold the values of the game.
“NZRL and the Kiwis will continue to work hard to ensure the people of New Zealand are proud to support our teams both on and off the field.”
Proctor’s full punishment will be determined by the end of the week.
The Titans board is set to meet tomorrow and a decision likely to be announced by the end of the week.
While the club is understandably furious at being linked with a drug culture two years after several players faced cocaine possession and supply charges following a Crime and Corruption Commission investigation, Proctor’s
The Test finished after 10pm and by the time they were showered and ready to hit the town it would have been around midnight.
People are still aghast that the Gold Coast Titans and Storm are angry there was not more supervision for their players.
I know the world always looks better in sepia but can you imagine bygone eras when players worked day jobs like builders and butchers needing it contract will not be torn up, with the second-rower likely to face only a few weeks on the sidelines.
Bromwich on Sunday accepted a two-match ban from the Melbourne Storm, as well as donating his Anzac Test match fee to charity and stepping down from roles as the Kiwi captain and part of the Melbourne Storm leadership group.
He will also be required to undergo counselling and treatment courses, something that Proctor is likely to face too.
It is also action that would be mandatory for both players if they were to receive a strike under the NRL’s illicit drugs policy, something that will not be made public.
Proctor has already voluntarily stood down from his position as Titans co-captain and this week’s game against his former club the Storm pending further punishment.
Taylor said news of Proctor’s actions were not good for the Gold Coast club.
“I think anyone would be disappointed with what’s come of it,” Taylor said.
“All us young players look up to him but to hear the news (he allegedly took cocaine) is not very good for himself or the club.
“But he’s taken the right actions for himself and he’s going to get his consequence and move on from it.” someone to hold their hands to make sure they got through the night.
It’s embarrassing but also explainable.
Professional sportsmen are micromanaged to within an inch of their lives these days and when that micromanagement has a night off all sorts of temptations come into play for the weak-minded.
As if the incident by itself is not embarrassing enough, only two days before it Bromwich is and Cameron Smith spoke jointly about the reasons why NRL players are pushing for more money in the next collective bargaining agreement.
Fancy asking for a pay rise when you carry on like that.
One of the key points of player unrest is concern over fixturing and tight turnarounds.
The question lingers ... if you have time to fit in an allnight bender how cramped can your schedule really be?