Latest news with #rugbyleague
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Tigers and NSW teammates rally around Sarah Togatuki after tragic loss of sister ahead of NRLW start
Wests Tigers players and staff rallied around Sarah Togatuki at her sister's funeral on Monday after the beloved NSW Origin forward returned to the care of her NRLW club over the weekend. The 27-year-old is being heralded for her bravery to play Origin III in Newcastle on Thursday night while dealing with the unspeakable tragedy of suddenly losing her older sister Jean days earlier. Tigers coach Brett Kimmorley said Togatuki will be given as much time off from club duties as she needs. 'She's loved and supported, what she's had to go through and fronted up last week to play Origin, she's an amazing person,' he said. 'We've got a great wellbeing person at our club, and we're a caring club who care about her. She's brought that respect on herself with her actions and who she is. We'll support and assist her in any way we can. 'Today was option for any of the players to go, and a number of them turned up to show her love and support.' Togatuki's courage has captured the hearts of the rugby league community, while NSW teammates and close friends have spoken about her inspirational character and the bond they share beyond representative teams heading into the NRLW season, which starts on July 3. 'Grief is a strange thing and they say time heals, but it doesn't. It's always hard to avoid but what Sala has been able to do is rally her community around her and her team around her,' said Canberra captain and close friend Simaima Taufa. 'What we've been able to do is have our arms wide open for her. 'Sala knows that far beyond this game we're bonded, and she can lean on us. She's got a community. 'Moving forward it's just about moving onto our NRLW clubs and making sure we're around her. The great thing about this game is wherever we go, wherever we are, we're all connected. 'That's something that can't be taken away from us. I can't praise Sala enough for her strength. She's the bravest person I know.' Meanwhile, the Blues celebrated the series win despite losing game three in Newcastle last week, with most players returning to their NRLW clubs to officially begin their pre-season over the weekend. NRLW trials will kick off over the coming weeks, including the Tigers playing Dragons at Leichhardt Oval on June 22. 'The great thing about NSW is the pathways, the girls are always pushing us for spots, so we have to take what we've learned here and take it back to our NRLW clubs and bring that next person up,' Taufa said. 'This game is far bigger than us.'
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘He might have cried': Nathan Cleary braces for ‘weird' showdown with Jarome Luai as great mates prepare for first NRL meeting
Nathan Cleary has beaten Jarome Luai in a World Cup final and recalls being part of 'the biggest upset in junior footy history' when they were teenagers coming through the Penrith system, but on Sunday the great mates will come up against each other for the first time in the NRL. 'It will be weird,' Cleary said after leading Penrith to victory over Parramatta on Sunday with a couple of huge plays in the final 20 minutes. Cleary and Luai were the Batman and Robin for so long, with the pair putting on the cape time and time again to thwart any team foolish enough to get in their way at the business end of the season. They won four premierships together and formed a bond for life as one of the most successful halves pairings in rugby league history, but the band has broken up with Luai now at the Wests Tigers where he's gone from the support act to the main man. It's been an interesting few months apart, with the Panthers finally getting off the bottom of the table, while Luai has seen halves partner Lachlan Galvin leave to join the Bulldogs. It sets up an enthralling clash on Sunday between two teams separated by just one point where two best friends will line up against each other for the first time since Australia beat Samoa in the 2022 World Cup final. 'I think there's just always that mutual respect there,' Cleary said. 'We don't talk all the time, but whenever we do or whenever we see each other, it's always love. You'll never be able to take away what we've been able to achieve together. It's always respect and love whenever we see each other. 'The last time I remember playing him was the World Cup final and before that, we would've been about 16 (when) he was playing for St Marys and I was playing for Brothers (Penrith). 'We had a few duels back then but obviously it's been a long time. I'm looking forward to it. 'He's an outstanding player and you want to test yourself against the best. It will be a bit weird at NRL level but I'm looking forward to it.' Cleary remembers enjoying a shock victory over Luai back when they were kids. 'I do remember probably the biggest upset in junior footy history, we beat them one day and they were stacked. They were so good. He might have cried,' Cleary laughed. 'I'm not sure that'll happen again. 'They used to beat us just about 50-0 every time they played us and one day we got them.' The battle of the sevens will test how far Luai has come as a chief playmaker, with the Samoan star taking the reins at Penrith last year when Cleary was injured. And while he'll want his footy to do the talking, Cleary won't be shocked if Luai's sharp tongue fires up on Sunday. 'Maybe, we'll see (if there's chirp). I don't really start the chirp but if he starts it then we'll see how it is,' he said. 'Last year really prepped him well for this year. His hands are on the ball a lot for the Tigers at the moment. Why wouldn't you? He's such a great player. 'Just his energy alone has lifted a lot of players around him. That's probably his greatest asset. 'I tune in for the Tigers boys I know well, obviously Tito (Sunia Turuva), Terrell May and Romey (Luai) in particular. 'I always enjoy watching them and keeping an eye out on them. It's been good to see them playing some good footy, particularly when they've got momentum, they're one of the best teams in the comp.' Sunday's showdown will be Cleary's second game back after helping the Blues to a pivotal win in the State of Origin opener in Brisbane. It was an emotional return for a man who missed last year's series through injury, and while he ran the ball brilliantly, Cleary had a very rare off night with the boot as he sprayed several conversions that he would normally nail. The Cleary of old would have obsessed over that and spent the next few days trying to fix everything at training, but he limited himself to 15 attempts on Saturday to not overstrain his hamstrings. It paid off as he landed two clutch conversions from out wide to go with a late 40/20 to see off the Eels. 'I think that's where a bit of evolution has come in,' he said, adding that 'physical reps become embedded in the subconscious' after so many years of practice. 'In the past I would have had as many kicks as I could (on Saturday), but being a bit older and looking after my body, I didn't have too many kicks. 'I need to have a few to flush it a bit, but I can rely on the training I've done. I've kicked so many goals in my life that I can take confidence out of that and rely on that a bit more. 'I just wanted to slow down a bit, and I'm glad that I had a few pressure kicks today so I could practise them.'
News.com.au
2 days ago
- General
- News.com.au
Michael Maguire's post-game move raises eyebrows with Broncos coach ‘feeling the pressure'
Brisbane coach Michael Maguire moved his post-match address away from TV cameras after the disappointing loss to the Sea Eagles. For veteran rugby league reporter Phil Rothfield, it showed Maguire is feeling the pressure and the Broncos are 'in a world of pain' after becoming the flops of the 2025 season. Trailing 22-6 at halftime, Maguire addressed his players in front of the cameras, hoping to inspire a comeback. Instead, the Broncos were unable to conjure any further points and conceded two more tries, with Maguire relocating his post-game address to his struggling squad. 'After the game... Michael Maguire broke the normal practice of addressing the side in the dressing room. He didn't want anything on (the coverage),' Rothfield said on the Big Sports Breakfast. 'They've got that little TV camera inside every NRL dressing room. So they took them to a private area and did it behind closed doors. 'Is that a sign of a man who is feeling the pressure? I think it is. He didn't want a repeat, that (2021 documentary) Tales from Tiger Town, that didn't show the best side of Madge. 'There's talk that his hard-arse coaching methods, that he does have a deteriorating relationships with the players. 'They've lost six of their last seven, I think the Broncos are the biggest story in rugby league right now. They've been the flops so far. 'It's not as if they are just getting beaten, they are playing just terrible aren't they? They were blown off the park by a Manly side without Jake and Tom Trbojevic.' The Broncos now sit in 11th place, with questions once again being raised regarding Maguire's notoriously tough coaching methods. In May, former enforcer Martin Taupau left the club after liking a social media post from retired NRL star Elijah Taylor which criticised Maguire's coaching style. Taylor's post that was liked by Taupau included three reasons why the Broncos weren't delivering despite having a host of multimillion dollar stars, whilst also touching on Maguire's 'intensity'. Rothfield also pointed to the Broncos' elite squad, which boasts the likes of Payne Haas, Reece Walsh, Adam Reynolds, Ben Hunt and Kotoni Staggs. 'The bottom line is the blowtorch will stay on Madge because he has a premiership-winning roster there... that is a side that should be at the top of the ladder,' Rothfield said. 'I'm not sure the Broncos are playing for Madge. Do you blame Madge? Do you blame the under performing players? Does Madge need to change his ways and drop a bit of intensity? 'I don't know, I just know they are in a world of pain and have a really tough draw coming up. The way they are going they won't make the top eight.' Meanwhile, Melbourne great Ryan Hoffman — who was coached by Maguire in an assistant capacity at the Storm — put the heat back on the Broncos players. 'They've been extremely disappointing. They showed a lot of promise at the start of the year with their new coach in Michael Maguire taking a harder-nosed stance than his predecessor Kevin Walters,' Hoffman said on ABC's Offsiders. 'He was criticised a bit for not being tough enough to the players. Now Michael Maguire's been accused of being too tough. 'I don't think it's a coaching issue at Brisbane, to be quite honest. I think play to understand that it's a hard game and they need to harden themselves up because that was a really lacklustre performance from the Broncos last night. 'The rest of the NRL expects the Broncos to be up the top. 'I've been coached by Michael Maguire before. I know that he is a successful coach. But you need to buy into what he's about. 'He's going to breed a tough football team, but you've got to train tough to be tough. 'Look, I'm going to back Michael Maguire in. I think he's a very good coach. I think he's what Brisbane Broncos need. 'I think the players themselves need to understand that 'this is what we need right now, we need to buy into what he's about'.'
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Rugby league honours: Anger at no knighthoods in 130 years
Rugby league authorities say their players have been "poorly treated" by the honours system, as pressure grows for a first knighthood or damehood for the sport has gone 130 years without such an honour."It is surprising and disappointing that the relevant authorities have still not deemed anyone worthy of a knighthood or damehood for their services to rugby league," said a spokesperson for the Rugby Football League, which governs the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, added his voice, telling BBC News the lack of rugby league knighthoods "cannot be right" when other sports, including rugby union, have had such honours "quite regularly". The leader of a cross-party group of MPs who support rugby league has suggested the "scandal" of the lack of top honours for stars of the sport was linked to snobbery and class prejudice."This, I suspect, is because they come from working class backgrounds, didn't go to the right schools, and didn't mix in the right social circles," said David Baines, chair of the all-party Parliamentary rugby league group."Well enough is enough. It's 2025, and myself and other MPs are clear it's time for things to change."Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who is a former president of the Rugby Football League, said: "Rugby league has a long and proud history and is littered with examples of players who have excelled in the sport and inspired future generations to play the game."He says there is something wrong when the sport "cannot boast one single player, over its 130-year history, who has received a knighthood". "I want to see rugby league given the recognition it deserves and hope this will be addressed in the near future," said the contrast, rugby union, often seen as having more middle class roots, has been getting knighthoods for more than 100 years. Among more recent rugby knights was Sir Bill Beaumont, awarded "for services to rugby union football" in have been many other sporting knighthoods and damehoods, including in athletics, yachting, football, golf, tennis, horse racing, cycling and rowing. Next weekend will see the sport's showcase Challenge Cup Final at Wembley speaking on behalf of the MPs' rugby league group, Mr Baines said the lack of such an honour for rugby league was an unfairness to "some of Britain's greatest sporting heroes".That included "legends of the game who overcame racial and class prejudice such as Billy Boston and Clive Sullivan, to modern heroes on and off the pitch like Kevin Sinfield," said Mr Baines. England star Kevin Sinfield has raised more than £10m running for causes related to motor neurone disease, in memory of his late teammate Rob Boston was a celebrated Welsh-born rugby league player from the 1950s and 1960s, who is now aged 90. A petition was launched earlier this year to award him a knighthood."We do believe rugby league has historically been poorly treated in terms of recognition in various ways, including honours lists," said a spokesman for the Rugby Football have been honours, such as CBEs and OBEs, but no knighthoods. The Prince of Wales personally gave Kevin Sinfield and Rob Burrow their CBEs last year at the ground in Leeds where they used to play.A BBC analysis earlier this year revealed that a disproportionately low number of top honours, such as knighthoods and damehoods, were going to people from the north of England and working class backgrounds - which overlaps with the rugby league the most recent New Year Honours only 6% of higher awards went to people in the north of England and 4% to people from working-class government has recognised there are problems with under-representation in the honours and an independent chair is being recruited to improve diversity and outreach."The government wants to ensure that the honours system reflects the diversity of UK society. Anyone can nominate someone who has made an exceptional contribution to be recognised," said a government spokesman. Sign up here to get the latest royal stories and analysis every week with our Royal Watch newsletter. Those outside the UK can sign up here.
News.com.au
6 days ago
- General
- News.com.au
Nathan Cleary's State of Origin struggles laid bare despite NSW Game 1 triumph
Nathan Cleary will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest halfbacks to ever play rugby league, but Wednesday's State of Origin performance has done little to change the narrative around his State of Origin credentials. Heading into this series there were discussions around not picking Cleary after Mitchell Moses and Jarome Luai led the Blues to the Origin shield in 2024. However, in the end, he and Moses got the nod, with Luai the casualty, despite the crafty playmaker always being a top Origin performer. The same can't be said for Cleary, however. Despite winning four premierships in a row, Cleary still hasn't dominated a series like he has done at club level and has never won an Origin decider. And on Wednesday night, he was hardly a standout in what was a dominant Blues performance as they ran out 18-6 winners. In the player ratings column on Code Sports, Cleary was rated a 5/10. 'Had the classy double-pump for Zac Lomax's second try but it was another underwhelming display from the game's best halfback,' the column read in regards to Cleary. 'Even his trusty goalkicking betrayed him, and the late field goal attempt was bad. Busted eight tackles, but will he ever own Origin?' While Cleary struggled to assert his superiority on Wednesday night, his halves partner Moses was excellent in both attack and defence. The Eels star's kicking game, defensive reads and overall ball playing was solid, while Cleary's performance was what could be best described as rocks and diamonds, producing moments of brilliance and then others that were incredibly poor. Cleary has won four premierships in a row, claimed the Clive Churchill Medal twice, won a World Cup has been a part of three successful Origin campaigns and is on track for a fourth — but is yet to put together a memorable series display. And it is something that even his dad and club coach Ivan Cleary says the halfback must improve on if he is to be considered one of the best of all time. 'He's looking to improve. I know he can improve. He's only 26, he's had all that experience under his belt which he's been able to use to his advantage,' Cleary told Code Sports last year. 'But he's far from the finished product. He knows that. Probably the obvious one is Origin, he knows he wants to be more consistent in that area. He's had some good moments, but in other moments he knows he can step up there, or prove. Probably the whole team can, but he definitely can. He's still trying to work it out.' So why doesn't Nathan Clary have the same impact in Origin? State of Origin is arguably the highest-quality game on the NRL calendar. It features almost all of the best players in the league and sees the smallest mistakes routinely punished. Not only that but playmakers are under extra pressure and the game is played at a higher intensity. So Cleary, who at times looks like he has the ball on a string, is often the one put under the most pressure by rushing defenders. The 27-year-old also has strike weapons everywhere at his disposal at Origin level, which means running the ball is not the best option nine times out of ten. At clubland, he also touches the ball almost every tackle, whereas in Origin he shares the responsibility with several other superstars. That means the playmaker has fewer chances to have an impact. It is a different scenario when playing for Penrith where he regularly puts the team on his shoulders. Cleary knows to go down as an Origin great he must do more, but says he is more focused on just doing his job. 'At the end of the day I just want to put my best foot forward for the team and ensure we get a win,' he told ahead of Game 1. 'I don't think too much about being an Origin great, it's about putting my best foot forward at training and then in the Game 1 want to be at my best and elevate those around me.' However, despite his failure to be a standout performer, commentator Warren Smith defended Cleary, writing on X. 'This notion that Nathan Cleary is yet to 'own' #Origin is a fantasy football mentality gone mad. 'It's like thinking there's an agenda against Terrell May because his numbers were so good he had to be picked. 'Cleary was 8/10 last night & his team won. It's Origin, not SuperCoach.' But others were not convinced, labelling him 'overrated'. 'Another game where Nathan Cleary didn't dominate origin….,' one fan wrote. 'Another half of origin football that proves to me Nathan Cleary is vastly overrated outside of club footy,' another said. 'Why is it that every time Nathan Cleary wears NSW Blue he turns into Jack Cogger?' a third added.
