Written by An unnamed Parramatta NRL (National Rugby League) player has apparently been filmed having consensual sex with a woman in a public bathroom in a leaked video earlier this week. This footage was obtained by a third party allegedly present at the time.
Catharine Lumby, leading gender advisor, has slammed ARL commission chairman Peter V’landys on his seemingly apathetic attempts to deal with the culture that exists within the NRL that would arguably seem to support this behavior.
Ms Lumby has gone on record to say that the “cultural reckoning on the issue of sexual assault and harassment of women in Australia” that the country is currently going through is not extending to the inner culture of the NRL as an organization, and she blames this on V’landys and his attitude. She championed earlier demonstrations of football players’ active involvement in this awakening but says now that has all but dissipated. Lumby had been engaged to provide counsel on a pro-bono basis by former politician and Australian Rugby League Commission Chairman (2017-2019), Peter Beattie, after the scandalous incidents prior to the 2019 season which included the highly embarrassing Tyrone May and Dylan Napa sex videos.
Lumby has included NRL CEO Andrew Abdo in her criticism of poor cultural management within the NRL and has implied that attitudes towards woman have taken an alarming step backwards under their direction.
In a seemingly strange course change however, Lumby has been accused by NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller as having defended the actions of rugby league player Paul Haas’ after his shocking verbal assault and threats of violence against police officers last month including his outburst to a female officer; “Cause you’re a woman you think I won’t touch ya.” and his threats to ‘bash’ her. Lumby’s call for ‘cultural’ consideration in this case seems incongruous with her other dealings with the NRL, who are citing Lumby as the reason for the tension now existing between NSW police and the NRL. Andrew Abdo has declared in his return shot that: “We won’t be worried about culture, we won’t be worried about gender if you break the law in NSW you will be punished.”
For his part V’landys has accused Lumby of point scoring; “She just seeks attention … she is not a spokesperson, she doesn’t represent us”. In itself this statement could be deemed condescending and arrogant, but what of the actual issue; the denigration of women and the culture that allows, or even encourages it? Do the arguments between the warring parties eclipse the actual matter in hand? Ultimately Lumby, V’landys, and Abdo seem more intent in attacking each other than dealing with the actual issues that are of concern to Australian sporting culture and the image of the NRL.
NRL: rugby league, Payne Haas, Mick Fuller, Catharine Lumby (news.com.au)
NRL boss distances game from so-called ‘gender advisor’ amid outrage – 2GB
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