News Jackson Topine takes Bulldogs to court

[D0GMATIC]

Yes but in this instance the manager has a player on his books that is going through legal action with his club arguing his career is ruined and can not play ever again. And they had no foresight to remove him from the marketing mail? This is another level of incompetence.

It wasn’t incompetence, it was a last gasp effort to play nrl,and when that didn't work. Change tak

 

[Howie B]

What Truly Occurs at NRL Training Sessions: Nudie Runs, Sleep Deprivation and Chilli Eating

Clubs across the National Rugby League (NRL) continue to grapple with the challenge of instilling discipline among team members. Traditional financial penalties remain common, yet a range of other punitive measures have emerged; methods varying from club to club, aimed at making an indelible impact beyond merely denting the wallet.



News this week of a $4 million claim launched by lawyers representing Jackson Topine, a former player with the Canterbury Bulldogs, has ignited fresh discussion about the ways in which clubs enforce discipline. Allegedly, Topine had been made to wrestle between 30-35 teammates as a disciplinary measure following his late arrival for training; a sanction, however, that Canterbury and head trainer Travis Touma have not yet responded to in defence.
The nature of this claim has raised pertinent inquiries about the ways clubs within the NRL discipline players for falling short of team expectations. This method of personal responsibility, especially for individual players letting down team morale, has been a long-standing fixture within the professional rugby league‘s culture.

Several current and former players have – under the cloak of anonymity – admitted that such disciplinary measures are widespread throughout the league, albeit in different forms. For instance, one club may require a latecomer to run naked through a gauntlet of his teammates, receiving a series of slaps and spanks. Conversely, another latecomer may be made to clean the gear stewards’ van or eat hot chilli peppers.

Non-physical punishments have also proven popular, with players being made to shave heads, dye hair or wear a suit to training every day. A particular club even insists offending players prepare a PowerPoint presentation on a random topic and present it to teammates.

Nevertheless, punishments are not solely the responsibility of the coach. In one scenario, a former club chief executive enforced attendance for morning training sessions at 6am for three young players after catching wind that they had been escorted home intoxicated from their leagues club.

A player claimed to have often observed teammates wrestling the entire ensemble, as Topine was reportedly required to do at the Bulldogs. Anonumous insiders at the Bulldogs assert that it was the first time such a punishment was enforced on a teammate at their club.

However, they noted the same disciplinary methods were issued to another latecoming player a week after Topine’s alleged sanction. Braidon Burns, the player in question – who now plays for South Sydney – told Bulldogs personnel at the time that he had no issue wrestling the rest of the team due to tardiness and didn’t anticipate any disparity between his treatment and Topine’s actions.

While Burns has declined to comment as yet, another previous Canterbury player commented that wrestling a dozen or so teammates as a disciplinary act is fairly common and goes by the name of “shark bait” amongst rugby league fraternity. “Shark bait” refers to an encircled player wrestling colleagues until one of them submits.

In fact, he cited that the drill was prevalent in many clubs and is usually considered mild compared to what cliques were subjected to in pre-season training sessions, which often resembled military-style camps, replete with extreme exercises and limited sleep over a three-day period.

Many remembered being awakened at ungodly hours to carry out punishing physical chores, fuelled on a stringent diet. They would be subjected to stressful scenarios – ranging from struggling against ocean waves blindfolded before finding their own way back on land to simple yet maddening tasks such as segregating white rice grains from brown ones under the sensory decimation of loud, heavy metal music.
Each, even the blindfolded cliff walk with blackout goggles or holding heavy jerry cans for five-kilometre walks often enough to chaff palms, are choreographed to induce duress, testing the physical and mental resolve of players.

Anthony Seibold, present coach for Manly, recognised the difficulty of the army camp his team had experienced recently. “They were sleep-deprived, they were gassed [exhausted], it was relentless,” was how he described it in January. He asserted that the purpose was to push their physical and mental limits til exhaustion because “you don’t know how you’re going to respond until you try it.”

The reasoning behind such intense training and stern discipline was to foster a team spirit and observe individual responses during high-pressure situations. Players are pushed to near breaking points, tested for resilience and ability to perform under extremes. They also advocate the bonding element of collective struggles.

Zane Tetevano, a forward for the Penrith Panthers, mentioned how the bonding experience at a pre-season army camp was crucial in propelling the Panthers toward a Grand Final, however losing 26-20 to the Melbourne Storm. The following year, Penrith decided to embark on a tougher path; they conducted a “fight camp” on Hawkesbury River, where players endured rigorous physical training over three days, including sparring sessions with boxers and martial artists.

This physical and mental balance, on and off the field was deemed a “fine line” by Roosters coach, Trent Robinson. He noted the importance of striking a balance between pushing players to their best while caring for their well-being.

The fact that Burns copped the same punishment says it all. He didn’t sook. He just manned up.

Clubs can’t be expected to know how every player deals mentally with the same punishment.

It would be interesting to see if Topine had previously informed the club of any mental health issues. If he has then he may have a case.

If not then it should be thrown out

 

[wendog33]

Just had a quick listen to SEN, EVERYONE is on our side, feels weird.

I know it's only to protect themselves from future pussy shit like this but it's still weird everyone defending us lol

Good to hear but yeah some people waking up to the possible ramifications of this.

 

[Mitch Connor]

The biggest critics have just been opposition team fans looking to pile on and deflect from their own shit club performances lol Dragons fans

 

[Reecek89]

The biggest critics have just been opposition team fans looking to pile on and deflect from their own shit club performances lol Dragons fans

That’s because dragon fans now how Topines best mates RFM and Nu lol

 

[Raikkonen]

From SMH:

Topine was shopped to rival clubs weeks before $4m claim against Bulldogs

Jackson Topine’s lawyer lodged a $4 million claim against the Bulldogs that alleged his client was incapable of playing the sport less than three weeks after the young back-rower’s agent sent an email to all 17 NRL clubs spruiking his client as an off-contract player.

Topine on Wednesday commenced legal proceedings against the Bulldogs over an incident last year in which he alleges he was punished by head trainer Travis Touma for reporting late to training and was allegedly told to wrestle between 30 to 35 of his teammates.

The training session on July 18 last year has been described in Topine’s statement of claim as a “deprivation of liberty” and “unlawful corporal punishment”. It is claimed Topine suffered “psychiatric injury” and “physical and mental impairment” as a result.

Topine has not played since and documents filed to the Supreme Court allege he had “suffered ongoing incapacity to play the game, with such ongoing incapacity continuing as at the date of filing this statement of claim”. Touma was subsequently cleared of any wrongdoing by the club. Canterbury and Touma are yet to file defences in realtion to the proceedings.

Topine’s agent, Tyran Smith, sent an email to all 17 clubs on April 8 with a list of his off-contract players that included Topine. There is no suggestion Topine’s legal team knew about Smith’s email.

The email from Smith was sent less than three weeks before the statement of claim was lodged followed on from a similar email on December 19 last year that also included Topine as an available player. There is no suggestion Smith knew about the coming legal action.

He told the Herald Topine’s name had been included on a list of available players that was generated by his agency’s computer.

“This is a list which shows NRL players who were coming off contract in 2024,” Smith said. “It is a list generated by our system on an annual basis. Jackson’s name was on the list because our system noted him as coming off contract with the Bulldogs in 2024. In Jackson’s case the uncertainty of his long-term prognosis has meant he has been taken off the list.”

The email, which has been seen by the Herald, said: “Jackson Topine is known for his exceptional work ethic and attitude towards growth and success.

“As the recipient of the 2022 clubman of the year award at the Bulldogs, his approach to being part of the squad impressed his team through his enthusiasm, effort and positivity. In his limited number of first-grade appearances, he has shown an extremely high tackle efficiency (93.5% in 2023, 94.3% in 2022, and 97.2% in 2021), which is a reflection of his grit and high endurance.

“He represented the Maori All-Stars during 2021 in a 10-10 draw, and played in the 2022 NSW Cup grand final against the Penrith Panthers.”

The ceasing of payment
Topine’s statement of claim alleges that the contract of the former Australian Schoolboy was illegally terminated. Sources talking under the condition of anonymity to protect confidences told this masthead that Topine was paid for at least three months after refusing to return to training.

It is alleged he provided the club with several medical certificates to justify his absence but would not respond to calls from club officials who decided to stop paying him well after his sick leave entitlements had expired.

Before the Bulldogs stopped paying him, Topine’s agent was notified that the club would cease to make payments to him if he could not fulfil his contractual obligations. The club stopped paying Topine on October 31 – the end of the rugby league financial year. The NRL also approved his removal from the club’s salary cap.

Those close to Topine believed he had a 10- to 12-year NRL career ahead of him. Given the average NRL salary exceeds $400,000 – and considering his status as a junior representative star – they predict he could have earned more than $4 million.

Topine was on an annual salary of around $125,000 at the time of the incident in question, which occurred at Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Smeaton Grange, in south-west Sydney.

The statement of claim says Topine was made to wrestle 30 to 35 teammates. This masthead has been told under the condition of anonymity that the club’s internal investigation into the matter estimated he had been told to wrestle 24 players for a total of four minutes at approximately 10 second intervals per teammate. The session was not captured on video.

The sources said Topine turned up to training for the rest of the week and did not raise an issue with the treatment at the time.

This masthead has learned that the incident occurred in the same week as he was demoted from the NRL for defensive lapses (including four missed tackles) in a 44-24 loss against the Brisbane Broncos at Belmore on July 15.

Three days after the loss – on the same day as the wrestling incident in Smeaton Grange – Topine was named to play in the No.11 jersey for the Bulldogs against the Panthers that weekend. The next day he was told by Ciraldo that he would instead be the team’s 18th man. He hasn’t played in the NRL since.

 

[Dognacious]

The fact that Burns copped the same punishment says it all. He didn’t sook. He just manned up.

Clubs can’t be expected to know how every player deals mentally with the same punishment.

It would be interesting to see if Topine had previously informed the club of any mental health issues. If he has then he may have a case.

If not then it should be thrown out

I understand they have to handle mental health issues sensatively but at the same time it should not make a player unpunishable. As long as its the same for everyone and not ridiculous, im ok with punishment. Its not like they put him on the rack or made him clean toilets, wrestling is also part of normal training

He has no case

 

[jof]

Breaking: Luai to sue Penrith!

 

[Chrisaaar]

From SMH:

Topine was shopped to rival clubs weeks before $4m claim against Bulldogs

Jackson Topine’s lawyer lodged a $4 million claim against the Bulldogs that alleged his client was incapable of playing the sport less than three weeks after the young back-rower’s agent sent an email to all 17 NRL clubs spruiking his client as an off-contract player.

Topine on Wednesday commenced legal proceedings against the Bulldogs over an incident last year in which he alleges he was punished by head trainer Travis Touma for reporting late to training and was allegedly told to wrestle between 30 to 35 of his teammates.

The training session on July 18 last year has been described in Topine’s statement of claim as a “deprivation of liberty” and “unlawful corporal punishment”. It is claimed Topine suffered “psychiatric injury” and “physical and mental impairment” as a result.

Topine has not played since and documents filed to the Supreme Court allege he had “suffered ongoing incapacity to play the game, with such ongoing incapacity continuing as at the date of filing this statement of claim”. Touma was subsequently cleared of any wrongdoing by the club. Canterbury and Touma are yet to file defences in realtion to the proceedings.

Topine’s agent, Tyran Smith, sent an email to all 17 clubs on April 8 with a list of his off-contract players that included Topine. There is no suggestion Topine’s legal team knew about Smith’s email.

The email from Smith was sent less than three weeks before the statement of claim was lodged followed on from a similar email on December 19 last year that also included Topine as an available player. There is no suggestion Smith knew about the coming legal action.

He told the Herald Topine’s name had been included on a list of available players that was generated by his agency’s computer.

“This is a list which shows NRL players who were coming off contract in 2024,” Smith said. “It is a list generated by our system on an annual basis. Jackson’s name was on the list because our system noted him as coming off contract with the Bulldogs in 2024. In Jackson’s case the uncertainty of his long-term prognosis has meant he has been taken off the list.”

The email, which has been seen by the Herald, said: “Jackson Topine is known for his exceptional work ethic and attitude towards growth and success.

“As the recipient of the 2022 clubman of the year award at the Bulldogs, his approach to being part of the squad impressed his team through his enthusiasm, effort and positivity. In his limited number of first-grade appearances, he has shown an extremely high tackle efficiency (93.5% in 2023, 94.3% in 2022, and 97.2% in 2021), which is a reflection of his grit and high endurance.

“He represented the Maori All-Stars during 2021 in a 10-10 draw, and played in the 2022 NSW Cup grand final against the Penrith Panthers.”

The ceasing of payment
Topine’s statement of claim alleges that the contract of the former Australian Schoolboy was illegally terminated. Sources talking under the condition of anonymity to protect confidences told this masthead that Topine was paid for at least three months after refusing to return to training.

It is alleged he provided the club with several medical certificates to justify his absence but would not respond to calls from club officials who decided to stop paying him well after his sick leave entitlements had expired.

Before the Bulldogs stopped paying him, Topine’s agent was notified that the club would cease to make payments to him if he could not fulfil his contractual obligations. The club stopped paying Topine on October 31 – the end of the rugby league financial year. The NRL also approved his removal from the club’s salary cap.

Those close to Topine believed he had a 10- to 12-year NRL career ahead of him. Given the average NRL salary exceeds $400,000 – and considering his status as a junior representative star – they predict he could have earned more than $4 million.

Topine was on an annual salary of around $125,000 at the time of the incident in question, which occurred at Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Smeaton Grange, in south-west Sydney.

The statement of claim says Topine was made to wrestle 30 to 35 teammates. This masthead has been told under the condition of anonymity that the club’s internal investigation into the matter estimated he had been told to wrestle 24 players for a total of four minutes at approximately 10 second intervals per teammate. The session was not captured on video.

The sources said Topine turned up to training for the rest of the week and did not raise an issue with the treatment at the time.

This masthead has learned that the incident occurred in the same week as he was demoted from the NRL for defensive lapses (including four missed tackles) in a 44-24 loss against the Brisbane Broncos at Belmore on July 15.

Three days after the loss – on the same day as the wrestling incident in Smeaton Grange – Topine was named to play in the No.11 jersey for the Bulldogs against the Panthers that weekend. The next day he was told by Ciraldo that he would instead be the team’s 18th man. He hasn’t played in the NRL since.

"The sources said Topine turned up to training for the rest of the week and did not raise an issue with the treatment at the time." Doesn't sound like he was scarred by it if he showed up to work for the rest of the week?

 

[wendog33]

Yes

It wasn’t incompetence, it was a last gasp effort to play nrl,and when that didn't work. Change tak

Yes that is the more plausible explanation I guess. Surely his manager not that out of touch with his client's mental wellbeing and the issues going on in JT life.

One last try to get a contract, send out list including JT and plead, I didn't know, when that didn't work out.

Whatever the explanation, the whole sequence of events is unfortunate for JT.

Said before, naive maybe but my hope is Gus as Footy GM and Ciro can get around the table with Jackson and his family, and sort something out to the betterment of both parties interests.

 

[DinkumDog]

Breaking: Luai to sue Penrith!

View attachment 107578

JL: ‘Hey Chins, I was going to take that big offer from the Tigers but @04 Dreaming called saying The Bulldogs want me too - or I could just stay - thoughts?’

 

[Menteek]

Just had a quick listen to SEN, EVERYONE is on our side, feels weird.

I know it's only to protect themselves from future pussy shit like this but it's still weird everyone defending us lol

put it this way brother, if we lose this then game is done

 

[Chrisaaar]

Yes

Yes that is the more plausible explanation I guess. Surely his manager not that out of touch with his client's mental wellbeing and the issues going on in JT life.

One last try to get a contract, send out list including JT and plead, I didn't know, when that didn't work out.

Whatever the explanation, the whole sequence of events is unfortunate for JT.

Said before, naive maybe but my hope is Gus as Footy GM and Ciro can get around the table with Jackson and his family, and sort something out to the betterment of both parties interests.

Would you offer him a playing contract for another 2 seasons to give himself a chance at redemption?

 

[alwaysthesun]

So he was 22 when this happened, couldn't crack the worst team in the comp, and somehow he was going to play a full career at the top level?

 

[Mitch Connor]

Also... Tyran Smith. We've had nothing but dramas with him and players he's got on his books.

 

[up_theDogs]

I think the whole case will come to nothing because Burns had the same punishment and is fine.

 

[InGusWeTrust]

The most interesting part of this whole saga is how it shines a light on what most would consider cruel and unusual treatment in the workplace, but that which has been a part of NRL training for yonks. Ask anyone in the armed forces though and they’d shrug their shoulders. NRL isn’t war though, despite them often comparing it as such, but there are some parallels, e.g: The team aspect and toughness required. The NRL however is obviously very different to most workplaces.

Imo, even if it’s proven to be true, that he had to wrestle 30-35 players, it’s nothing on what they had to do in the preseason boot camp. Funnily enough Topine wasn’t involved in that, if he hasn’t been in contact with the club since October. Also, Braidon Burns apparently had no problem with it.

I wonder if this just shows that Topine wasn’t used to this intensity before Ciro arrived? It would explain our softness for the few years before.

 

[InGusWeTrust]

Breaking: Luai to sue Penrith!

View attachment 107578

Can’t even recognise that it’s him lmao. “Nathan was allowed to belt my face off”! - Luai probably.

 

[InGusWeTrust]

Yes

Yes that is the more plausible explanation I guess. Surely his manager not that out of touch with his client's mental wellbeing and the issues going on in JT life.

One last try to get a contract, send out list including JT and plead, I didn't know, when that didn't work out.

Whatever the explanation, the whole sequence of events is unfortunate for JT.

Said before, naive maybe but my hope is Gus as Footy GM and Ciro can get around the table with Jackson and his family, and sort something out to the betterment of both parties interests.

Sounds like they’ve tried and he won’t talk to them.

I feel sorry for him too, because I assume a lot of this is lawyers blowing smoke up his arse, but I would be surprised if he didn’t hold some blame. Hell, he may even truly feel the club did him dirty, but a lot of the details make him look bad.

 

[wendog33]

Would you offer him a playing contract for another 2 seasons to give himself a chance at redemption?

No I think it's gone way past that kind of offer.
Asap he accused his teammates of assaulting him and deprivation of liberty it got to the point of no return amongst our playing group being expected to deal with I expect.

Was just thinking some "reasonable" monetary payout or better still a amicable ending of commitment from both parties towards each other with Gus using his influence to get him a start in UK if he is mentally up for it.

Would rather a negotiated settlement fair to the club to happen rather than a Court case.