“Why are they fighting so hard?”
It’s the question many rugby league fans and pundits are asking in relation to Latrell Mitchell’s one-match suspension — and now some important context has been given which might answer the question.
Mitchell received a one-match ban along with a fine over a leaked photo of him with a white substance.
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There’s been confusion over when the Rabbitohs star will serve the suspension given he hasn’t played since Round 18 due to a Lisfranc injury.
Following the photo being leaked, interim Rabbitohs coach Ben Hornby said in a mid-week press conference that Mitchell would not play again this season and was on leave.
But the club has since backtracked and have been trying to get this Friday’s clash with the Roosters count for the suspension, with the star fullback taking to social media to confirm he is fit for the clash.
‘I’m ready to play!!! I need some answers,’ Mitchell said on a post to his Instagram story.
Mitchell saw three separate doctors to get medical clearance to be deemed fit to play this week, which formed part of the Rabbitohs’ submission to the NRL.
However the NRL confirmed on Wednesday that it is yet to make a call on whether the ban can be served this week and is awaiting further information.
News Corp journalist Michael Carayannis revealed on NRL 360 where that further information will come from.
“An independent trainer to come out and assess Latrell to look at his training loads over the past couple of weeks,” he said.
“This is on top of the fact that South Sydney have provided three doctors’ clearance for Latrell to play this weekend — two independent and the club’s medico. One of the doctors was the doctor that operated on Latrell and he’s cleared him to play this week.”
It’s a story that’s been bubbling ever since Mitchell was sanctioned last week, and Carayannis believes the confusion could’ve been avoided.
“I think the NRL originally should’ve said he will serve the ban next year. But they’ve given South Sydney an opportunity because they said ‘if he’s passed medically fit’... the NRL should’ve been tough initially,” he said.
But the one thing that sticks out to NRL 360 host Braith Anasta is just how much the Rabbitohs are digging their heels in over a one-game suspension.
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“Why are Souths making such a big deal out of this?” he said.
“Why don’t they just take accountability for one of their players’ actions, teach him a lesson? He’ll live, he’ll learn, he’ll benefit from it.
“Serve Round 1 of next year — it’s one game. I don’t understand why they’re fighting so hard.”
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This is something Fox League’s James Hooper was able to shed some light on — he believes it all comes down to tension between the club and the governing body.
“This is an old fashioned ‘donnybrook’ between South Sydney officials and also NRL Headquarters,” he said.
“You can’t tiptoe around it. In one corner you’ve got Blake Solly and in the other corner you’ve got Andrew Abdo.
“The reality is these two cannot cop each other, if they were to cross paths they may exchange some sort of very small pleasantries. But the dislike is genuine. The bad blood is genuine.
“(Souths) are not prepared to accept accountability.
“I think it’s multi-layered, I think it’s political, the fact that NRL headquarters and South Sydney do not see eye-to-eye.
“They’re trying to shoot bullets at one another over various issues within the game and Latrell in this instance has just become a pawn in the middle of it all.”
