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![Not allowed!](images/buttons/up_dis.png)
So you have given up drinking Jono??
There was time not to long ago when Cocaine was a very acceptable "medicine" for many ailments. Your grandparents may just have used it.
Just sayin'
And in light of the services being held for Big Dan today, regardless of what has been done, support for those that have made poor decisions is what is required, regardless of what it is of who it is. The f**k them attitude does not help anyone, I'm afraid.
I'm not saying he deserves another chance or to keep his job, the kid needs help.
80 Minutes, 15 Positions, No Protection, Wanna Ruck?
Ruck Me, Maul Me, Make Me Scrum!
Education is Important, but Rugby is Importanter!
Force coach Dave Wessels rules out a bid for Toulon’s James O’Connor
Justin Chadwick
AAP, FOX SPORTS
March 1, 2017 1:22pm
WESTERN Force coach Dave Wessels has ruled out luring James O’Connor to the Super Rugby club this season, but he hopes the former Wallaby won’t be lost to rugby altogether.
O’Connor’s future at French club Toulon hangs in the balance after he was arrested for allegedly possessing cocaine.
The 26-year-old has been suspended by Toulon and his future will be decided next week.
Toulon owner Mourad Boudjellal has already declared O’Connor won’t be re-signed and he may not even see out the season.
O’Connor started his professional rugby career at the Force, spending four years at the franchise before moving to the Rebels and then the Reds.
Wessels rates O’Connor as an unbelievable rugby talent but said he was happy with his current squad and wouldn’t explore the opportunity of landing the speedy back.
However, Wessels hopes O’Connor will be able to land a gig somewhere else.
“It would be really sad if a guy of his potential at his age gets lost to rugby,” Wessels said.
“I think he needs someone to put their arm around him a bit and help him out.”
The Force will be aiming to bounce back from last week’s 19-13 loss to the Waratahs when they host Queensland on Thursday night.
The match has to be played on a Thursday night because of a scheduled Justin Bieber concert at nib Stadium next Monday, meaning the Force have just five days between games.
Wessels has never been a huge Bieber fan, and he joked that he had even more reason to dislike the singer now.
But he said the short turnaround has at least given the Force an early chance to make amends for last week’s loss, when they went scoreless in the second half.
The battle between outside centres Samu Kerevi (Reds) and Curtis Rona (Force) is set to play a crucial role in the outcome.
Rona performed admirably against Waratahs star Israel Folau last week, and Wessels is confident the former NRL winger will be able to handle the pressure yet again.
“He was on the back page (of the newspaper in Sydney) with his match-up with Folau, and he comes down to breakfast relaxed and smiling,” Wessels said.
“That shows experience. That’s a guy who wasn’t rattled by the attention at all.”
The Force’s future beyond this season is still up in the air, and Wessels is urging fans to come out in huge numbers on Thursday night in a bid to convince SANZAAR and the ARU that WA deserves to keep a team in WA.
“If you want to keep Super Rugby in Western Australia — whether you support the Force or not — you should come on Thursday night and you should bring a friend,” Wessels said.
“Because that’s what’s really going to matter at the end of the day — the decision makers seeing the appetite for Super Rugby in this state.”
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/rug...4faa771b8d3033
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Education is Important, but Rugby is Importanter!
World Cup-winning All Black Ali Williams fined for buying cocaine in Paris
AFP, FOX SPORTS
April 6, 2017 9:14am
A FRENCH court has fined former New Zealand international ace Ali Williams 1500 euros (AUD $2117) for buying cocaine outside a Paris nightclub.
The 35-year-old former lock was arrested alongside Australian international James O’Connor in February and police sources said that the pair were clearly drunk when they detained them.
The police took the rugby stars into custody and tested them for cocaine.
Williams returned a negative result and O’Connor tested positive and was fined for using the drug.
Williams, who retired in 2015 after leaving the French side Toulon, made a brief comeback this season with Racing 92.
But the Parisians fired him following his arrest in possession of 2.4 grams of cocaine outside the night spot near the Champs Elysees.
Plain-clothes police officers said that Williams tried to get rid of the drug as they approached.
O’Connor was suspended by his club Toulon after his arrest but returned to training with the Top 14 side in late March.
Arriving at court accompanied by his lawyer, 2.02m New Zealander Williams was wearing a smart black suit and refused to comment to waiting reporters.
He and O’Connor now face a joint date to explain the incident to French Rugby authorities on April 12 where further action is expected.
Williams won the World Cup with New Zealand in 2011 and played for his country 77 times but has been stripped of his ambassadorial role and told he has no future at Racing by club president Jacky Lorenzetti, whose wine company Williams also worked for.
Lorenzetti and Williams had a close relationship and the Frenchman said he had been upset to have to sack him.
“His life has dramatically shifted. Ali had a boulevard, even a highway ahead of him. He could have done great things at the New Zealand federation or elsewhere,” Lorenzetti said in mid-March.
The affair has gone down badly in New Zealand.
Fairfax New Zealand sports columnist Kevin Norquay called Williams’ conduct unacceptable for a former All Black, particularly one who once led the team’s fabled haka war dance.
“Ali Williams has hauled the proud black name through the white powder dirt,” he wrote.
“He’s not just a silly boy with money having a bit of a lark outside a Paris nightclub.
“He’s Ali Williams, All Black lock, 77 Test caps, World Cup winner in 2011. Wearer of the Silver Fern, dispenser of the haka.”
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/rug...61142edf027bff
80 Minutes, 15 Positions, No Protection, Wanna Ruck?
Ruck Me, Maul Me, Make Me Scrum!
Education is Important, but Rugby is Importanter!