Indigenous All Stars coach Ronnie Griffiths says the only positive of Latrell Mitchell and Josh Addo-Carr missing next month’s game against the Maori All Stars is that they could return one week earlier for their NRL club sides.
Griffiths would love to spend the week with the two highest-profile Indigenous stars in the game but also knows how important it is for Mitchell, Addo-Carr and their clubs to have the game included as part of current bans.
South Sydney and Parramatta have been waiting more than a month for a formal NRL response to requests for the suspensions to include the All Stars fixture.
Mitchell received a one-match suspension for bringing the game into disrepute following the publication of a photo of him standing over a white substance in a Dubbo hotel room.
Addo-Carr was hit with a four-match ban after returning a positive result to cocaine at a roadside police drugs test in September. He has already missed one game, and since joined Parramatta after being sacked by Canterbury.
“Souths and Parramatta employ these players at the end of the day, so I totally understand why they have asked for this game to be included [as part of their ban], and I think they should have it included,” Griffiths said.
Latrell Mitchell and Josh Addo-Carr are still hoping the All Stars game will count towards their bans.Credit: Getty
“We know how much this game means to them, and the chance to represent their people and culture.
“But we only have them for one day, the clubs have them the rest of the year. We respect that.
“There’s no greater feeling than coaching world-class players like those guys, and it’s certainly great exposure for what we do. We’d still love for them to be around the group.
“What this means is a younger player will, now, likely get a chance. That happened with guys like Josh Kerr, Shaq Mitchell and Jamayne Taunoa-Brown who all played in this game before they went on to play in the NRL.”
Players have succeeded in the past having the All Stars game counted towards a suspension, especially if they have been regularly selected for either the Indigenous or Maori sides.
Mitchell was elevated to captain of the Indigenous side last year, while Addo-Carr was at the centre of a controversial All Stars moment when he lifted his jersey and pointed to the colour of his skin in 2020, just as St Kilda star Nicky Winmar had done in the AFL almost two decades earlier.
What makes this latest matter so intriguing is that Mitchell and Addo-Carr were punished for off-field matters, not an on-field incident. As a result, NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo and the Integrity Unit – not judiciary chairman Geoff Bellew – will have the final say.
Should they succeed in having the All Stars game included as part of their ban, Mitchell will return for Souths in round one against the Dolphins, while Addo-Carr can debut for the Eels against his former club in round three.
Griffiths expected Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to feature again for the Indigenous side, along with Cody Walker, Gold Coast try-scoring machine Alofiana Khan-Pereira, Broncos pair Selwyn Cobbo and Kotoni Staggs, and potential first-timers, Jayden Campbell, whose father Preston Campbell was heavily responsible for the All Stars concept, and Wests Tigers fullback Jahream Bula.
