When Bob Fulton knew his days were numbered, he had conversations with some of his powerful media mates to make sure his kids would be looked after in his absence.
We are about to see his final wish enacted upon after the sacking of Fulton’s daughter, Kristie, from the Manly Sea Eagles.
It is easy to work out who will support her. Ray Hadley and Fulton were super close. Paul Kent is extremely close to all the Fultons, including Kristie, who was the club’s head of pathways until Friday and is considering legal action after her sacking.
Peter Peters was Fulton’s right-hand man and is godfather to his son, Scott. They will keep the Manly club on the hop – because there are power plays, and then there are power plays when you sack a Fulton.
It’s an all-in move by the Penn family and Tony Mestrov. The Des Hasler sacking was big, but this is next level. The chairman and new CEO are taking on the Fulton family – once the true holders of power at the Sea Eagles. Now they are taking on some people who don’t like being told what to do.
Anyone who has spent five minutes in the NRL knows the power “Bozo” had. Now he has gone, his daughter has been marched out of the club. She was given a letter upon her termination where claims of bullying were raised. Kristie denies the claims.
(From left) Late Sea Eagles legend Bob Fulton, CEO Tony Mestrov and chair Scott Penn.Credit:NRL Photos, Getty
It should not have been a complete surprise to her. The way it has been explained to me, she was given a heads-up to change her ways a few months ago. It was a subtle message from Mestrov that was passed on to a third party.
The Penns never had a comfortable relationship with the Fultons. They will be targeted. But the man who has really gone out on a limb is Mestrov. He can expect to come under heavy bombardment from Fulton’s media allies.
What is hard to comprehend is the manner of the sacking. A shocked and tearful Fulton was escorted from her office in the grandstand named after her late father on Friday morning.
It was odd, as another departing Sea Eagles staff member, Don Singe, was in the gym at the time having apparently been given a choice on how he wanted to handle his departure. The veteran head of high performance announced he was moving on from his job last Monday, but had his children with him on Friday at the club’s centre of excellence, where he was working with young players, while Fulton was virtually frogmarched off the premises.
In her words to confidantes, she felt she was being treated like a thief. She was summoned to Mestrov’s office mid-morning and told her employment was terminated effective immediately.
Fulton has played a major part in the club’s successful pathways program along with her brothers Brett and Scott, who is the club’s recruitment manager. Kristie’s axing has shocked the family and they are contemplating starting legal proceedings as early as Monday for unfair dismissal – a path she went down successfully several years ago at the insistence of her father.
She says she would have simply walked away from her job if given the opportunity. We don’t know if she was afforded that chance.
In her role as head of pathways, Kristie had an excellent knowledge of the religious beliefs of the club’s Polynesian players, as most came through the junior pathways.
It is understood that, as a result, she was the only staff member to immediately raise concerns over the controversial inclusivity jersey when it was first shown to staff members on June 29, about 27 days before all hell broke loose when seven players stood down from the game against the Roosters at Brookvale.
Leadership role fits
Josh Schuster became the first Sea Eagles player to speak publicly about the reason behind his decision to boycott the club’s pride jersey, and it is the first step on his path to becoming a team leader.
“Yes, leadership is something I want,” Schuster said. “The players coming through now, I’ve been in the juniors with them … we were in the SG Ball squad and now we are in first grade. Right now, my main aim is making up for last season to the senior players.”
He has overhauled every aspect of his fitness regime, from diet to sleep – and has dropped 12kg. He is also driving from Liverpool to the eastern suburbs to do sprint training with Roger Fabri.
Jason Saab, Christian Tuipulotu, Haumole Olakau’atu, Josh Aloiai and Josh Schuster are five of the seven Manly players who withdrew from the pride round clash.Credit:Getty/NRL Photos
“I came back overweight last off season and was unmotivated,” he said. “I just want to prove a point and show what I’m all about. One of the main reasons I stepped out of the World Cup was to get my body right. Last year I didn’t really have a pre-season. I got injured straight away, got COVID [and] was playing catch-up during the season.”
Schuster is excited at the prospect of playing in the halves and is committed to Manly. But Des Hasler’s sacking has rattled him.
“It shocked me a bit,” he said. “But Des has been staying in touch to make sure my training is all right. He has a deep care for his players. Throughout his whole coaching his main aspect was player welfare.”
Schuster broke his silence over the rainbow jersey affair on Thursday, admitting it was a “difficult period” but saying he has “no regrets” about his stance.
“I put my faith and personal beliefs first and what’s done is done,” he said. “The group is settled now. We are still close.”
Sullivan makes the tough call to Gus
St George Illawarra’s Jayden Sullivan showed considerable class to ring Phil Gould directly to let him know he had withdrawn his request for a release from his Dragons contract to join the Bulldogs. In the end, the media focus after being linked to Canterbury became too much for him. It will still be a watch-and-see situation next year as he attempts to make his mark in the halves for the Red V.
Dogs shaping up nicely with Touma
The Bulldogs have made some significant signings under Phil Gould, but the acquisition of high-performance guru Travis Touma is a huge indication of the rise of the Bulldogs. Touma was the man responsible for the Roosters’ fitness in their back-to-back title wins before he moved to Souths, where he was considered a major signing. Rabbitohs star Latrell Mitchell is a huge Touma fan and the pair have a great relationship.
Touma has switched to the Dogs to work with Cameron Ciraldo, a clear sign the club is on the up. Touma had to negotiate a release from Souths as he was under contract. It’s understood Gould and Blake Solly met face to face to work out his transfer.
Touma is believed to have a long-term deal with the Dogs.
Red V letter day
Craig Young has been dismissed as a thoughtless buffoon for backing Brett Finch – but there is a vastly different take from those who claim to know the case back to front.
Finch’s lawyer, Paul McGirr, has attacked the “good-time Charlies” who were once Finch’s best mates but who have left him high and dry. McGirr won’t get much support – if any – for his views, and unless you scratch the surface it’s easy to hammer Young after he seemingly took advantage of his position as Dragons chairman to submit a character reference in support of Finch.
Out of loyalty to his old mate Robert Finch, Brett’s dad, Young did what no one else was prepared to do – stick up for the fallen former NSW Origin rep. Young’s actions angered Dragons fans and left the league community dumbfounded. The only one to benefit is Anthony Griffin.
Young’s actions took some of the heat off the Dragons coach as the club lurches from one PR disaster to the next. Even Griffin’s strongest supporters think he is long odds of surviving next year.
If his agent, Wayne Beavis, can get him a contract extension it could be his finest achievement.
News Corp reporters campaigned hard for him – he was a willing pawn in a childish game to somehow upset Phil Gould, who sacked Griffin at Penrith. They backed Griffin from the moment he appeared on a Fox Sports NRL program soon after he was speared. There was a delight taken in his appointment, but it was always a risky move.
Craig Young and the letter supporting Brett Finch.Credit:Twitter, NRL Photos
But even News Corp has now dropped Griffin on his head, with Dragons players speaking out against him freely. It’s quite remarkable to watch as acres of positive Griffin stories are suddenly forgotten.
Unfortunately, that’s only part of the issue at the Dragons. If giving a character witness on club letterhead to a man facing the ugliest of charges isn’t the dumbest act of the year from a sports official, it’s in the grand final.
The sad thing is that Young has not acted out of character. He is old-school loyal. He has moved to his own beat; one that was probably acceptable in the 1970s. When you compare him as a chairman to some of the sharp business minds in the NRL, you can understand why the Dragons are in the state they are. In the interest of being fair to Young, it was only reasonable to hear from the Finch camp. McGirr launched a passionate defence of Young.
“He’s a stand-up bloke,” McGirr wrote in a message to this column. “Craig has illustrated to me and the Finch family that if you can’t rely on people you think are your mates in your time of need, then they aren’t true mates. Many others offered silent support but Craig was prepared to not only put in writing his support but also front up to court and say it under oath. He wasn’t there to be popular. He was there to stand up and support.
“He knows all the facts and made it clear he despises anything to do with this type of offence. A great number of people aren’t interested in knowing the full story about why and how Brett committed this offence.
“He’s guilty regardless of the reasoning but Craig on oath made it clear that he doesn’t believe Brett has a sexual interest in children but drugs put him in this position.
“I’ve known Craig for over a decade and if I was going over the trenches, I’d want him next to me.”
