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Stewart’s acquittal also a big win for football

Lisa Davies

by Lisa Davies

30 Sep 05:55am

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Filed under: Brett Stewart, Nrl, Sport

15 comments

Even the most ardent rugby league supporters couldn’t help but admit that some of their idols have an image problem. Whether it’s their talent, their huge paychecks, or their even bigger egos that often lead to galling indiscretions, the public relations side of the sport is like a recurring nightmare.

Brett Stewart on his way into court yesterday. Picture: Brad Hunter.

The testosterone-fuelled violence on-field is one thing, but it’s the all-too-often alcohol-sodden events once the game is over that has given rise to such a reputation.

Not being a fan, I nonetheless found myself watching a match recently and was surprised at how many players’ names were familiar. But then I realised why I knew them - from their court appearances around Sydney over the past few years.

There for accusations of sexual assault, drunken violence or drug possessions, such a fact won’t exactly give the NRL confidence that the millions dedicated to cleaning up the game’s image is money well spent.

But there is a lesson to be learnt following the acquittal of Manly fullback Brett Stewart yesterday.

In the same way that not all American football players are like OJ Simpson, not all golfers are like Tiger Woods nor are all sprinters like Ben Johnson _ not all league stars are shitbags.

We simply cannot continue to tar all individuals with the same brush.

While plenty of players have either admitted to or been found guilty of the conduct alleged, the expression ``oh well he’s a leaguey, he must have done it’’ needs to be banished.

A jury of 12 civilians - most of whom couldn’t look LESS like league fans if they had tried - sat through 10 days of evidence at Stewart’s District Court sexual assault trial, being urged countless times to judge the case on the facts alone - not on opinion or rumour.

It’s a warning given to every jury in every trial, but it couldn’t have been more important in Stewart’s case, who had to fight the charges as well as a automatic presumption against him.

Yesterday was, in the words of one Telegraph reader online, justice in action.

The evidence simply did not support the allegation, and judging by the tears from at least one of those jurors, those independent observers wholeheartedly believed Stewart is and always was innocent of the charges.

His exemplary reputation as gentleman should remain intact following yesterday’s decision - and be an example to some of his football colleagues.

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15 comments

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    • Eric says:

      06:25am | 30/09/10

      Funny how acquittals hardly ever seem to get as much publicity as charges. Thank you for a welcome exception, Ms Davies.

      The legal system and the media are very much slanted against men, and exonerations of the innocent such as Stewart are far too rare.

      Reply

    • Tony says:

      06:41am | 30/09/10

      How do you think the woman involved feels having this media bandwagon trumpeting Stewart?  The Punch likes to champion the rights of women, apparently not when there is a ‘pretty boy’ who makes lots of money…

      Reply

    • Phil says:

      07:32am | 30/09/10

      Tony. The point is that Stewart has had his reputation smashed around on the back of rubbish from this family and also the Prosecutors. The Crown’s Prosecutor has let down everyone in this particular case. They should never have let this go through court as there simply was no factual evidence to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Stewart had committed the accused crime.

      How would you feel if you were put in the predicament of Stewart, unwavering in professing your innocence, called a pretty boy, and presumed guilty because “there must be some evidence for him to go to trial.”

      Let’s be very clear - Stewart is the victim in this case.

    • Dr. Opkick says:

      08:26am | 30/09/10

      Phil, he has been judged by 12 good men and true and is therefore NOT GUILTY. Move on!

    • Andew says:

      10:17am | 30/09/10

      Tony. So your saying that because he is a ‘‘prietty boy’’ and has money he must be guilty. And how do you know there was any damage to the genitals, never has it come out that this was the case, even so Im prietty sure its possible to do to herself what stewart was accused of doing.

    • Paul says:

      06:42pm | 30/09/10

      Innocent until proven guilty Tony, and he was proven innocent, so trumpet away punchies.  And no I’m not a league fan.

    • ibast says:

      10:49am | 30/09/10

      Seems to me the public’s reaction to Keating’s acquittal the other day was a little different.

      Reply

    • hot tub political machine says:

      11:59am | 30/09/10

      Yes I connect with what the author is saying here. As a South Australian I have never watched a full game of rugby league in my life, and the last time I watched more than 10 minutes would have been over a decade ago. Yet I know the names of many rugby league players because of their off field problems. Even all the way down here, the bad image/bad pr has spread.

      But what the author says is true – the principles of justice need to be upheld on an individual case by case basis. Many of us want to see very harsh examples made of league players in the hopes it will cause some deterrence and change in what is obviously a very dark and very rotten sporting culture. But the criminal justice system’s integrity is more important than cleaning up league. It must still be a case judged on the individual circumstances.

      Sadly though, it seems pretty clear that league will continue to cough up rapes and the use of public places as toilets several times a season unless something changes. I (maybe I’m too naïve) tend to believe the club CEOs and Mr. Gallop are genuine about working hard to change league. But you can lead a horse to water, you can’t make it drink. Despite all the education you can give players (and I believe it should still continue) you can’t force a player to take it in. I suspect it may need a few years of clearing out the corrupt players through retirement, and clubs replacing them with courageous and dignified young players before we see some real change to the sports image. Until we can have a season with no felonies committed by players -the courts must deal with the allegations against players as they will with any other member of society.

      Reply

    • Sheedy's Left Foot says:

      01:01pm | 30/09/10

      Yes I connect with what the author is saying here. As a Queenslander I have never watched a full game of Australian Football in my life, and the last time I watched more than 10 minutes would have been over a decade ago. Yet I know the names of many Australian Football players because of their off field problems. Even all the way up here, the bad image/bad pr has spread.

      But what the author says is true – the principles of justice need to be upheld on an individual case by case basis. Many of us want to see very harsh examples made of league players in the hopes it will cause some deterrence and change in what is obviously a very dark and very rotten sporting culture. But the criminal justice system’s integrity is more important than cleaning up league. It must still be a case judged on the individual circumstances.

      Sadly though, it seems pretty clear that Australian Football will continue to cough up drug addicts, beating of team mates, attacks on police and the use of public places as toilets several times a season unless something changes. I (maybe I’m too naïve) tend to believe the club CEOs and Mr. Demetriou are genuine about working hard to change league. But you can lead a horse to water, you can’t make it drink. Despite all the education you can give players (and I believe it should still continue) you can’t force a player to take it in. I suspect it may need a few years of clearing out the corrupt players through retirement, and clubs replacing them with courageous and dignified young players before we see some real change to the sports image. Until we can have a season with no felonies committed by players -the courts must deal with the allegations against players as they will with any other member of society.

      Not just League old boy. Unfortunately every code has its fair share of morons.

    • hot tub poltical machine says:

      04:06pm | 30/09/10

      The issues raised in this article matter more than code wars SLF

    • Tim says:

      12:58pm | 01/10/10

      Exactly Hot Tub,
      so why did you try to bring them up then?

    • Nora Charles says:

      12:55pm | 30/09/10

      Lisa, I think you’re only getting half the message that this verdict brings. To me the most important lesson ought the learned by every man - all unscrupulous women have to do is alledge an assault and your reputation is in tatters.

      Brett Stewart’s name has been dragged through the mud and he would have lost thousands of dollars in sponsorship deals as a result of the allegation - all because a troubled (and unnamed) young woman made a play for him and was rebuffed.

      Stewart’s scenario can happen to any man and those who cannot afford $200,000+ barrister is pushing a rock up hill to prove his innocence.

      Reply

    • Tom says:

      01:26pm | 30/09/10

      So will David Gallop give him back those 4 games he suspended him for, supposedly for ‘intoxication’? Turns out he was back home by 7:23pm - hardly the sign of a half decent bender. If Gallop truly did suspend players for intoxication, most teams would be fielding their local under 12’s side within a few weeks.

      Reply

    • Ross Mason says:

      02:04pm | 30/09/10

      Nora Charles - THANK YOU!!! Ten years later I am still reeling from the effects of a very similar experience with a similar ‘woman’ - yet the womens groups and police seem toi be able to contort the rules of our supposedly fair justice system to make it harder and harder for a man to prove his innocence. Unfortunately, all this case will do is give those parties the experience they need to again lobby parliament for more changes to court rulings th raise their success rate, such as the recent change removing the right of a man to defend himself in court.

      But what I would really like to know is, why aren’t the supposed Men’s support groups doing something about all this? And as for the politicians - what a joke - they’re under so much pressure to concede to the womens groups they know if they speak out they will be ousted one way or another.

      Justice System - pfft.

      Reply

    • iansand says:

      06:27pm | 30/09/10

      I have been involved in a few sexual assault cases.  All but one acquittals.

      Two stick in my mind for the destruction they caused to families.  In one a step father of the complainant was the defendant.  In the other it was a grandfather.  In both cases bail conditions prevented any contact with the complainant which necessarily destroyed contact with any other family member.  Other family member in the first case included the man’s wife.  In the second it was his only daughter.

      In the first case there were allegations of multiple penile and digital penetrations.  The Crown’s own medical evidence said that this was extremely unlikely.  In the second the complaint was based on what a person 2 rows back in a theatre claimed to see.  The victims were 4 and 6.  The busybody would be hard pressed to see the top of the girls’ heads, let alone what she claimed to see.

      In any rational system neither of these charges would have proceeded.  The families were so traumatised that I doubt normal relations could ever be restored.

 
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