While Friday will go down in history as one of the greatest night’s in rugby league history, another chapter has been added to the ‘Book of Feuds’ away from the field.
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What looked to be an innocent jab from the Roosters by refusing to name the Rabbitohs on the official scoreboard did not go down well with South Sydney chairman Nicholas Pappas, who has demanded an “unreserved apology”.
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Officials confirmed with The Sydney Morning Herald that the Roosters requested the name change on the scoreboard, and while it provided a laugh on social media Pappas was not in a laughing mood.
“I have never seen that done before at an elite sporting event,” he told The Herald.
“It was thoroughly discourteous and clearly a bit of a jab at us, and symptomatic of the way our desire for us to return to what is a public asset has been viewed by Venues NSW. Our club deserves an unreserved apology.
“Coming from a state-of-the-art stadium with a sophisticated scoreboard, it was really disappointing and thoroughly unprofessional.”
Roosters reign on historic night | 02:47
Meanwhile, there was also reportedly drama inside the elevators of Allianz Stadium, with multiple sources telling the Herald that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tried to get in the same public lift as several Roosters officials after Alex Johnston scored in the second half.
“This is only for the coaches,” one Roosters official is alleged to have told the PM, only for one of his minders to reply: “This is the Prime Minister”.
TITANS YOUNG GUN’S FATHER ‘PISSED OFF’ AT CONTRACT CALL
Cooper Bai’s father Marcus has revealed he is “pissed off” with his son’s management team after the Titans young gun backflipped on a contract offer from the Melbourne Storm.
Bai inked an extension at the Gold Coast through to the end of 2027 in the pre-season despite having initially agreed to terms with the Storm.
That is because under the NRL’s 10-day cooling period, there was still an opportunity for the Titans to convince Bai to stay put and the 19-year-old ended up having a change of heart after speaking with new coach Josh Hannay.
That was to the displeasure of dad Marcus, who won a premiership with the Storm, and told The Courier Mail that his son made the “wrong decision”.
“I’m very cranky about this and I’m pissed off with his management team as well,” Bai said.
“People might say that’s his decision, but it’s a wrong decision to make.
“I don’t know what he saw (in the Titans) to be honest.
“I’m not happy about it at all.
“The Titans might say he made the right choice. But to me, as an ex-player and his father, he didn’t make the right choice at all. It’s very wrong.”
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Cooper Bai gets his first NRL try! | 00:24
Bai, who has already made his Test debut for PNG, could still yet sign with the Chiefs given his new deal has an option that leaves him as a free agent for 2028, when the NRL’s soon-to-be newest team enters the league.
But for the time being his full focus is on the Titans, who have started the season 0-2 after Sunday night’s loss to the Dolphins.
According to The Courier Mail, however, there is some concern for the young forward given he is currently not on speaking terms with his father.
Marcus told the publication that he and Cooper spoke to Craig Bellamy, Ivan Cleary and Trent Robinson as part of his contract negotiations before the teenager eventually decided to stay at the Titans.
After the interviews, Cooper is said to have sat down with his father and agreed to sign with the Storm, only to backflip on that decision while his father was over in the PNG for business.
“When I came back home on February the fifth, he changed his mind,” Marcus said.
“As a Melanesian father, I am the head of the family. In our culture, we make plans for the family, we execute it, and we make sure that it’s the right decision for the family.
“I don’t know what the Titans did to him, but suddenly some people go in there and tell him their plans and there’s something exciting coming at the Titans.
“I said to Cooper, ‘What is exciting here? I’ve been here on the Gold Coast for 20 years, what have they won?’
“But Cooper wants to do it his own way and I’ll sit back and see whether his decision is right or wrong.
“If the Titans struggle this year and it affects his performance, the coaches could say, ‘Hey, we don’t want you anymore. We offered you this before, but you didn’t want to come’.
“That’s why I’m cranky with him.”
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