ARU slap Kurtley Beale with second fine

The Australian Rugby Union have found Wallaby Kurtley Beale guilty of breaching team protocols and fined $3,000 a week after he was fined $45,000 for sending text messages.
Beale was found guilty following an ARU Integrity investigation into a verbal altercation with members of the Wallaby management team on a flight on 28 September 2014 during the Rugby championship.
The incident was deemed to be a moderate breach of team protocols and the ARU Integrity investigation found Beale guilty of inappropriate public behaviour as a result of being rude and disrespectful of Wallaby management in public.
The investigation by the ARU's Integrity Unit into the in-flight argument was separate from the investigation into Beale's distribution of an offensive text message which warranted a Code of Conduct Tribunal hearing last week.
The timing of the hearing was determined by the Tribunal, following a request by Beale's lawyers for additional time to prepare their case.
The Tribunal found Beale guilty of a serious violation of the ARU Code of Conduct and Beale was fined $45,000 for the offence.
Australian Rugby Union Chairman Michael Hawker said the ARU had now concluded both investigations and said that proper processes in line with the Collective Bargaining Agreement with the Rugby Union Players' Association had comprehensively dealt with both offences.
"There has been significant public debate about these offences and significant criticism of the ARU's management of the issues. We have carefully investigated the offences, evaluated all available evidence and applied proper process to ensure that the judgements have been arrived at fairly and impartially."
"While the Code of Conduct Tribunal hearing was pending, we chose not to engage in public speculation or promote unsubstantiated claims, to respect the integrity and confidentiality of the Tribunal and Integrity Unit processes.
The ARU will re-open negotiations with Kurtley Beale regarding his future in Australian Rugby when his current contract expires at the end of this year, with all contractual arrangements to remain confidential.
"The ARU is deeply disappointed that an offensive text message was sent, the in-flight incident occurred and the aftermath of these events were factors in the resignations of Wallabies coach Ewen McKenzie and Business Manager Di Patston. There is no basis on which it was acceptable for Ms Patston to have been subjected to the offensive text message.
"As a result of these events, we have identified a need for greater off-field leadership and support for the Wallabies. ARU General Manager Pathways and Performance Ben Whitaker is providing that support for the current Spring Tour with a longer term solution to be determined after the tour.
"Our focus now is on building on the significant achievements of the past couple of years, supporting the growth of Rugby in Australia and celebrating the major upcoming events including this weekend's National Rugby Championship final in Brisbane and the Spring Tour for the Wallabies which starts tomorrow at Twickenham," Mr Hawker said.

 

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Wallabies coach McKenzie quits after NZ defeat

Australian head coach Ewen McKenzie has sensationally quit his position as Wallabies coach after his team were beaten 28-29 in the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday.
McKenzie was in charge for 22 Test matches and leaves with a record of winning 11 Test matches, one draw and 10 losses.
McKenzie took charge of Australia last year in July after the Wallabies lost 1-2 to the British and Irish Lions and replaced Robbie Deans.

McKenzie has been under intense pressure in recent weeks due to turmoil in the Australian camp and his private life has also been under the spotlight.
McKenzie said that he had planned to quit regardless of the result between his Wallabies and the All Blacks.
"It's been a disappointing time for a number of reasons. I'm not going to go into the details, you guys can work it out," McKenzie told reporters.
"I've been unhappy with a bunch of things and the easiest thing for me is to exit stage left. I'll leave you guys to speculate or ponder, I'll write a chapter in my book."
The coach's departure will send Australian rugby even deeper into turmoil as they have a five match tour of Europe coming up next month and they are also in a difficult Rugby World Cup pool with hosts England and Wales.
Australian Rugby Union CEO Bill Pulver paid tribute to McKenzie who has led Australia in 22 Tests since starting in the role in August 2013.
"I did not ask Ewen to resign, but understand his decision. He informed me this morning of his intention to resign, regardless of tonight's result."
"Ewen is a world-class coach and a world-class individual who has been committed to playing entertaining Rugby for our fans since he started in the role.
"During his tenure, he has overseen a seven match winning streak, drew against the All Blacks and beat South Africa – all achievements that had not been met in the previous year.
"We sincerely wish Ewen well for the future professionally and personally."
Mr Pulver said the process to find a replacement has now begun.
"We hope to have the new Head Coach in place before the team leaves for the Spring Tour on Friday."
"Criteria for the role includes identifying a coach who can lead us to victory in next year's Rugby World Cup; represents Rugby's core values; has the support of the playing group; and is available.
"As part of this process, we will also identify structural improvements to the off-field element of the Wallabies, with a senior leadership role to be created to support the team.
"We will work with the incoming coach on that structure, with a solution to be in place as soon as possible," Pulver said.

 

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