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Todd Carney urinated into his own mouth – but he only hurt himself Todd Carney urinated into his own mouth – but he only hurt himself
(about 2 months later)
A time will come when people will barely A time will come when people will barely remember Todd Carney or his NRL career. It happens to almost everyone except the truly great. Carney has played for his state and his country, but it’s more than likely that while people do still remember him, it will be for the things he did wrong. Then again, you can’t complain about that when you urinate into your own mouth for a laugh.
remember Todd Carney or his NRL career. It happens to almost everyone except The Cronulla Sharks sacked Carney on Sunday night after the emergence of a photo of his prank in the bathrooms of a local nightclub. The picture in question appeared to have been taken the night before and quickly spread around the internet. Carney’s agent, David Riolo, has since indicated that the incident was a private joke and was “was supposed to be kept between mates”. Contrary to some reports, Riolo said that Carney was not on his final warning at the club and neither player nor agent had received notification of any prior breaches of Cronulla’s code of conduct. The Sharks say they terminated Carney’s contract “after careful consideration and lengthy deliberation, including discussions with senior NRL management.”
the truly great. Carney has played for his state and his country, but it’s more Amid all of this you can’t help but wonder whether the urination incident even ranks in the NRL’s Top 30 player misdemeanors of the past decade. Was it a sacking offence? Nothing and no one was harmed other than Carney’s reputation; not a woman, child or – and this is an unfortunate but necessary clarification – animal. Like many young men his age, Carney gets himself in trouble when he drinks to excess. The latest incident is another in a string of alcohol-related sackings and Carney has now been banished from three NRL clubs for offences varying from driving under the influence, nightclub evictions, damaging a vehicle (for which he received a 12-month suspended jail sentence) and drinking during club-imposed dry periods. Alcohol and stupidity are the reoccurring themes. But did Carney harm others over the weekend? No.
than likely that while people do still remember him, it will be for the things he did wrong. Then There’s been no assaults or harassment of other parties, no abuse of his status or illicit drugs; just a pattern of behavior that’s been detrimental to Carney himself (and a car or two) and thus the team’s chances of success. That’s what this story boils down to: players can wreak havoc out in society but the minute they harm the reputation of the team they’re out on their ear, especially if the club in question is under the cloud of an Asada investigation.
again, you can’t complain about that when The club would rightly argue that it’s not a good look to be presenting to young supporters but then neither are the brawls that frequently break out on sports fields – involving all the country’s football codes – across Australia every week. Besides, any child with the access to a smartphone they’d need to see the Carney image has most likely seen far worse.
you urinate into your own mouth for a laugh. That players like Carney have their contracts cut so swiftly when others guilty of violence against women have merely been handed temporary suspensions also tells an uncomfortable story about the NRL’s moral standards. That’s what this is too; a moral judgment that Carney is not the type of person the Sharks or the league want to be associated with.
The Cronulla Sharks sacked Carney on Sunday night What Cronulla’s sacking decision here and other NRL incidents in the past show is that both the league and its clubs suffer a fundamental disconnect of perspective when it comes to the way they view both themselves and their players. All of Carney’s sackings have come as the result of perceived damage to the brand or the club’s reputation. In Carney’s case the wounds have almost always been self-inflicted though. To cite a rather more high-profile repeat offender, Luis Suarez inflicted damage on someone else and was only banned for four months.
after the emergence of a photo of his prank in the bathrooms of a local According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Carney had “learned little from his past mistakes”. That being said, SMH and every other news outlet that spews out redemption stories like they’re about to go out of fashion didn’t mind riding the wave whenever Carney and his minders wanted to paint the picture of a changed man. The sports media loves a resurrection narrative more than any other but even those stories don’t sell as many newspapers as a famous sportsperson pissing into his own mouth, so onto the chopping block Carney goes.
nightclub. The picture in question appeared to have been taken the night before None of this is to shirk the fact that Todd Carney is a colossal dunce but if that itself is the crime then a lot of other players should be shifting uneasily right now. Carney’s case is not even an exception. Vice reported just a week ago of the rising trend of pro skaters urinating (or “bubbling”, as it’s known to its practitioners) into their own mouths. In the wake of the Sharks’ sacking decision, an indignant Facebook group named ‘Piss in your mouth for Todd Carney’ (since removed) appeared and offered up numerous examples of Carney fans doing exactly that. Maybe he was more representative of NRL target demographics than they’d care to admit.
and quickly spread around the internet. Carney’s agent, David Riolo, has since Carney's behaviour was very odd and perhaps not something that polite society is ready to embrace, but what this boils down to is whether someone, public figure or not, should be sacked from their job for doing so. Viewed next to the ills that blight modern sport I’m not entirely sure.
indicated that the
incident was a private joke and was “was supposed to be kept between
mates”. Contrary to some reports, Riolo said that Carney was not on his final
warning at the club and neither player nor agent had received notification of
any prior breaches of Cronulla’s code of conduct. The Sharks say they
terminated Carney’s contract “after careful consideration
and lengthy deliberation, including discussions with senior NRL management.”
Amid all of this you can’t help but wonder
whether the urination incident even ranks in the NRL’s Top 30 player misdemeanors
of the past decade. Was it a sacking offence? Nothing and no one was harmed
other than Carney’s reputation; not a woman, child or – and
this is an unfortunate but necessary clarification – animal. Like many
young men his age, Carney gets himself in trouble when he drinks to excess. The
latest incident is another in a string of alcohol-related sackings and Carney
has now been banished from three NRL clubs for offences varying from driving
under the influence, nightclub evictions, damaging a vehicle (for which he
received a 12-month suspended jail sentence) and drinking during club-imposed
dry periods. Alcohol and stupidity are the reoccurring themes. But did Carney
harm others over the weekend? No.
There’s been no assaults or harassment of
other parties, no abuse of his status or illicit drugs; just a pattern of
behavior that’s been detrimental to Carney himself (and a car or two) and thus
the team’s chances of success. That’s what this story boils down to: players
can wreak havoc out in society but the minute they harm the reputation of the team
they’re out on their ear, especially if the
club in question is under the cloud of an Asada investigation.
The club would rightly argue that it’s not
a good look to be presenting to young supporters but then neither are the
brawls that frequently break out on sports fields – involving all the country’s
football codes – across Australia every week. Besides, any child with the
access to a smartphone they’d need to see the Carney image has most likely seen
far worse.
That players like Carney have their
contracts cut so swiftly when others guilty of violence against women have
merely been handed temporary suspensions also tells an uncomfortable story
about the NRL’s moral standards. That’s what this is too; a moral judgment that
Carney is not the type of person the Sharks or the league want to be associated
with.
What Cronulla’s sacking decision here and
other NRL incidents in the past show is that both the league and its clubs
suffer a fundamental disconnect of perspective when it comes to the way they
view both themselves and their players. All of Carney’s sackings have come as
the result of perceived damage to the brand or the club’s reputation. In
Carney’s case the wounds have almost always been self-inflicted though. To cite a rather more high-profile repeat offender, Luis Suarez inflicted damage on someone else and was only banned for four months.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald,
Carney had “learned
little from his past mistakes”. That being said, SMH and every other news
outlet that spews out redemption stories like they’re about to go out of
fashion didn’t mind riding the wave whenever Carney and his minders wanted to
paint the picture of a changed man. The sports media loves a resurrection
narrative more than any other but even those stories don’t sell as many
newspapers as a famous sportsperson pissing into his own mouth, so onto the
chopping block Carney goes.
None of this is to shirk the fact that Todd
Carney is a colossal dunce but if that itself is the crime then a lot of other
players should be shifting uneasily right now. Carney’s case is not even an
exception. Vice
reported just a week ago of the rising trend of pro skaters urinating (or
“bubbling”, as it’s known to its practitioners) into their own mouths. In the
wake of the Sharks’ sacking decision, an indignant Facebook group named ‘Piss
in your mouth for Todd Carney’ (since removed) appeared and offered up numerous
examples of Carney fans doing exactly that. Maybe he was more representative of
NRL target demographics than they’d care to admit.
Carney's behaviour was very odd and perhaps not something that polite society is
ready to embrace, but what this boils down to is whether someone, public figure
or not, should be sacked from their job for doing so. Viewed next to the
ills that blight modern sport I’m not entirely sure.