NRL star Johnathan Thurston will play in the Frownlow Medal Rugby League Super Series after recovering from a recent calf injury.
Medical staff worked tirelessly with the playmaker to ensure he was ready for the hugely important fixture, where he will slot into Team Scandal, in place of Cameron Munster, who will move to the bench.
The history making series will feature four teams made up entirely of NRL players who have been nominated for Frownlow honours since 2015 and are currently playing in the NRL (or were recently stood down).
The teams will comprise players from NSW, Queensland, England, PNG, New Zealand, Samoa, Fiji and Tonga.
The Frownlow Medal is awarded to the player whose off-field demeanour epitomises the values of the modern day footballer and draws attention to the status of footballers as role models to young Australians. It covers Australia’s four major football codes; the National Rugby League (NRL), Australian Football League (AFL), the A-League (Football) and Rugby Union’s Super Rugby competition.
The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame honours former players and players who received media attention in previous seasons, for similarly scandalous behaviour, and its inductees include Ben Cousins and Todd Carney.
Frownlow Medal incumbent Corey Norman will star at five-eighth for Team ‘Booze Ban’, alongside Mitchell “dog lover’ Pearce, inaugural Frownlow medallist Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Tim ‘Tickets’ Simona and The (baby) Terminator, Bryce Cartwright.
These stars will play with and against footballers who have earned nominations for offences such as alcohol abuse, drug dealing, assault, dangerous driving, criminal association, drug abuse, domestic violence, imprisonment, drug possession, misuse of social media…and throwing a goanna.
TEAM “BOOZE BAN”
Backs Forwards Reserves
- Peta Hiku Kenny Edwards Tim Lafai
- Semi Rardradra Jake Friend Sam Lisone
- Tim Simona Paul Gallen
- Konrad Hurrell Dylan Napa
- Shaun Kenny-Dowall Andrew Fifita
- Corey Norman Bryce Cartwright
- Mitchell Pearce
TEAM “IDOL”
Backs Forwards Reserves
- Valentine Holmes Josh Papalii Albert Vete
- Edrick Lee James Segeyaro Nene Macdonald
- Josh Dugan Rusell Packer
- Blake Ferguson Zane Tetevano
- Waqa Blake Liam Knight
- Anthony Milford James Tamou
- Ben Hunt
TEAM “REHAB”
Backs Forwards Reserves
- Dylan Walker Nate Myles Chris Grevsmuhl
- Manu Vatuvei Karl Lawton Vai Toutai
- Kyle Lovett Dave Taylor
- Aaron Gray Paul Carter
- Corey Oates Matthew Lodge
- Jarryd Hayne Jason Taumalolo
- Matt Moylan
TEAM “SCANDAL”
Backs Forwards Reserves
- Kalyn Ponga Sam Burgess Sam Thaiday
- Kurt Mann Ben Matulino Jake Clifford
- Tautau Moga Siliva Havili Cameron Munster
- Michael Jennings Peni Terepo
- Dane Nielsen Jarrod Wallace
- Jack Bird Bodene Thompson
- Johnathan Thurston
The Frownlow Medal committee allowed a number of players to participate under special consideration, in order to assist the players to work through personal issues at this difficult time in their lives and provide all of the necessary to support to the players to assist them in moving forward.
As a result, Tim ‘Tickets’ Simona will be invited, as he is expected to attract substantial sponsorship dollars from sports gambling companies. Matthew Lodge‘s place in Team “Rehab” will help grow the game in New York / USA and Vai Toutai will play, despite being kicked out of the game, because he threatened to call some of his bikie mates on The Frownlow committee.
The games will be played in a Round-Robin format to fit in with State of Origin and the players’ court appearances. If players are injured, or imprisoned, during the tournament, the Frownlow committee is confident that other NRL players will step up and earn a place in one of the teams.
For full details of the incidents which earned these players a place in The Frownlow Medal Rugby League Super-Series, head to http://www.instagram.com/thefrownlowmedal.
Image: Nuna
First published in May, 2017.
The Frownlow Medal 