Rugby League player Kenny Edwards ran all the way to England in an attempt to escape the judges of The Frownlow Medal.
He was eventually caught, however, and received his second nomination for the highly prestigious award.
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. Kiwi international Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015 before Corey Norman in 2016 and Tim Simona in 2017.
The fleet-footed back-rower earned his second nomination for a recent traffic incident, which forced the Parramatta Eels to tear up his contract and forced him to seek employment in the English Super League, alongside so many other Frownlow nominees.
Media outlets reported that Edwards ran away from his parked car after police followed him. Police later discovered that the back-rower was driving on a suspended licence. Edwards lost his contract with the Eels because he apparently failed to tell the club about the incident until two weeks later, and because he has been involved in numerous scandals in the past.
The new Catalans Dragons player was sacked by both the Manly Sea Eagles and St. George-Illawarra Dragons early in his career, due to poor discipline, and was found guilty of domestic violence and of tampering with a sample for a drug test.
Edwards will now face the severe punishment of being paid a handsome salary to live in the south of France.
Meanwhile, his former NRL colleagues will continue to do battle with players from Australia’s other major football codes in the race for The Frownlow Medal. The stories of the contenders can be seen at http://www.instagram.com/thefrownlowmedal.
Image: Nuna
The Frownlow Medal 