James Roberts won’t get a second chance if he is found guilty of drug charges because he is no longer playing NRL.
Roberts survived a career full of off-field scandals and multiple nominations for The Fronwlow Medal, but this is his first nomination for the hall of fame and the first time he’ll front the law without the support of a football club.
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. NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015, while NRL star Talatau Amone is the most recent recipient.
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 Julian O’Neill.
Roberts played for five different clubs and was released by most of them, despite being good enough to play three State of Origin games for NSW. His speed and skill were enough to see him forgiven for many misdemeanours, but won’t be enough to avoid punishment for the latest.
Earlier this year Roberts was charged with alleged possession of drugs and cash suspected of being illegally obtained after a vehicle stop by police in Sydney’s east.
He was handed two court attendance notices after allegedly being found in possession of marijuana and possessing unlawfully obtained goods pertaining to $1400 cash.
Jimmy the Jet was already on a 15-month conditional release order after he pleaded guilty to breaching an AVO by repeatedly calling his estranged partner.
Roberts has a strong chance of being inducted into the hall of fame later this year, after being nominated for the medal in 2016, 2017, 2019 and twice in 2021.
His indiscretions include breaching his contract at South Sydney, off-field scandals at Penrith, arrested for public nuisance, accused of abusing a female bartender, fighting with security guards and being accused of pulling a woman’s hair at a nightclub.
In between these scandals he went to rehab in Thailand, but that didn’t appear to work.
Roberts is proof that people will be forgiven for almost anything if they’re good enough, especially if they’re good at professional sport. He was given multiple second chances and final warnings, but won’t enjoy that privilege now that he is no longer needed to win rugby league games.
Image: NuNa
The Frownlow Medal 