Why Matt Nean’s 20-year rugby league ban should be lifted

OPINION

Having reported on a lot of judiciary hearings in my four decades as a rugby league journalist, Matt Nean’s case is one of the most unusual I have come across.

While I wasn’t at this one, I can’t agree with the outcome or agree the punishment fits the crime.

Not that I’m not taking sides here — well, yes, I am.

From the evidence given at the time — or should I say NOT given — it would appear banned NSW rugby league player Nean has probably served his time.

Nean was banned for 20 years for an alleged shoulder charge on referee James Brown in a Group 4 grand final between his West Tamworth Lions and cross-town rivals North Tamworth in 2016 which turned ugly.

Several players were sent off, and Nean was one of them.

Nean was originally offered an 18-week suspension if he took an early guilty plea.

He chose to plead not guilty and take his case to the judiciary, which then banned him for 20 years.

Despite video evidence — which appears to show incidental, if any contact — not being allowed to be introduced as part of his defence, and reports the referee sought to have the charge changed from “shoulder charge”, Nean was hit with the severest of penalties.

Now, If I may quote the learned Lord Chief Justice Hewart, who once said that “justice should not be done but should be manifestly been seen to be done”.

He uttered those words almost 100 years ago and could quite easily have been referring to Nean’s case today.

With time quickly running out to have his 20-year ban lifted, Nean is considering taking his case to the Supreme Court for a ruling — a very costly exercise, but probably his only avenue.

Now, I am no Perry Mason, but to many, myself included, it would seem Nean has done his time.

But according to the judiciary panel who found him guilty of a “shoulder charge”, he still has 14 years to serve.

On face value, he has what would appear to be a strong case, especially if he is allowed to introduce evidence which the judiciary that found him guilty did not allow or consider when they banned him in 2016.

It should be pointed out that Nean had a bad judiciary history.

He was suspended for 14 weeks after being sent off in the 2015 grand final along with his brother Sean, who was given 10 weeks for headbutting.

But surely the question here is not about him being a “repeat offender” as the judiciary was told in 2016 — there are plenty of those still playing rugby league in the NRL.

The question here is has Nean, now 31, been punished enough for something that looked fairly insignificant?

As a result, he can’t go and watch his three children — Kobhan, 13; Nixhan, 8; and Ainslee, 6 — play rugby league and he can’t coach at any level.

Now, there may be other circumstances that led to the judiciary handing him one of the toughest penalties ever dished out to a rugby league player.

But we are talking about a guy who still has 14 years to serve while his children are playing the game he loves.

The NRL, which did not return inquiries, needs to urgently review Nean’s case — not just because Nean wants to play again or wants to go and watch his kids play, but because, as Lord Justice Hewart said, “justice must be seen to be done”.

And when you look at the evidence, the video, the referee being denied a request to change his report of a “shoulder charge”, you can’t help but feel they got it wrong.

Nean is no angel — in fact, he has a fair amount of judiciary baggage.

But if officials wanted him out of the game, they should have charged him with repeated offences — not kicked him out with a “shoulder charge” which the video clearly shows did not happen.

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