Trent Robinson in staggering act for Bulldogs amid NRL club's legal battle with ex-player
The Bulldogs are embroiled in a $4 million legal dispute with a former player.
Roosters coach Trent Robinson has thrown his support behind the trainer at the centre of an ugly legal dispute with a former Bulldogs player. Canterbury's board have vowed to "vigorously defend" themselves and their trainer against a $4 million civil case from former player Jackson Topine, who claims he suffered a psychiatric injury during his time at the NRL club.
Topine's legal case centres around claims he was forced to wrestle up to 35 teammates in quick succession, as punishment for being late to a training session. Clubs use various methods to penalise players for indiscretions such as tardiness and because Topine was late for a 90-minute wrestling session, his punishment was to wrestle the Bulldogs squad.
Topine's legal representatives say he was directed to do so by Bulldogs high-performance manager Travis Touma, and they argue it was "unlawful" and a breach of procedural fairness, amounting to corporal punishment. Topine claims he suffered "psychiatric injury, deprivation of liberty, humiliation, indignity, physical exhaustion, physical discomfort, anxiety, embarrassment and fear" as a result of the session.
The 22-year-old has not added to his 16 NRL games since the incident and is claiming in his legal case that he has "suffered ongoing incapacity to play the game". The case is expected to be heard in the NSW Supreme Court in June with Topine pursuing up to $4 million in damages based on the average wage of players across a career span.
Bulldogs dispute claims from ex-player Jackson Topine
The Bulldogs say they will "vigorously defend" the club and Touma, and have disputed some of the accusations from Topine. "The board unanimously agreed that it would vigorously defend the club and its employee Travis Touma against the claim lodged today by a former player," Bulldogs chairman Adam Drussi said on Wednesday night. "The club will be making no further comments at this time."
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It comes as Roosters coach Robinson leapt to the defence of Touma, who is one of the NRL's most experienced head trainers. Touma and Robinson worked together to help deliver three premierships for the Roosters before the trainer moved to Souths in 2022 and then Canterbury in 2023.
Touma is still currently part of Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo's backroom staff at the Bulldogs. And the Roosters' coach says the experienced trainer has always had the welfare of his players at the forefront of what he does.
Trent Robinson goes in to bat for Bulldogs trainer
"Travis is a very experienced trainer and a really outstanding person," Robinson said about his former colleague. "His care factor is as high as I've seen in any staff member at any club I've been involved with. I can't speak to the incident, but I know who Travis is and the quality of the person he is and the care that he has for his players.
"You have to push players to be at their best, and you've got to care for them at the same time. You don't always get it right, but if you care for your program and the players that you have in that program then, for the most part, you'll get it right."
Former Canterbury premiership winner Braith Anasta said he couldn't understand Topine's legal challenge against the club and urged the NRL to support the Bulldogs amid fears the case could set an unwanted precedent. “I can’t get my head around it, this guy has rocked up to training late so when you rock up to training late you get tough discipline,” Anasta said on NRL 360.
“You get taught not to let your teammates down because if you rock up late in the game you cost your team. This happens every day with every club and every player. You get punished for that... This is standard procedure at every football club, the NRL need to get involved in this and they need to support the Bulldogs on this. Because if every player who was put through the same thing as Jackson Topine would sue their respective club, we’d had court cases and litigation throughout every club."
with AAP