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Home / Sport

Revealed: Unrepentant Israel Folau refused chance to save career

NZ Herald
9 May, 2019 07:13 PM5 mins to read

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Children under 12 should not play contact sport, warn top US experts, The IPL heats up with Blackcaps players in the mix and we catch up with kiwi wrestling sensation Michelle Montague

Rugby superstar Israel Folau is rallying players who share his hard-line Christian beliefs to support him in his crusade against game power brokers as he faces the sack for saying 'Hell awaits homosexuals'.

The controversial Wallaby reportedly also turned down one last chance to save his career and multi-million dollar contract from being torn up.

The defiant sports star is instead going on the offence and has reached out to fellow players, mainly of Pacific Islander heritage, to back him and his religious views.

Folau was told if he took down a controversial Instagram post which claimed 'hell' awaited 'drunks, homosexuals, adulterers' and others unless they repent, it would be deemed as remorseful, The Daily Telegraph reported.

It would have potentially downgraded his code of conduct breach to a low or mid-level breach.

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A breach classed in the high-level category is the only level of breach which would allow the RA to terminate his contract.

In spite of the advice he chose not to remove the post, which still remains on his Instagram page which has 354,000 followers.

During the three-day hearing, Folau was given numerous opportunities to state he would not continue to share views which targeted the gay community.

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But Folau insisted he would 'not change' and stated he would continue to share his religious beliefs on social media.

Now he has asked players from Australia's Super Rugby franchises and players from the Japanese team The Sunwolves to stand by him.

Folau's current predicament has highlighted the distinct differing opinions between Pacific Island players and other players in regards to the religious freedom debate.

Some Pacific Islander players feel obliged to speak out on Folau's behalf on social media, while others feel compromised by the uncomfortable situation the star has put them in, the publication reported.

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Reds captain Samu Kerevi expressed sympathy for Folau when he was made to defend his unoffensive Easter social media post.

Some players at Melbourne Rebels and Queensland Reds are believed to be discussing how they can put on a united front on Friday night's match at AAMI Park.

The two teams will reprotedly encourage Christian players from both sides to gather on the field for a prayer huddle, either before or after the game.

On Tuesday night, a panel found devout Christian Folau guilty of a high-level breach of conduct over a post saying gay people are sinners and will go to hell.

Folau's club team, the New South Wales Waratahs, has publicly committed to sacking him.

NSW Waratahs chairman Roger Davis called for a 'quick' and 'common-sense' settlement to the Folau saga on Tuesday.

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If sacked from the national team, Folau would be the first Australian athlete dismissed for expressing religious beliefs.

Folau faced a three-member panel over three days of hearings to decide whether he had breached the code of conduct with his post that said 'hell' awaited 'drunks, homosexuals, adulterers' and others.

It means Folau, who was previously warned not to make controversial social media posts, will not receive any payout after he previously rejected a $1million settlement from Rugby Australia to walk away from his contract.

Folau was pictured leaving the code of conduct hearing in Sydney on Tuesday night with wife Maria, a New Zealand international netballer, by his side.

The panel, which consisted of chair John West QC, Rugby Australia representative Kate Eastman SC and the RUPA-appointed John Boultbee, will now consider what punishment the 30-year-old Wallabies fullback should face.

Had the panel deemed Folau's breach of RA's players' code of conduct anything less than 'high level', the governing body would not have had the power to boot the three-time John Eales Medallist out of the game.

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The best punishment Folau can now hope for is a suspension and/or a fine.

The panel's decision may not be finalised for several days with no timeline established on when that will occur.

Both Folau and Rugby Australia will give written submissions to the panel before the sanction is handed down.

Folau also has 72 hours to lodge an appeal and have the matter heard by an all-new panel.

Folau's trial has stretched far beyond the rugby pitch, triggering a wider debate about freedom of speech and the power of employers to control their employees away from the workplace.

Folau and Rugby Australia are believed to have forked out an estimated $300,000 on legal bills since Saturday alone.

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Folau's Wallabies teammate Quade Cooper empathised with Folau's plight but was uncertain whether there's any way back for the stood-down star.

'I'm not too sure - that's something you would have to speak to (his Waratahs teammates) Bernard (Foley) and Nick Phipps and Michael Hooper and those guys about,' Cooper told reporters earlier on Tuesday.

'You feel for anyone who's going through a difficult patch in their life.'

Wallabies hooker Taniela Tupou took to Facebook last week to pledge his support for Folau.

'Seriously... Might as well sack me and all the other Pacific Islands rugby players around the world because we have the same Christian beliefs,' Tupou posted.

However, several senior players including halfback Will Genia and five-eighth Bernard Foley have indicated they may have difficulties playing with Folau if he returned.

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Folau will become the first Australian athlete dismissed for expressing fundamental religious beliefs if he's sacked.

Folau has played 73 Tests for the Wallabies and became Super Rugby's all-time leading try-scorer earlier this year.

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