Highly acclaimed rugby league journalist Buzz Rothfield joined Aaron Woods and chatted about his long, illustrious career. Buzz chatted about the challenges of the sports journalism world and how his career has affected relationships with the likes of Peter Sterling, Gus Gould, Ray Hadley, the Churchill family and James Tedesco.
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And welcome back to another special edition of footy talk with woodsy I’ve got one of the uh most respected joural in the game and I’m quite excited to have a good yarn with you big boy Big Buzzy how are you mate I’m good mate how are you going it’s nice to hear
Respected from someone who’s been around as long as you I haven’t been not everyone thinks I’m respected no we a lot of the players respect you mate but it’s just yeah you know you write some Yarns that you know nerves yeah I do but you know when I signed up for this
Job few old stages said look you’re not in a popularity contest we’re not there to be best mates with footballers we’re there to tell it as we see it and look I could take you through a few examples of that I don’t know whether you want to
Get to it now or talk talk about other things well I I’ll tell you a really interesting story because it came up the Rich has had a meteor day when they were in the Los Angeles and Michael Chamis and Dean Bulldog Richie just recently yeah yeah yeah just the other day y
Spoke them about journalism and what to look out for in the media what the media want and James Sesco stuck his hand up at questions he said oh what about Buzz last year when he slammed me for taking a week off after origin when the roosters were
Desperate and I didn’t slam him at all I saw photos they had a crunch game at the cricket ground okay a crunch game going awful they had to win and the captain of the club Captain New South Wales captain of the kangaroos took himself up to bar and Bay for the
Weekend with his lovely wife who was heavily pregnant and they I don’t deny him having that family time yep but I just would have loved to have seen the television camera when it went to Robbo to see Teddy there yeah at the cricket ground and as the
Captain was that too harsh oh no like I personally if he if he had have been told from Robo that he could have missed it and had time off um and then robo’s not always right I know robo’s not I know as a player like personally I
Would have just said how about I just miss training and let me do the captain run and play because I’m paid to play Oh mate I I I think it was great he got a rest yeah he needed it he did but don’t be there on game day but you know what
There was a kid playing fullback that day forget who it was yeah but Teddy should have been the sheds before the game would he patting him on the back giving him some tips but you know the other thing buzz but this isn’t all about that no it’s not but the other
Like when you take another players perspective he’s he got hammered for that origin period like it was a rough chop for him yeah yeah so Rober might have thought he might need a freshen up to get away it could be better for the and he did play well the back end of the
Season yeah I’m all for freshen UPS yeah but I’m still think there’s a obligation I’m sure Cherry Evans would most other Skippers even if they given a off yeah how many games has chz played play 300 plus and looks like he’s still 22 he’s a and he’s still winly everything at train
M he’s an absolute professional you look at his body like you know you see some old BLS and they hobble around a bit bit like yourself buzz you know and uh he’s he looks like a 21 year old H well you know as well as I do game time for front
Rows and now it’s you don’t do as much you know he’s 80 minutes every week he I’m lucky to play 40 50 minutes some weeks and M he’s out there playing 80 backing up after I can see why he got the shits I can understand that but there are other people at the
Roofers outside of Robo a bit surprised he wasn’t there yeah it’s a tough one but you know but that that’s the sort of combat I find myself involved I understand I understand it’s it’s a good article to write as well because a lot of people are going to watch it and
Click on it yeah he’s Australian Captain he Captain they’ve just been beaten and he’s missed a game for his team I always look when I write to write about debatable topics Y and you know that’s one of the question what’s your thought process right so like you know we speak
About all this mental health you know stuff going on at the moment with everything when you’re going to write say a negative story yes what what’s your thought process going into it doctor are you thinking I’ve just got to get this story out there or do you ring
The person and say look this is what I’ve heard I tell you I can give you the best ever example of that and it happened last year okay y Rod Churchill yep son of Clive hands out the Churchill medal every night y representing his father y on the biggest stage sent a
Text message to Nick papis and bag the trip out of the trail yeah I’ve seen that one yeah I personally thought his comments were inappropriate unwarranted and shouldn’t have been said yep my problem was the text started to go a little bit viral yeah someone sent it to Danny widler
Who’s an opponent of mine y someone sent it to me we both write columns on Sunday so what do we do I tried to ining L ear didn’t pick up so went to Matt Rose his manager Matt Rose was filthy yeah what are you you know what are you trying to
Do to the kid I said mate I didn’t write the text yeah exactly right you know who leaked the text that’s you you know it was it it came was sent to Nick paper you know yeah so again it was a case of shooting the messenger I gave L 12 and I
Wrote in the story I wrote that the son of rby League Legend Clive Churchill has launched a scathing attack on and qued a couple of the softer things he said in the text yeah but I wrote there were outrageous comments and I remember and
They were yeah but it was you know my my job toin I think and a lot of other journals might do hold stuff back and I’m not going to give you example I’ve been run on plenty of times when they ask you something yeah yeah but mind you
If a football asks me not to print something I won’t print it yeah I get told a lot of stuff off the Record and I won’t yeah but this thing came to me legitimately I tried the trill I went to his manager I went to Blake
Suy and you also weren’t the one that leaked the messages no and I think sometimes we get caught in our own little world where it’s like we just get a little bit of the snippet from the article and then we’re just hating on person and the way things are sold online these
Days is very dramatic you know that’s nothing I want to ask you about like with the story so when you come up with a Story Buzz right yeah how do you get the headlines cuz sometimes when I read a story it’s got nothing to do with a headlines yeah I don’t write headlines
And that’s an old Jour thing I don’t I I don’t write headlines is that with most of them you look at the Daily Mail you look at the Sydney Morning held you look at the telegraph every website now writes a headline to try and attract someone to read the story it’s more
Clickbait well you could call it clickbait but it depends clickbait is [ __ ] cheap journalism y you’ve still got to ride a lively head to get the person interested in your story and N of what CB some of it’s very good journalism it’s might be a scoop
Mhm but it’s a fact of life would he yeah it is you know and the thing is with people they want to like as much as they Hammer you guys for what you’re right A lot of people always want to read negative um I can give you the terrible
I can write the nicest story about a football player I won’t get a click but you know what I still write them yeah I know I’ve seen it you know I I wrote a story on you a few weeks ago and your comments were just beautiful Y and it
Wasn’t a normal watch The Buzz gossip story it was about you playing rugby league cuz you love it earning 80k or ridiculous and could have earned more in the media cuz of your passion your enjoyment and mentoring mate I don’t ride all Scandal I know
That yeah I don’t I I love having good copy in there good content that’s always good and that’s something I like about I’m a big fan of the uh Saint Center and shush section yeah well you got to Prime balance it would he you do cuz you don’t
Want to be so negative all the time then people go here he comes again yeah he’s our winging another whack you know but one thing right 43 years plus in the media industry 48 48 oh wow Jesus internet internet sold you short yeah they must
Have that yeah m in your get 50 easy just hang in there big fell I’ve got some good people taking a lot of pressure off me now Rudy and bulldog and PE he’s one of our very own fell I we love him here he’s not a Peabody it’s
Just his little nickname from yeah how is it but um what made you get into you know into the industry and did you think you’d last this long I had no idea what I was 17 years of age I left Newcastle my family were and I went and applied for a job at
News Corp and Y I didn’t pass the test and what test well it’s like a Cadet ship examination and you know made I wasn’t a genius at school so you know what I did I went was known as uh the Comm employment service there I went and
Banged on the door and um I said he got any apprenticeship jobs available and I I started work as a motor mechanic at a Celtics at Kingsford fair in look at your your fingers come on that’s all I could do a greas and old change and made
I stuffed up the brakes on some Black’s car so they took me off the apprenticeships and I was just a driveway attendant pumping petrol fortunately a couple of weeks later the Telly rang and said look you didn’t go too bad we do have a hole Yeah and so I
Joined the telegraph so you’ve been with the telegraph this whole time 1976 yeah wow yeah that’s remarkable 48 years I wonder I often think how many times have I been up the LIF to the fourth floor at two hle Street s Hills up the building’s never changed oh it’s been refurbished
Obviously refurbished but it’s still in the same spot yeah all the pubs are still there ju we used have well we speak of used to how has the media changed from when you started to these days oh massively woodsy yeah you know we started out in typewriters
You know and um I don’t think I’ve ever been out to buy one in my whole life tyer no tell you a funny story when computers came in I can still remember at 980 they said all journalists and now got to work where work a computer all
The journos said you’re going to have to pay us more money come on train us to it you know what we did we went on strike for 3 weeks over having to work a computer M and can you believe it and you like going to ask for stri
Using a bloody computer well not every players an 80 grand so but I promise you we went on strike for three weeks it got sorted we went back to work and the industry changed forever that’s crazy particularly you know there was not a mobile phone around
Until about 98 yeah so I had sort of 20 years without mobiles and yeah well that sort of thing photo cameras and photo cameras like we used to have so much fun anded it so you know they like now it’s like you get a picture of a player mucking up what
Would happen back in the day but we didn’t have a camera there so yeah so and and people wouldn’t really believe and we were a lot tighter we were lot there was no internet there was no need to yeah to fall on the gossipy stories tell it changed woodsy when you
Know um Fox Sports started every game yep every minute every t Backle every try so by the time people got to Monday morning to pick up the telegraph yeah there was no point running a match report everyone everyone had seen it or heard it with Hadley or heard it with
You know David Mo whoever was calling so newspapers made a decision not to carry um blow blah blow mat reports and to not go through the back door but just look for different story angles and tell the punters you know a new breed of people on an everchanging Digital World
Y what they really want to hear and changed just took off I got a shock and coffee would he that’s all right mate and then that’s all good and then so you know we speak about you’ve been in the industry for 48 years 47 years the contacts you’ve made over the time yeah
Right and and how do you keep those you’re not always going to keep them happy but how do you always keep those contacts close um I never advertise my contacts okay um which people would try to get out here wouldn’t yeah yeah and I built up trust with a lot of people lot
Of sources that I never ever give up a source never ever will yeah and that’s how I’ve kept and that’s what keeps me going in journalism now you got all these brilliant young kids come through who can work this sort of equipment a lot better than I can who can take
Better photos shoot better videos yeah but they don’t have the content tbook they do not have the phone numbers in 48 years of trust with a lot of people you know yeah and that’s where I get my stories from it’s something that just takes time isn’t it yeah it does take
Time yeah does take time yeah yeah and look it helps me cuz I’m a senior BL now and I’ve got good real estate in the paper I got double page spread every Sunday well red watch The Buzz so people come to me with a lot of stuff you know
And those like what that is that just you or is that no that’s just me the boys helped me a little bit yeah but they’ve got their own columns Wy and car arus with sports confidential and yeah so it’s basically me I just harass and harass and harass people ring them got I
Do that’s a job job isn’t it yeah it is do you ever feel like geez I’m annoying these ples or just it’s all right just keep ringing oh no I don’t but they know I’m ringing like I’ve got a rule you ring Blake suy every week so he knows
What’s going on around town you ring Nick pus once a week you ring Peter valand one and I’ve got a list of you know probably 30 40 people I heavily rely on and then I you know when I haven’t got I go elsewhere well you say
You speak to those people right what lot of it’s off the Record lot you ever get nervous talking to them no I used to yeah but they’re pretty good friends now yeah they’re pretty good friends just good people easy to talk to yeah I love my conversations with them actually I
Really do and you know what 80% is off the Record yeah I love having a jibber with people Woods he bag each other I know that I’ve seen you down at canel a couple times at the coffee shop oh mate Reb re he’s a dangerous bastard
Just just stay away from him he’s bring about his new motorbike at 250 cc scooter scooter he hardly looks terrifying on it oh man he’s he’s one of those BLS just hobbles to the scooter but anyway but mate here’s the sort of bloke I love delivering for just the
Local people just the the punters and Ian Matthew Rebel is a punter yes he is and that’s my job to inform them not to be cozy up to and the funny thing is right so like we as BL he’s been around the footballers he gets more excited
Hanging out with you oh than what he is when he’s hanging around footballers he just gets so excited but that that’s I I get a lot of story ideas from knocking around with Hunters I’m a season ticket holder at canala top deck Ting has and stand I’ve been sitting with the same
Members there for 20 odd years are you a canala supporter B oh [ __ ] cuz I’ve heard rumors that you were a chuk supporter oh well that’s rubbish never support someone else said I was St George supporter oh I know you’re not GE you know a few people because I’m
Friendly with the roosters and Robin but I told you the Tesco story which they didn’t like oh jeez you wouldn’t be even though no well you know what you’ve got to sometimes put mhip aside and ride it as you see it yeah I’ve been a Cora supporter my first grandf final I cover
Was 1978 it was a replay on a Tuesday afternoon at the cricket ground yeah the kangaroos went away on the Thursday y canala got beat I felt really really sorry for him they should have won the original game and um I’ve had a soft spot Tommy Bishop Tommy Bishop yeah
Cliffy wats and those guys yeah I remember I know Greg Pierce what a lock forward he was mate he’s still drinking at the car casbon isn’t he no no he’s not not greg p no no he’s done so Andrew yeah Andrew yes um one put up I remember
One of my first couple of games your young BL was our ball boy boy yeah can we get that for the cameras please have a look at it you like my car was not the oh mate I was feeling the quads up the flo you’re feeling pretty good no um I
Got that after the Grand Final 200 there’s a loyalty there so if you got to spray chronologies that must hurt your heart but it doesn’t I believe with Steve Ma and Dam as a tester more than anyone else in rugby league you see him probably all the time too yeah I do but
That club is not in a good shape at the moment they got all that development money we got the worst ground that’s falling over in canala we got an empty leag Club that’s a shell with no roof on and we’re going to have to borrow 15
Million to fit it out they got to borrow money now yeah we got 60 mil out of the development we paid debt we bought Kila and the West Pack Bank granal yep so we got some nice assets but we’re borrowing 15 million we still don’t have a club
The home ground mate is not up to R our real standard it’s it’s a beautiful ground but just needs a few more it’s beautiful character wise woodsy like Suburban game day experience you’re not making enough and and we’re at the Sharks we’re competing against penth about to move into that massive new
Stadium in two years combank Stadium what about sunor what about the Titans what about the Cowboys Red Cliff Dolphins new into the comp played at Suncor last year majority games average 32,000 unbelievable this is what canala is up against even had two semi-finals in the last 2 years and you could hold
What 13,000 yeah it’s embarrassing would he it’s tough but would you rather play there than move to of course I would but I want a decent Stadium there yeah it’s a tough and I want officials who will Lobby the government hard enough to get funding everyone else has got it yeah
You know yeah true the West Tigers Justin pascow they bag he got money for Concord facility and Campbell town he got quite a fair bit we haven’t had a penny but why not probably still paying off your salary no I’m all right I got booted out of the back door mate oh did
You they still paying way for and they had to put G train on the coaching staff now so that’s got to pay the train wow he’s expensive let’s not talk about the train over in Vegas we going to keep we’re going to keep this PG rated here guys on tour stays on tour
Oh that’s it mate and you know another thing I want to know like so when you come up with a breaking news story right one thing I’ve always know how what what’s the process involved with it well I love breaking a big story I love it y and
I sometimes get the shakes I’m that excited oh really us going to a game I promise you it’s really really exciting I’ve going to beat W I’m going to beat chamus I’m going to beat bloody Webster and I’m going to break this big story
Yeah so mate you dial in and or you open your laptop and you punch it out you send it in is there a certain time that it has to go to no internet can go anytime anytime now that’s the beauty of the internet 24/7 would it never sleep
If I saw you misbehave behaving at the casino here at 3: in the morning in Sydney getting into a stinct with someone and won’t happen no not with me but NRL staring c i s could be published at 3:00 a.m. could be me and Bren Reed
Actually yeah I get him in a mate you got to you can’t fight Brady I love him I love you you want to go and find yourself a contest and then like and so you said that um you get right so what happens if what happens if you get beat to the
Punch by say you’re I hate it it’s horrible does that frustrate you oh it does cuz you know I feel a huge level of responsibility at the paper as much as Rudy as much as Peter Bell and all the boys to you know breaking big stories
Like winning a foot game on the weekend two points you can sleep easy at night yeah it’s their job yeah and you know they ask questions when we get beat in stories Y and that’s a demand of Excellence at news and then and then say another one so say you’ve been building
Into this story you just keeping it to yourself and then one of your colleagues comes to you do you give him a little look I’m I’m working on this or tell you a story from a few years back Dave Ricky a very close to Champion yep absolute Champion good
Bloke very good contacts yes now you heard Craig Bellamy was coming to canala he went to canala yep Dave won’t mind me telling this story and canala did deal with him saying yeah we’re talking but I want you to hold it we will give you the complete story give us another couple of
Weeks we’re very close gets out at M so few days before he was going to get the okay I got wind of it yep and I went over to Dave and said massive story mate caral going to get Bellamy they’re very very close he said oh made I’ve been
Sitting on that okay I said well if I’ve been told someone else has been told let’s go crash and we went crash with it y yeah so and you would have been pumped yeah but it didn’t happen oh didn’t no bamy didn’t go but like
Excited got the story out yeah it was a legitimate story that canala nearly pulled off the coaching coup of the century imagine how they got him yeah so was that the coach canala or just be a coaching I think coaching director ahead of above Fitz okay but Dave’s got really
Solid contacts he does deals like that and look I do deals like that too but he’s a very respected Man David R he’s another fellow member of the tripm he’s over here as well in Vegas doing yeah yeah I hired him you know he was working
On the Sportsman Dave Rico and he was just writing race comment and dogs and all the rugby league Riders went on holidays over Christmas yep he sent me an email sports editor then executive Sports and putting his hand up to cover League yeah in summer it was the nicest email anyone has ever
Sent me the most ambitious email y anyone’s everever sent me the hunger the enthusiasm the the writing you see in the passion in the writing and he’s been outstanding ever since he’s I’ve seen Dave obviously when I was myal days he’d be floating around the area yeah he was actually one of
Those ones that you could you could trust if you said something to him in confidence yeah yeah he would never repeat it and there’s not many of you guys like that no no so I went from who races and Wy Park dogs to NRL Footy Shark Park yeah yeah Shark Park rightand
Man hey this a better of Press Box here at the stadium B yeah imagine you tell people we were at the actual Stadium yeah I’ve sent I’ve sent a picture to my wife that’s it oh did you yeah cuz I come here not long ago pre of course you
Did yeah I was here with your good great mate Webby yes yes yeah do you get the frequent fers no I bet you I don’t sign up to that stuff mate oh don’t you can’t give way Secret yeah right bet you’re in business that’s all please please oh that was fre NL mate
Wait did you get direct to Vegas I did yes so we had to go to FG La did yeah so now you got the freaking fers see that’s your little contact with pvl he’s looked after you there big fell BBL looks after all J he’s M I tell you oh he’s looked
After me in the co year he flew me up in a jet to go Coast well good and that’s little things that people don’t understand he does would have been in Vegas without him no way you know did and you know speaking of Vegas did you think this would ever happen 12 months
Ago would be in April last year I told this story on NRL 360 I wrote a story back page spoken to a couple of television networks we’re going to have a double header over here and you’re going to try and do it with a fight and I’ve written this story for probably the
Six times last 10 years it’s never happened so I was a bit worried about it yeah but then I thought Peter land delivered the Everest got us back from Co quick it’ll happen yeah we went crash bang Buzz scoop we here mate it’s unbelievable isn’t it I’ve been here twice in 3
Months not bad he you travel good you’re looking great oh man I’m feeling good spending more time traveling a train at the moment yeah yeah all right we’re going to go this one fud yeah your great man snorky sterlo Peter Sterling yeah I’ve told this a million times oh we
Want to hear it again yeah yeah okay yeah um they won three comps in a row power 91 82 and 83 and uh we had a civil relationship back then I leared that Manley and Ken arson had come in with a massive massive biggest deal in history
To pinch him yep I rang Dennis Fitzgerald the chief executive of param Y he said you cannot write this story I said why it’s a legitimate Story Ken Aron’s trying to pinch him anyway Fitzy said if it goes public yeah y AR will have to win for his ego oh wow
I said I’ll sit on it like what the Ricky has to I told you I rang him every week for five weeks very close very close was that just uh Fitzy or was it stero you ring no I was bringing Fitzy he was he was managing the the
Negotiations so I was just checking yep so Fitzy came back to me after about 5 weeks and said mate it has happened I’ve kept him I’ve paid him more money than I ever and he had Cronin and price and Kenny and all of them and he he knocked
Off um Ken Aron manly had that big jackp he said there’s a problem though I said well what’s it what’s the problem he said Peter Sterling has a column he’s paid for in the Daily Mirror which comes out the next day and um he wants to
Announce it there and I said I’m so his maner and I said mate I’m sorry I can’t respect that yeah I’ve sat on this for 5 weeks and is huge yeah see you later yeah it’s all over the back page sterlo’s first ever million dollar deal NRL stays inside double page spread Y
How Manley tried to pinch Champion halfback the phone goes at 5:00 the next morning landline I was living at Bronte still I was reading sport news on twws yep still the best spray I’ve ever caught from anyone for riding yeah wow still the best spray nearly got physical
Too have you ever spoke to him since like no no I have I bumped into him yep I was at holidays at voka beach on the Central Coast I got called back to Sydney for a function so I had to go and buy a decent shirt cuz on holidays so I went to
Country Road at ARA yep and tried a nice shirt on and I walk out of the change rooms Sterling oh giving it to me oh he was in the again yeah yeah in the me and then what did you just walk away or I said mate we’re in Country Road not Target you
Know come on mate and um you said outside very come yeah so how many years later you be oh this was 10 15 years ago man gez he can hold a grudge still yeah I sued him once too he bagged me on the Footy Show I bought a little boat from
The money and called it sterer oh stop it little tiny I history would he so you’ve i’ need a I’d need a book to tell is it going to ever happen no we both kind of had different way mate and the sad thing is I never led to affect my writing yep I
Never did mhm I used to call him the little master and you know what CDE Churchill’s wife rang up and said oh look I appreciate he’s a very special player but there was only one little Master oh wow I said Joyce I appreciate and I stopped calling him the little
Master yeah that’s a fair enough reason yeah it was just one of the greatest players ever yeah but it it didn’t affect my riding mate y I was actually friends with his father Max oh really yeah it was weird wouldn’t he so used to have a beer with Max after Origins and
And what did and did you ever say that Max like young kept himself right out okay yeah and then so we gone from Peter Sterling to the great Gus Phil gild have you got all these written down I I love watching on Twitter or you still love watching
Before it blocked you so what’s it go there has uh look the thing is with Gus I think he came in the game in 976 too and he’s obviously done a lot more than I would ever dreamed you he’s a good football he was a junior just coming
Into penth at the same time and went to y real smart bugger isn’t he he’s one of those voice he speaks you just listen the the town stops when Gus speaks everyone wants to hear his opinion he’s polarizing but after the Super League War he got very dirty on new court we
Had a number of four I used to get on okay with him yeah not close but no problems and then you know he was very passionately involved with the ARL and um I was on the even though all my mates with the IRL y he never forgave us and look we’ve
Patched it up a few times yeah I’ve seen sometimes you talking again next time you put up a picture of his block you I I do think I’ve got life this time I I really do well what did you do this time I can’t remember look I like I think
It’s our job to hold people to account yep in to be a proper sporting critic yeah what he did at penth was a sham he sacked Ivan clear and said he was tired yeah bought in Griff Anthony Griffin for two years extended Anthony Griffin sacked Anthony Griffin six months later
Didn’t want Cleary back tried to Bringing Bennett in and the board had to go over the top of him to bring clear back Dave O’Neal did and M I wrote that you know yeah it was was wrong cost penth millions of dollars I know it did cost clear clearish one being in four
Grand three titles do you think he was tied and did need a break well well no I’m about to say do you think what Gus set up there is a result of what they’re getting at the moment um tell you the best thing Gus did when they nearly
Broke yeah he had the connections to get James Packer got a big loan money was had to be paid back yeah but that gave him the cash flow to get themselves out of trouble and rebuild cuz the Gus he was the first center of excellence really wasn’t he yeah yeah now
Gus channeled money and a lot of it wouldn’t have happened without Pack’s money which only he could attract MH so Gus did build the center of excellence yeah I just want to say this he had some really really capable people working alongside him a guy called Matt Cameron I didn’t now the
Yeah now chief executive y he set up Pathways Gus built the academy he set up Pathways yep Jim Jones yep read ricko’s story before the Grand Final how he built the pen side that Ivan clear put onto the park Yep they’re all Jimmy Jones signings mate it’s remarkable
They’re all the the boys out west and I don’t want to bad Gus yeah but when Ivan came in Ivan had to dismantle Gus’s roster oh he sent Campbell to pen uh to parah S was it or that was uh Maloney Maloney Maloney sorry he cut Maloney off early
And went to France he cut Waka Blake off sent him to parah Y so the roster he had actually built wasn’t the one that they’ve actually got now yeah or had three years ago yeah but look having said all that in the fairon department I
Got to give him credit look he he’s a very very special man yep but now and again he’s he’s got to take a little bit of ownership too that he doesn’t always get it right do you think he can do it at Bulldogs I’m impressed with their
Pathways they got a really good Junior group yeah they got a really good Junior group but they’ve lost two kids who are the two centers alamot and he’s I I had a big rap on Alam he’s G Pen now yeah he’s G to the Dolphins Hill’s G to the
Dolphins a local SG ball Center they sent to canala um he scored three tries on Deo for the Sharks yeah look look at they hard rebuilds I don’t have a half was your prop yeah it’s probably the only bit they struggle with there were a
Lot of I think the you can’t win a comp with but I think like I said it’s I think I said it last year you got to give him time short-term pain long-term game yeah something they’re looking at and another I’m not sure if you got a
Feud with this PL but I’ve heard a story about yeah the great Ray Hadley would you like to fill us in this yeah 9 8 something state of origin we up at the Park Royal yep in Brisbane having dinner on the night before the game yep the dinner wound up
About midnight Hadley was on air early on two we then yep he went to bed like a sens I grabbed joh like a sensible man I didn’t have the F was none of this podcast nonsense or radio shifts to do or so I um went out with Johnny Gibbs
And a couple of other people and had quite a good night out on the on the tiles I tried to ring Hadley’s hotel room there was no mobile in but I was going to get him up and he wouldn’t answer yep so I got back I was on the same floor in
The park Ro it’s 4 in the morning there was no do not disturb sign up so I tapped his door okay and I can’t say what he told me on this podcast and I know you get away with a lot here but I can’t probably better to keep your I
Didn’t cop the tip okay and I went bang bang bang this went on for about three or four times so you’ve been a pest yeah massive massive pest to a Blake who had 2 hours sleep to get up for radio so I ple guilty’s charged yep anyway he
Flings open the door I can still see his dentures in a jar next to his bed and he had these wide fronts on and mate I wasn’t ready but he’s just launched this best got up just went crash this just chinger yeah chimy and then slam the
Door well me I didn’t F I said no Nick so you busted yourself yeah and so I then went downstairs to the foer yeah I said the reception give me that phone I’m going to I said didn’t get outstage did he come down no thank God but M I
Went back to bed yep oh and I woke up the next morning and mate if this was a football play could you imagine what we’d be doing with the story M us would you know you know they said before that you get excited to publish a story how excited
Would you been if that was how excited would a footballer now be to film it and put on their socials oh M get screwed of us well speaking of that you’re like a social media Superstar how many of you got 9,000 8 a thousand so you’re almost
At 100K thousand do you do you get reckons they’re Russian robots well he told me that he paid for a couple thousand for you just but uh you’re a bit of a you know social Med you started you get picked up in the streets now I do but it’s more
From TV yeah it’s it’s a really interesting story The Power television I I worked on radio and newspaper with a my photo and a column for a very long period of time and very very occasionally at games the PS at a bar g y but since television M it’s gone crazy
You know it really is it’s lovely mate so you love it when the PS come up to you I I really do mate I love it cuz I know I’m you you know I know there’s a lot of people out there who do enjoy what we’re doing and and I met some
People from Hull and Wigan yesterday yeah and they had their jerseys on and they watched the show over there and oh how good that so it’s actually been very good for me the last 10 years having a bash up with you know fights with KY and
Braith now and Benny iin and Rudy and did you ever think like you’d be stuck on that you actually there when you actually there on the show when I first appeared was I and I’d never done TV I couldn’t handle it I had the shakes and really I
Was sweating and I just couldn’t C I remember you were there I know every time I go in there like they’ve got everyone’s makeup case jeez your what is it the mascara stuff you’ve got like a whole tub of it they’ve even got us this little green substance gets rid of the
Red in the cheek really yeah braith always films I love watching bra social media every Monday you’re on yeah M I love bra he is a dead set Superstar hasn’t he done a wonderful job there mate he is a superstar yeah and considering everything that happened
Last year good to see Kenny back one of your good mates well Kenny was very very clearly exonerated okay and um I I enjoyed having him back on there last night yep and um he had a lot to the show like me a lot of people don’t agree
With him he’s very you know forthright but again a lot of people don’t agree with you but they want to hear it yeah to B healthy would you so they just yeah 100% so they just Che you’re moving they had a blue ABY no no really there’s no
Really Blues to have a blue about you’re the world’s nicest BL I’ve only had a blue with Michael Jus That was cuz he was um he’s not our Lee Lee from brien’s and pasco’s speaking Place back in the day of tigers you know that yeah yeah that happens oh maybe that’s just part
Of the you know it’s part of the yeah your mates now yeah oh if I see him I talk I work with him on John Triple M yeah right it’s unbelievable how you know the world can I would have put that in my Christmas card for you I do a
Thing at Christmas those who don’t exchange c y next year I’ll do woods and chamers yeah you can do that mate thanks to the permission I’ll s it to his wife not him yeah and then you spoke about the Super League War before you’ve done some big
Things in rugby league obviously Co how big was Super League War for the game oh it was massive and it was it didn’t have to happen um why is that well carry Packer signed digital Brides you know for with Opus for a dollar the NRL didn’t know what they were worth he
Wandered on Channel n he said I’ll take streaming as well okay and Opus and then the Murdoch family found out about they said this is a you know Fox were about to launch opts had the things which pack hadn’t proberbly they went to the NR they tried to the nro said sorry we’ve
Sold it wow and the biggest [ __ ] fight ever happened cost the game tens and tens of millions of dollarss and but you know there was some good things came out of it you know player conditions improved we got a bunker out of it it also cost a lot of relationships that
Time oh lifetime lifetime like honestly yeah it was horrible woodsy it was sad yeah you know what saved the ARL cuz they’d run out of money and Super League had signed up the pals yeah y Darren Albert and Joey that last try unbelievable the 40 Stadium it broke my
I’m a manly supporter yeah I cried that day you’re a manly supporter when you’re playing at West I was a mly member when I was a kid oh yeah yeah well I used to go to Brook from yeah right couldn’t stand the Tigers I used to dve me mad mat went for him
There you go now I’m on the other side mate yeah um so that saved them but it was a horrible time a lot of people had made a lot of money like the managers getting their percentages lot of players made some good money too didn’t they ordinary players got too much money
Great players got what they probably deserved y you could only go for market value and there was a market demand back then wasn’t it it was crazy I think BL like Bradley Clyde make a lot of money didn’t they he did yeah so did Lori M
Yi all those players they had to leave the club too didn’t they Ricky dogs yeah Ricky and clly went to the dogs yeah well they had to bring in after Super League they had to bring in a cap to but weren’t they didn’t didn’t cly sign for
Like six or seven years yeah it was the money being thrown around no one saw the end line and no one thought about you know this is this can’t keep going it just can’t happen can it no and and and so obviously you’re you’re a shark’s member you’re a shark’s ttoo do you
Enjoy going to Shark Park and just watching a game having work I love it yeah I I love it because um I have my seat same position I’m with my family and um we’re all passionate and we abuse refs and you know come on mate
You can’t do that you know well you know what the rest there’s no games brother yeah I know but get them on side get them on that sort of you’re kid I you know all that stuff and I just love being out no soundproof box or just
Enjoy it most stressful moment of career 2016 Grand Final I’m sitting with every canala supporter in the stands game going down of the wire laptop on my lab oh so you’re in the Press filing no I wasn’t in the Press I was out in the with the a stadium just sitting in the
Crowd with my laptop punching the copy out how that stor on that last set and Ricky L Tu made that last tackle I had two versions written Melbourne smashed the canala fairy tale and so you already so you had well I had to you had to be
Ready you go bang as soon as and you got to get that out soon as it’s full time when I went back to the Sharks Club I showed Damian K the chairman I said you know I had this version ready to and what did he have to say just oh thank
God you didn’t press the button you know and then so you were back at the club with the boys after the game how was that cuz that was the first Premiership for the club yeah they were really lovely to me canala and great mates with Shane Flanigan who I got so much time
For and I was close to a few of the players very welcome back and yeah know the officials were friends and yeah it was a I was with a young bike and um got on very late would you would have yeah Hopey not too late like you did with
Hadley but um in a better State as well what’s what’s in store for Buzz how long can Buzz keep going for um I’d like to bring up 50 years would he y I’d like to be able to you know in a couple of years I’ve we back now I’m only writing
Weekend columns podcast I’m not the day-to-day chases Relentless relentlessly as I used to be I think it’d be nice thing to tell my kids mate that I managed to do 50 years for one employer remarkable I’m really proud of it if I can get that next two years up
You know yep still on television well I enjoy television now well you’re good I made him you pick on my man ready there m he’s pick on the ball if you know what I mean some of dribble frustra you a need I pick on him he ring rang me about three or four
Times last week and said my parents are dirty on me for the way I spoke to you on you and they’ve asked me to apologize you’re kidding so he apologized so it’s not all oneway traffic but it shows you how good of a bloke he is says well he
Was raised oh it’s exactly right when Mom and Dad yeah if my mom said up no chance in the world mom but um n it’s good M we all love you you know I I enjoy doing stuff with you mate it’s nice we the as a playing group they
Either love you or hate you but it happens everywhere man it’s part of life but G you have M it is life exactly and and we get in in this game we have unavoidable collisions unavoidable combat but you know my biggest thing is buz if if someone havep you and the
Players get filthy I always say get his number and ring him yeah yeah just speak to the joury they’re normal people but they’ve got to right stories and then if they know what the real story is yeah yeah it’s great having relationships it’s awesome and that’s something relationships are everything would it
Exactly the cont that’s where you can really help manly and kids coming through there and and that’s what s has got me there for mate like it’s part of my job and I enjoy it’s like you you know you Mentor these young guys in re and ricko now yeah so it’s something we
Love doing but M we could go on all day but I really appreciate you taking time I I really appreciate you having me would you we we should do a part two and get I’ll get a couple more stories out that go and find another Feud I’ll get you a
Couple to break me aren’t you before I go no man I want to get you to that 50 years thanks enoy thank you mate thanks
1 Comment
Great stuff Woodsy!! The GOAT…and Buzz!