At Brookvale, the Sin Bin Did Not End the Fight

The sin bin did not end the fighting. During Manly’s match against Melbourne at Brookvale Oval on August 26, 2011, Glenn Stewart and Adam Blair were ordered off temporarily for their involvement in a fight. As they left the field, they traded blows again by the sideline. Both were then sent off. The match became known as the “Battle of Brookvale.”

Manly won 18–4 in front of 20,414 spectators, but the first-half violence brought consequences beyond the result. On August 29, the National Rugby League announced fines of $50,000 for each club and 11 charges against 10 players, five from each side. Stewart and Blair had their contrary-conduct charges for fighting referred directly to the judiciary. Blair also faced a separate grade-two striking charge.

The other charges ranged from grade-one detrimental conduct to grade-four contrary conduct. Manly’s Darcy Lussick faced a four-week ban; Brett Stewart faced one or two weeks. Those were the prospective penalties reported when the charges were announced, not the outcomes of the hearings. The league said the club fines reflected the teams’ overall conduct and the damage their actions had caused to the game’s image and welfare.

NRL chief executive David Gallop pointed to players joining the fighting and leaving the bench area. “The sight of so many players from both teams fighting, of people running in and leaving the bench area, was a horrendous look for the game,” he said. He warned that fans, families and commercial partners could walk away if the league did not make clear that such behaviour would not be tolerated.

Manly did not accept the club fine without question. Chairman Scott Penn called it “disappointing” and said the club would seek advice on its merits, with an appeal not ruled out. The club said it would handle the player charges in the normal manner. Melbourne said it was continuing its review before deciding its position. Both clubs had five business days to respond to the breach notices.

The league’s operational review distinguished the fighting from some of the efforts to stop it. It found breaches of sideline and bench guidelines, which the club fines were deemed sufficient to cover, but concluded that the conduct of officials and trainers from both clubs did not warrant action. Gallop acknowledged that people from both clubs had tried to intervene positively and that some had shown restraint. He nevertheless rejected attempts to blame the referees for the violence.

The second fight also prompted a specific change to the way players would leave the field. When several players were being sent off or sin-binned, referees would be instructed to wait until one had crossed the sideline before dismissing the next. Once each player crossed, the club would be responsible for escorting him immediately to the dressing room.