Sports

Rugby Sex Scandal Hits Australia Rugby League Star Matthew Johns

by Jon Azpiri | May 14, 2009 at 08:57 am

3900 views | 1 Recommendation | 6 comments

An Australian rugby team has been rocked by a sex scandal involving teammates having group sex while on a road trip in Christchurch, New Zealand.

An unidentified New Zealand teen known only as "Clare" claims to have been an unwilling participant in group sex with six Cronulla players while six other teammates watched.

Thus far, almost no Cronulla players have spoken out about the Australian rugby sex scandal, even after Cronulla chairman Barry Pierce asked the responsible players to step forward for the good of the game.

Only former Cronulla player Matthew Johns has admitted taking part and has publicly apologized. Johns has since stepped down from a job as a television commentator and a coaching job. Johns has publicly apologized for the incident, yet maintains that he believes the sex was consensual. According to reports, John met "Clare" and the two returned to a hotel. Once there, "Clare" was forced to have sex with several Cronulla players.

This is hardly the first Australain rugby scandal. Since 2004, there has been at least one rugby sex scanadal a year. Part of the problem may stem from rugby's strong drinking culture as well as players using group sex as a bonding ritual.

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Richard Benham (not verified)

at 14:30 on May 16th, 2009

Hello there. Where did you get the information that she claimed to be an unwilling participant? The Four Corners report disclaims any such allegation.

Oh, and this story is about a Rugby League club, not a rugby club.

Jo Robinson (not verified)

at 01:50 on May 17th, 2009

Only an Australian would confuse Rugby League with Rugby Union. One point that I cannot understand is, if Mathew Johns returned to the hotel room with Clare and had concensual sex with her, how on earth is he then responsible for the degrading, disgraceful behaviour of the other Cronulla Shark players. I would hope that Rugby Union players would not stoop to such base behavior.

jacqui Brooks (not verified)

at 22:45 on May 22nd, 2009

Lets start asking the hard questions. Did Matt Johns line up an intoxicated "starstruck" young woman to be packed raped by the "boys"? Maybe it serves Matt Johns own interests to not reveal the other players involved.

privaate (not verified)

at 22:43 on May 24th, 2009

everyone should give matty johns a break if she was so hurt by this she would of come out and said it years ago but instead she left it 7 years.

.....

Lee 1977 (not verified)

at 13:24 on May 30th, 2009

What other motivation could she have? She's anonymous and in hiding so will make no cash from this. Surely if she wanted publicity she would have worked the media or gone public at the time...? If you can't imagine why someone would keep an act of abuse like this quiet out of shame or out of fear of the exact situation that she is in now, then you have no empathy or imagination.