Berkeley_Eagle
Current Status: 24/7 Manly Fan
http://www.sportal.com.au/league/news/zorbas-zone-toovey-outburst-justified-248839
The first time I laid eyes on Geoff Toovey I thought Manly coach Bob Fulton had mistakenly sent the ballboy on as a replacement.
Ten minutes later, after he'd smashed a couple of Great Britain forwards, I knew the little bloke with the blond hair was someone you didn't want to mess with.
While Toovey's hairline and model looks have long gone, the fire remains in the belly.
I attended Friday night's now infamous press conference because I knew it was going to explode.
The feeling in the Manly dressing room was utter frustration bordering on outright anger and resentment.
It's time like these that players look to their coach for support, for him to speak for them and tell the outside world the pain they are feeling at what they see as a gross injustice.
Toovey played and worked under two of the best in Fulton and Des Hasler and shares their passion and desire.
He gets labelled a whinger and moaner by people who don't know him, but he doesn't care.
Tooves is a player's coach who will fight to the death for their cause.
Did the NRL really think he was just going to lie down and cop what happened on Friday night?
Please.
Take your pick on the incidents: the Steve Matai no-try, the Jeff Lima leg twist or the Greg Inglis 'injury'.
Yes I bleed maroon and white but most fair-minded fans would have to concede all had a bearing on Manly losing a game they controlled for the most part.
And Toovey was well justified in venting his spleen.
He didn't overstep the mark or question the integrity of match officials.
He simply said what a lot of people were thinking.
And for once journos got a decent story out of post-match press conference instead of the usual dull and boring crap served up.
Would the NRL just prefer coaches turn up and sit there like cardboard cut-outs saying nothing?
I wouldn't front if I was them. What's to gain if the NRL wants them to wear gags?
The sub-plot to all this was Michael Maguire complaining to the NRL that Toovey was out of order in bringing up the Lima incident.
Maguire is a fine coach but has a bad memory. In round seven when Greg Inglis got tipped upside down by Ritchie Fa'aoso and placed on report, Maguire couldn't let it go through to the keeper when questioned by journalists after the game.
Now he wants the little bloke pinged for speaking up on behalf of his players?
Seems a bit rich to me.
After all that, if they fine Toovey the game's in more strife than I thought.
*Peter Peters is a Manly board member and life member of the club.
The first time I laid eyes on Geoff Toovey I thought Manly coach Bob Fulton had mistakenly sent the ballboy on as a replacement.
Ten minutes later, after he'd smashed a couple of Great Britain forwards, I knew the little bloke with the blond hair was someone you didn't want to mess with.
While Toovey's hairline and model looks have long gone, the fire remains in the belly.
I attended Friday night's now infamous press conference because I knew it was going to explode.
The feeling in the Manly dressing room was utter frustration bordering on outright anger and resentment.
It's time like these that players look to their coach for support, for him to speak for them and tell the outside world the pain they are feeling at what they see as a gross injustice.
Toovey played and worked under two of the best in Fulton and Des Hasler and shares their passion and desire.
He gets labelled a whinger and moaner by people who don't know him, but he doesn't care.
Tooves is a player's coach who will fight to the death for their cause.
Did the NRL really think he was just going to lie down and cop what happened on Friday night?
Please.
Take your pick on the incidents: the Steve Matai no-try, the Jeff Lima leg twist or the Greg Inglis 'injury'.
Yes I bleed maroon and white but most fair-minded fans would have to concede all had a bearing on Manly losing a game they controlled for the most part.
And Toovey was well justified in venting his spleen.
He didn't overstep the mark or question the integrity of match officials.
He simply said what a lot of people were thinking.
And for once journos got a decent story out of post-match press conference instead of the usual dull and boring crap served up.
Would the NRL just prefer coaches turn up and sit there like cardboard cut-outs saying nothing?
I wouldn't front if I was them. What's to gain if the NRL wants them to wear gags?
The sub-plot to all this was Michael Maguire complaining to the NRL that Toovey was out of order in bringing up the Lima incident.
Maguire is a fine coach but has a bad memory. In round seven when Greg Inglis got tipped upside down by Ritchie Fa'aoso and placed on report, Maguire couldn't let it go through to the keeper when questioned by journalists after the game.
Now he wants the little bloke pinged for speaking up on behalf of his players?
Seems a bit rich to me.
After all that, if they fine Toovey the game's in more strife than I thought.
*Peter Peters is a Manly board member and life member of the club.
