FRONT PAGE STORY THAT NEVER WAS

It doesn’t give me any great pleasure to reprise the infamous spitting incident between rugby league ‘Immortal’, Wally Lewis and Jim Cowell, back in 1989, particularly as I know Wally deeply regrets his actions that afternoon at Lang Park.

But now that I have my own blog, and I am not answerable to the whims of editorial heavies, I have decided to publish the front page story that never was, on the 35^th anniversary of the infamous incident.

I covered the May 21, Brisbane Broncos v Gold Coast Giants’ match for ‘The Courier-Mail’. Wally captained the Broncos from the five eighth position, and Cowell started at prop for the Giants, who were captained by hooker, Billy Johnstone.

I will run the first part of the story I wrote, and then recount for you the circumstances of my interviews at Lang Park, and what happened back at ‘The Courier-Mail’ offices at Bowen Hills that night.

THE STORY.

Gold Coast Giants’ coach, Bob McCarthy and prop, Jim Cowell have alleged that Broncos’ skipper, Wally Lewis spat in Cowell’s face during the Winfield Cup rugby league match at Lang Park yesterday.

Cowell claimed Lewis called him ‘a loser’, then spat at him, hitting him on the right eye.

“I called him a baldy old……and spat back at him. I didn’t miss either,” Cowell said.

Lewis’ only comment when approached about the allegations, after the Broncos’ 16-2 win, was: “Let boys be boys. Its kids’ games”.

A short time later Lewis told Broncos’ coach, Wayne Bennett of the claims, and walked away shaking his head.

Cowell said the spitting incident occurred early in the second half when referee, Eddie Wartd was cautioning a number of players from both sides. Two minutes into the second half Cowell was lucky to escape at least a caution, after he hit Broncos’ prop, James Donnelly with a high tackle, and Cowell could be cited by the Broncos.

“Wally Lewis usually bites me, but this is the first time he has spat at me,” Cowell said. “It’s the first time I’ve been spat on, on the football field. Taking a bad bump is worse, but you don’t expect to be spat at by the Australian captain.”

Cowell said he and Lewis had had a number of run-ins in recent years, particularly when they were at Redcliffe and Wynnum-Manly, respectively.

“Wally always bites me first, and like an idiot, I retaliate and get pinched by the referee,” Cowell said.

The alleged spitting incident was first raised by McCarthy during the post-match press conference, when a reporter told him of claims by rival coach, Bennett that the Giants had got away with stiff arms and forearms.

“Bennett should worry about the Australian skipper spitting at one of our players, and telling the referee he will be in second grade next week,” McCarthy said.

END OF STORY

That was the front page ‘teaser’ story, with a more detailed account written by me for the back page.

After McCarthy made the spitting claim, I had followed him into the Giants’ dressing rooms. The media actually had access to the rooms back then, and there were no media minders, shielding players. I can’t recall how I ended up talking to Cowell. I think I had surmised it was likely he had been involved, because I knew of Cowell’s run-ins with Wally and other Wynnum-Manly players over the years, as far back as the State League when Cowell played for North Queensland. Or maybe Bob McCarthy told me to talk to Jim.

After I had finished interviewing Cowell, he said I wouldn’t have the guts to run the story, because Wally was a protected species. I told him he had nothing to worry about, as I would write the yarn. But first I had to go back into the Broncos’ dressing rooms to get Wally’s reaction. (see above).

When I arrived back at the office, I knew I had the story to myself, as none of the other newspaper, radio or television reporters had gone near Cowell, and Wally wasn’t going to talk about it. There were mixed emotions, because as a journalist (not a footy fan, or paid employee of rugby league) I knew I had a page one story. But, at the same time, I regarded Wally as the best thing to happen to Queensland rugby league in the 1980s.

When I left for home that night, the story was on the front and back pages. I told my wife, Marie I had a scoop, and went to bed satisfied with my day’s work, but also sad that it was a negative story about Wally.

The next morning, I picked up the paper from the front lawn of our Tedman Street, Zillmere, home, and, and……NO STORY. It had been pulled on legal advice. I bet if the story was about a ‘Neville Nobody’ and not Wally Lewis, it would not have been pulled.

I arrived in the office that day, filthy at what had been done to the story. Then – wow – the 6pm News bulletin’s lead story was the spitting incident, with slow motion video of the actual acts of spitting. Obviously someone in TV land had gone through the tape, and found the incident, referred to by McCarthy.

To this day, I’m sure Jim Cowell thinks I chickened out. To this day, I’m still filthy at the editorial and legal people on duty that Sunday night. Someone from TV world would today claim the story as their scoop, but they only got the story because someone went through the tape. I got the story because I went into the sheds, and did my job as a journalist, following up immediately what had been offered up by McCarthy at the media conference.

The NSWRL fined Wally $2,000 and Cowell $1,000.

The last time I saw Wally was at a charity event at Home Hill in North Queensland in October last year. I have not seen Jim Cowell since he retired from football in 1990. Last I heard of him, he was working in Charleville in western Queensland.

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