ONE of our fellow scribes was suffering from serious foot-in-mouth disease on Friday when he had a chance meeting with Canberra Raiders assistant coach David Furner. This particular gentleman was getting a trim at his local barber when he decided to brag about all the overtime he was clocking up thanks to the furore surrounding Todd Carney and Bronx Goodwin's night out last Sunday. Little did he know Furner was perched beside him the whole time. Thankfully for this young chap, Furner opted against busting out his famed boxing moves and instead laughed off the matter.

Rondi's far from Bondi

WHILE Australians love to claim Kiwis as their own, we were miffed to hear the Yanks laying claim to Canberra's Rondi Davies. The US media described Rondi, a New York-based geologist, as the first American to finish the annual 45km Manhattan Island Marathon Swim earlier this month. But after completing the race in a tick over 712 hours, Rondi proudly said she still called Australia home. ''I still consider myself very much an Australian,'' she told Locker Room last week. ''I have lived in the US six years. I still have an Australian accent and I don't plan to change that.'' And what better way to prepare for the cold waters around Manhattan Island than developing your long-distance swimming skills in Lake Burley Griffin? ''I grew up swimming and windsurfing in that lake. I was back in Canberra in May and the coach, John Simpson, at Burley Griffin Swim Club, let me train with the team,'' she said. ''I managed to swim for 30 minutes in 13 degree water.''

And another thing ...

SWIMMING isn't the only sport in which Rondi excels. The 38-year-old is a handy runner and is preparing to compete in the Chicago marathon in about 11 weeks. ''That is, if I can whip my legs into shape in time,'' the former Deakin High and Narrabundah College student said. ''I am also thinking about swimming a 29-mile race in Florida next April - the Tampa Bay Marathon swim. The water won't be too cold which is always a concern.''