The unhappy demise of the last of Australian rugby's mega league recruits, Lote Tuqiri, is bound to bring up more discussion about rugby 'culture' and how big name former league players fit in.
That cultural perception hasn't been helped by the ARU's handling of the Tuqiri issue.
Rugby headquarters decided to say as little about the issue as possible in the hope it wouldn't blow up. That hasn't happened.
By leaving a giant vacuum that would otherwise be filled with 'facts' about why Tuqiri was sacked, the ARU has left itself open to attack. News Limited papers went to town on the code's administrators yesterday for their squandering of the expensive league talent over the last seven years. They're writing largely for a league audience, so this theme of ''leather-patch poachers'' and a ''stitch up'' of Tuqiri goes down well.
Tuqiri is the last of the trio of big-name league recruits who were lured on sizeable contracts to make up Australia's back three at the 2003 World Cup.
Tuqiri, Mat Rogers and Wendell Sailor were brought across. All three have now walked out of the game or been cast out.
Rogers and Sailor have been welcomed back by league as prodigal sons whose flirtation with the big bucks of rugger is forgiven and forgotten.
Tuqiri Twittered away yesterday: ''don't know how long all this legal football will take so got to look beyond. O/S Rugby or Rugby League?''.
While he might have to take a pay cut, I'd be betting he'll be rejoining Rogers and Sailor back in league pretty soon.
Tuqiri is unlikely to be a positive spokesman for his former code. Like Rogers, expect to hear him soon opening up about how much more ''at home'' he feels back in league, how much more genuine league people seem to be.
So, to the issue of culture.
Some league people contend that a stuffy, up-itself union culture alienates and drives out league players.
It's true, there are stuffy and up-themselves elements in rugby.
But Tuqiri's peers in the Wallabies aren't all blue-blood, private-school, toffs. Matt Giteau comes from solid rugby league stock and, Berrick Barnes and Ryan Cross, who had union in their backgrounds, have converted from the NRL.
Proving they're not all choirboys, Wycliff Palu did six months periodic detention at Silverwater for assault before his career took off.
If all these guys can fit in and keep themselves mostly out of trouble, then why couldn't Sailor or Tuqiri?
Blaming a sport's culture or its administrators for a player mucking up out on the town is absurd.
Tuqiri is an adult, who had numerous public warnings and very likely numerous private ones about behaving responsibly.
Whether his latest stuff-up was a big one or a little one, matters very little because we, and he, knew he was on his last chance. If the byproduct is that the ARU bosses save millions by cutting an under-performing player, then good on them.
It is sad for NSW Waratahs fans and the many kids who admired Tuqiri that his rugby career is over. But really, when we look at his long history of stuff-ups, who let who down here?
Seeking legitimacy
On a happier note, this column would like to extend a welcome to the Oceania Muaythai Federation and the Australian Baton Twirling Association into the world of legit sport.
Both were recognised by the Australian Sports Commission this week among the 91 sports with National Sporting Organisation status.
While most NSO's receive some form of sport development funding, the two new members of the family join the interesting group of ''recognised but not funded'' sports.
They'll be rubbing shoulders with the likes of the Australian Underwater Federation, the Australian Flying Disc Federation, Dancesport Australia and the Kung Fu Wu Shu Federation.
Alas, no place could be found for Aiki-Kai Australia and Sports Shear Australia Association. Better luck next time.
jmoloney@canberratimes.co m.au