I commend Channel Nine for the stance they have taken by standing down Matthew Johns.
It was generally considered in many parts of this country that the television organisation would do little to promote some decency in the world of rugby league, so their decision is welcome.
For too long the loutish behaviour of players has been covered up and tolerated by clubs because of the investment they have made in their players.
As well, the NRL needs the management skills to include the ability to determine those players who have a set of worthwhile standards and who can act as decent examples for the next generation to follow.
We all know that among the NRL players there are hundreds who do not subscribe to what can only be described as totally unacceptable and low-class behaviour.
Care should be shown for the next people chosen for such an NRL promotion to be vetted carefully by people other than NRL management who, by the standards shown in 2009, are not able to be discerning in their judgements.
Channel 9 has won the support of all women and decent men everywhere by their actions.
R Williams, Ainslie
What the hell is wrong with this country? Matthew Johns participates in a consensual group sex activity seven years ago, which was investigated by New Zealand police with no charges laid.
That should have been end of story.
Johns is now being vilified and hounded by every feminazi group who ignore the facts and are hell-bent on pursuing their man-hating mantra against a man who has paid the price of his indiscretion within his own family.
What harm has he done? He did what thousands of people do every day. The fact that many don't approve doesn't make it wrong or illegal.
Some ''politically correct moralists'' will denounce him, but it wasn't rape. It was consensual, and Johns owes nobody or no group any apology.
The real tragedy is that the idiots who employ him are running for cover and have either sacked or suspended him.
For God's sake, leave him alone. We have far more important issues to deal with.
Mark Dixon, Kaleen
Many of us would have watched Four Corners (ABC, 11 May 2009) this week in dismay as the pervasive culture of abuse of women by NRL players unfolded.
It was compounded when a young player, even after a program to raise awareness, maintained that potential problems arising from group sex or similar activities could be avoided if the girl was then treated right and given a taxi home.
Of course NRL chief David Gallop has responded with determination to change the ''moral direction'' of the game (''NRL chief vows to stamp out sleaze'', May 13, p2). And so he should. No right-thinking person could condone such attitudes.
But how is it that such a culture pervades the NRL?
Yes, alcohol lowers inhibitions. But drunk people don't all behave with such disrespect to women.
The question must be asked how families can raise young men to hold such views and accept and participate in such behaviour.
The community as a whole needs to address this issue. In the same way that attitudes to drink-driving and to smoking have been addressed as community concerns, the same degree of commitment must be shown to raising young boys to be good men, with attitudes not conducive to harming women.
Judy Aulich, Giralang
Was Barbara Lynch (Letters, May 13) actually watching the same Four Corners program that I was? At no time was it stated the NZ waitress agreed to group sex.
All that was said was that she accompanied Matty Johns and another man to a room. She obviously trusted him, as young, naive girls do.
Her trust was misplaced, and she found herself on a bed in a room with a succession of big, bruising, much older men waiting in line, climbing through windows to watch, and being manhandled for two hours.
At no stage, it was apparent, did she agree to any of this. She sounded like she was catatonic with shock to me.
Matthew Johns's apology to her in the car park afterwards sounded like a butt-covering exercise at best.
Women should be careful about casting aspersions on other women for finding themselves in situations like this.
Lots of us had found ourselves in situations where we've been pressured and coerced into having sex we didn't want, didn't ask for and didn't appreciate.
The NZ waitress was one of them.
Lynne Talbot, Kambah
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