Roy Masters
Roy Masters is a Rugby League Columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald
League
Too many white flags being waved in tackles
Roy Masters The surrender tackle threatens to reach epidemic proportions in the NRL, and this is largely in response to the new rule prohibiting hands on the ball in the tackle.
League
Why halves hold the key to ending Blues' pain
Roy Masters Selecting the Roosters' halves to meet Queensland in Wednesday's first State of Origin match is a mission akin to going into the water to fight a shark.
League
NSW soar towards a blue-moon treat
Roy Masters Origin I was akin to co-pilots of a jumbo jet operating the controls antagonistically, one seeking to put the plane on the tarmac, the other striving to soar to the skies.
Why not drug test NRL referees?
Roy Masters The NRL has hyped up its anti-doping measures for by players but ignores the men whose judgment calls have potentially the most critical effect on the outcome of games.
League
League loses a smart peacemaker
Roy Masters The executive with more corporate history than the entire NRL and ARLC combined informed his staff at 9.30am on Friday that he would be leaving after this year's State of Origin series.
ACC report lays bare corruption threat
Roy Masters An alarming increase in the use, seizure and arrests for illicit drugs is the central finding of the Australian Crime Commission's annual report released today, with significant implications for...
League
Too many players cashing cheques their abilities can't match
Roy Masters There are too many footballers playing NRL each week not up to standard and too many receiving money their experience or talents don't justify.
League
Dragons hope to hit a home run with promotion - not spark a bunfight
Roy Masters It was a baseball match at Yankee Stadium that drove the Dragons chief executive Peter Doust to derive some reward from having his balls kicked.
League
ASADA wants access to mountain of ACC evidence
Roy Masters Cronulla players are likely to be still arguing with the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority this time next year, when Essendon players will have already served their suspensions.
League
Daylight separates quick and dead slow
Roy Masters With the top four NRL teams threatening to break away, the challenge is to bring them back to the pack.
League
Lack of Plan B compounds copycat conundrum
Roy Masters Basically, there are two ways for a rugby league team to use the ball: go through the opposition, or around them.
League
Boss skilled in bomb defusing
Roy Masters Challenges facing the ARLC chief are less life-threatening than others he has met.
League
Sharks feared doping before Dank left
Roy Masters An email trail linking the four sacked members of the Sharks' football department demonstrates they feared possible doping breaches at the club at least two months before May 29, 2011, when sports...
League
Obstruction rule needs a serious rethink
Roy Masters DANIEL Anderson's black-and-white rules on obstruction are designed to cut out any grey but will leave the NRL red-faced.
Masters
Turning Judas on teammates only way to mitigate bans
Roy Masters NRL and AFL players guilty of doping infractions have almost no chance of escaping without sanction, and will be required to inform on a teammate or a member of a club's football department to...
NRL considers nightmare scenario
Roy Masters A defaulted grand final and an internal draft to reinforce the ranks of any club stripped of players because of doping sanctions are among the contingency plans the NRL has drawn up in response to...
Rugby League
NRL plans for worst on drugs
Roy Masters Defaulted grand final and internal draft to reinforce ranks of any club stripped of players.
League
'Why did we act? Players' lives were in jeopardy'
Roy Masters The fear that a footballer would die from injections of a banned substance, including steroids used on horses, motivated the head of the Australian Crime Commission, John Lawler, to stage the...
Senate to inquire into gambling
Roy Masters A Senate committee inquiry into gambling reform is scheduled to start on Tuesday, beginning with a submission from the head of the ACC, John Lawler.
