- Trent Robinson has defended Spencer Leniu
- Leniu received an eight-match suspension for racist comments
- But Robinson said it was a language misunderstanding
Trent Robinson has insisted Spencer Leniu is not a racist as the Roosters coach shared his thoughts on the case that has dominated the start of the NRL season.
Leniu, 23, was handed an eight-match ban after calling Ezra Mam a “monkey” during the Roosters’ win over the Broncos at Allegiant Stadium, in an incident that capped the NRL’s bold foray into the United States overshadowed.
Robinson was attending the NRL hearing with Leniu on Monday when he learned his fate, with the judiciary ruling out the lengthy suspension as a clear indication of its stance on racism.
Leniu argued that he did not realize the slur was racist and Robinson believes his first rower is not racist.
“Calling Spencer a racist is so far from the truth; it’s so far from the truth,” Robinson said via the Sydney Morning Herald. ‘But is that language correct? You can never use that (language), but does that happen every day? It is.
Trent Robinson has insisted that Spencer Leniu is not a racist
Roosters star Leniu was handed an eight-match ban for calling Ezra Mam a ‘monkey’
“If we understand the definition of racism, it is when you use power or use your power to lower someone in a class and degrade that person. If you think an immigrant – parents from Samoa and then of course New Zealand – and (growing up) in Mount Druitt, is trying to bring someone down through power, then we are way wrong.”
Robinson added that the episode stemmed from a “language issue” and served as a reminder to all rugby league players.
“Anyone who calls out Spencer, I understand, he shouldn’t have used it, and he’s going to have to live with that for the rest of his life, but a lot of people use this language and that has to be the positive of it – that everyone takes a check the way they talk to each other and the way we change the way it looks in society,” the Roosters coach said. “This is not an NRL issue.
“We (the team) had to have a few conversations about it, and it was great. You know, how do you talk to each other? What do you think of the way you talk to each other? How do you think you talk to other people on the field, in the locker room, in the workplace, all that. We didn’t have to talk about whether Spencer was racist or not.
‘Is he (Leniu) guilty of using language he should not use? Certainly. And that’s going to cost us dearly, for a long time, but we can keep the back and forth going, or we can go, well, what’s going to improve from this?’
Meanwhile, Peter V’landys has told players not to get involved in lawsuits
Latrell Mitchell shared his thoughts on the Leniu scandal on Instagram
Elsewhere, ARLC boss Peter V’landys has warned footy stars not to share their views on cases before they reach the judiciary, after Latrell Mitchell was criticized for publicly urging the NRL to hand Leniu a stiff sentence lay.
“Everyone should receive a fair trial and natural justice,” V’landys said. ‘This means that until you have the opportunity to defend yourself, people are not allowed to discuss specific matters in court.
“However, I have no problem with them speaking in general terms but not specifically in any particular case. In our society, everyone gets a fair trial and natural justice. We must adhere to those principles. As long as people do not have the right to defend themselves, they should not be prejudiced.’