Footy great Wendell Sailor reveals how he almost DIEd on a lads trip gone wrong to Bali during his NRL days with the Brisbane Broncos
- Spoke about memorable year in 2000
- Had won title with Broncos and was king of the world
- Everything went sour very quickly after a drunken night out
Former dual international NRL and Wallabies star Wendell Sailor has revealed the day he stared death in the face on a lads trip to Bali.
Speaking on Triple M’s Rush Hour with Wendell Sailor, Candice Warner and Jude Bolton, the former footy star recalled the time he traveled to Indonesia with premiership winning Brisbane Broncos teammates.
‘Let me tell you, in 2000 it was a really good Bali trip. The 2000 Broncos roster after we won the Grand Final and right before the World Cup,” he said.
“If we think we are kings of the world, imagine what I think.
Bolton asked, “It quickly turned into an overseas episode?”
Sailor was at the peak of his abilities in 2000 and thought he was bulletproof after winning the NRL premiership with the Brisbane Broncos
Speaking on Triple M’s Rush Hour with Wendell Sailor, Candice Warner and Jude Bolton, Sailor revealed that he discovered in Bali that he was definitely not bulletproof
As the trio laughed, Sailor began describing the drunken adventures the players went on to celebrate their NRL title.
“So we had three or four days on the p***, we hadn’t slept much, I’m staying with Lote Tuquiri, it was great,” he said.
‘We stayed at the Hard Rock Café. Anyway, we’re in a nightclub turned dayclub. “It’s about six in the morning and I’m walking out with the boys. There was Ben Ikin, Darren Lockyer [and myself].’
Needing a ride back to their accommodation, the players suggested taking tuk-tuks, small motorized three-wheeled taxis for their ability to navigate busy urban areas and narrow streets.
But Sailor had grander designs.
‘Mate, we’re not getting any tuk-tuks. I said guys, leave it to me,” he said.
“I saw this Mercedes there. I said: “Oi mate, do you know who we are? Come on mate, take us with you”.
“So the guy standing next to the Mercedes looks at me and says ‘what?’
“I said, ‘You heard me, mate.’
As he walks over to me, he points a gun straight at my head.
“And at this stage I can tell you I was drunk for maybe four days, but I sobered up pretty quickly.”
Sailor would play for Australia at the World Cup after the infamous trip to Bali and has never returned to the Indonesian holiday country since
Sailor was also a star player for the Queensland Maroons along with his Broncos teammates Darren Lockyer, Ben Ikin and Lote Tuquiri who also traveled to Bali for the boys trip
Warner and Bolton couldn’t decide whether to laugh or gasp at that revelation.
Fortunately, Ikin, who recently stepped down from the Broncos to become CEO of the Queensland Rugby League, had the gift of the word at a very young age.
“Ben Ikin steps in and says mate, mate, sorry mate, we’re from abroad, I didn’t mean to disrespect you,” said Sailor.
‘Mate, can I tell you that I haven’t been to Bali since.
“So when you are abroad, just respect the culture and the country.