The LA Roosters have been knocked out of the Vegas 9s men’s competition in controversial circumstances for the second year running after a rival player stayed down for the final 90 seconds of the semi-final.
The Roosters trailed United Sporting Club – which featured David Fifita, the twin brother of former NSW prop Andrew Fifita, and Curtis Scott – 16-14 with less than two minutes to go when a United player fell to the ground claiming he had injured his knee.
Under competition rules, there are no stoppages – even if there is a serious injury – because halves are only nine minutes each.
According to sources with knowledge of the situation but not authorised to comment publicly, the Roosters were angered when the United player finally jumped to his feet and played the ball right on full-time, having stayed down for around 90 seconds – denying the Roosters the chance to launch a late attack.
The LA Roosters needed to win to stand a chance of qualifying for the grand final on Sunday, which doubles as a curtain-raiser at Allegiant Stadium.
Nick Politis was accused of abusing a referee at last year’s event, which sparked an NRL investigation, but the Roosters chairman refused to comment on the latest incident. Nobody in the NRL is committed to growing the game on the west coast of America more than Politis.
The same sources confirmed the Roosters had asked the NRL to review the stoppage rules for future Nines events, which the governing body was open to.
The Roosters were coached by club hero and three-time premiership winner Luke Keary, who later praised the efforts of Kanaan Magele, a young prop from New Zealand who will play NSW Cup this year and trialled with the NRL side a couple of weeks ago.
The Chooks were also not helped by losing four players to the USA Test team during the week, with the home nation scheduled to play against Scotland on Friday night local time.
United Sporting Club will meet 2025 Vegas 9s champions Titans of Coal, led by former PNG Kumuls captain Kyle Laybutt, in the men’s final.
It was better news for the Roosters’ women’s team who will again feature in the grand final against the Australian Vegas Angels.
Millie Elliott was playing for the first time since giving birth last September, and was trying to get her head around a jam-packed day, which includes playing a game of football, followed by media commitments, on the sideline and in the commentary box, with Triple M and Nine, the owner of this masthead.
The Roosters squad also included Jess Sergis, Corban Baxter, Rima Butler, Otesa Pule, Brydie Parker and Jasmin Strange, and lost their opening game against the Nesian Gummas 26-12.
However, they rebounded to finish their pool in second spot a secure a final berth against the Angels.
The Nines was hailed a success, with the tournament growing from 34 to 46 teams this year, with more than half those sides entered hailing from the US and England.
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Packer in town
Still on Politis and the Roosters, the billionaire league lover hosted an intimate dinner in Vegas on Thursday night local time, for his closest friends and associates, which included James Packer.
Packer’s stay was brief, with the fellow billionaire not expected to attend the NRL action on the weekend.
His name is still popular around the city, with one card dealer at Planet Hollywood asking all about his famous father, Kerry, when a few journalists from the Herald selflessly contributed to the local economy during the week.
David Fifita will play at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday and will share the special occasion with childhood friend Matt Lodge.
Fifita will play in the Vegas 9s grand final against the Titans Of Coal, with Lodge named on an extended bench for North Queensland in their NRL clash with the Knights.
The twin brother of former Cronulla premiership winner Andrew Fifita now plays for the Kincumber Colts in the Central Coast competition, and is coaching the Wests Tigers’ Tarsha Gale Cup side.
He thanked the individual sponsors who helped the players head to Vegas, and was quick to point out Lodge had already been asking for video footage of the Nines win so it could be added to the various group chats for inspiration.
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Dogs stretch legs
The Dogs were the last NRL club to stroll around Allegiant Stadium late Friday local time and were blown away by the state-of-the-art facilities at the $2 billion, 65,000-seater arena.
Earlier in the day, hotel patrons staying on the sixth floor at Resorts World got the shock of their life when they spotted the Bulldogs holding an impromptu stretching session in the middle of the hallway. One journalist had to tip-toe around them so he could get to the ice machine and refill his Bloody Mary.
Laundy list
Newly minted radio mogul and Canterbury major sponsor Arthur Laundy has taken out a suite at Allegiant Stadium for family and friends to take in the NRL round-one double header.
The travelling Laundy crew includes the billionaire pub baron’s son Craig, a former federal MP, and his siblings and children.
After flying in from Palm Springs, California, where he has a house, Craig said he believed the NRL is on the right track as it attempts to build awareness of the game in the US.
“The two towns that spring to mind for me are New Orleans and New York,” Laundy told us, when asked where else the league should explore around the country.
“In New Orleans or New York, I think you could actually make it a bigger event than you can in Vegas in terms of Americans noticing that it’s going on and buying a ticket to go along and have a look.
“I’ve been coming to Vegas since 1998 to see what they’re up to, given that’s the industry [hospitality and entertainment] that I work in, too. There is so much on there. At the moment you’re competing against the Eagles, last year it was U2. You’re in a market where there is so much there. The risk is you get drowned out.”
