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hi i'm kristin bell carvana makes car buying easy isn't that right hun dax dax sorry did you know
about this seven day money back guarantee a week to evaluate seat comfiness you say a week of
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the kids stuff fits nicely make sure our stuff fits nicely oh the right still need to buy a
the car getting ahead of ourselves here buy your car with carvana today i'm my boris and this is
straight talk everyone samson welcome straight talk thank you for having me as one of the big
female representatives in particularly rugby league if i could just wind you back did you
have aspirations of being a journalist i did actually i always wanted to tell stories and
sport was always my my sweet spot did you play the game uh sunny coast sirens starting number
yes you're in the spine yes i was in the spine um you've never seen anyone move slower out of
dummy half than me and i would shut my eyes in tackles so i was told by numerous people
if you're switching on for the footy and the first thing they hear is a female voice they're
going to switch off and i didn't know if that was true i knew it would have been true in the past i
didn't know if that was still the case but i was happy to give it a go were you nervous oh my god
nervous like there's a lot on your shoulders so nervous
that um passed away
when i was 20 and for him to have even contemplated that i was
sitting there beside like locker and benny and zero like i just thought my god that's such a
big moment so i wanted to do everyone proud everyone samson welcome straight talk thank
you for having me you're very we're talking outside you're very accomplished one-on-one
conversationally and if i could just wind you back to when you're a young kid did you have
aspirations of being a journalist not not a footy journalist but a journalist generally
i did actually i really do you know probably way back when so my grandfather was a racehorse
trainer and so i was always at the stables with him in the morning always had my own little pony
you know nothing flash but where'd you go uh it was sort of hinterland sunshine coast so he had
he had um training stables down here at warwick farm they had a nice stud out at camden which
they sold obviously because it was too far from the city now look at us um but then everyone
moved to queensland and that's sort of where i came along um and i think
for me growing up i always i went to school after the races and almost every monday i wanted to
write a story about what my grandfather's horses had done on the saturday at corbel park and so i
would enter in my little stories into like book week or whatever so i think i always wanted to
tell stories i obviously wanted to tell horse stories but then that quickly yeah i think even
by mid-primary school i knew i wanted to be a journalist really and a sport journalist yeah
and a sports journalist a sport general
because i really i gave everything else a go i'm not very good at politics
definitely not good on the crime round um pretty terrible at court reporting um i gave it all a go
uh and just general rounds not flash but yeah sport was always my my sweet spot
being a queenslander um that's okay um but being a queenslander being a queenslander
how much does how much do you think sport fills the cup of queenslanders just generally just
everybody not not in a journalistic sense but just annually generally is and why is that so i mean
is it because of the the weather why we've got so many great swimmers that come out of queensland
for example and and uh i don't i've never been able to understand why we've got so many great
football rugby league players come out of queensland queensland but what is that it's part
of our identity it became part of our culture um it became part of what you did as a family so
because the weather's so good you're always out playing sport you're always out playing sports
you're always outside and it's i think it's the values of sport you know working hard being
healthy being a great having that great sportsmanship um they're the kind of values
that queenslanders like to see themselves as um so definitely and i think for rugby league in
particular for those years through the brl where we had a premier competition and we had some of
the best and future immortals running around in a competition that wasn't recognized by the sydney
set and i think then that chip on the shoulder became a giant giant uh point to prove to the
rest of the the rugby league community that hey listen queenslanders we're doing rugby league
we're doing it our way we've got some of the best players you've ever going to see in in the game in
the history of the game do you think that's an enduring process because for sure i mean is it is
do you think at some stage though and i obviously i'm not going to get you to come on and come home
on queensland because it's never going to happen but but do you
think that is it's possible that that over time will become diluted as a result of immigration
both from both from the two southern states because queensland is experiencing in a massive
um growth in population mostly coming out of new south wales and victoria um plus just general
immigration from other places around the world like queensland's taking its fair share of the
population growth out from outside from around the rest of the world um the weather doesn't change
diluted probably a little later than sydney and melbourne but do you think that at some stage
will dilute this underlying fervor for sport particularly rugby league that sense of identity
maybe maybe but i think it is so so strong north of the tweed um that it is infectious so anyone
that moves there doesn't matter where you're from you still want to be involved and that part of the
community and i mean you've been to a state of origin in queensland it is something very
very different and when you become part of that rite of passage you're walking down caxton street
into the suncorp state in the old lane park that big old cauldron and you do feel a sense of
belonging and i guess that's what it feeds into and to your point will it become diluted i think
the tribe can become bigger hopefully and we don't have that you know that dissipation of
interest i think maybe they just recruit more along the way and you know people who move to
queensland say hey sign me up i want to be part of that and it doesn't have to be rugby league i
think you know whatever
sporting aspect you choose the swimming the surfing um life-saving afl uh netball like it's
all so strong um yeah it's it's a it's a great place to be but did you feel as though you and
along with some others i mean like fatty and all those others you know and is it obnoxious
no no no no no no i don't know but but i feel as though there's a cohort of people one of which
are female representatives in particularly rugby league i feel as though you guys feel as though
you've got to keep the flame burning and you're basically carrying the standard and the torch
for to keep this um cultural thing going i i feel as though you're going not you're not going out
of your way but you are all of you are sort of singing off the same song sheet you may not have
even talked about it you haven't but but but it's a silent dog whistle only queens well that's really
well that's pretty powerful that is so in itself is pretty powerful
and you know and they and you guys have implanted yourselves in all the systems so we've got you
on fox we've got you know we've got the the cohort on channel nine which is like you know channel nine
is like a queensland station other than gus and freddie um you know there's a it's a queensland
station um and it feels like everybody is trying their hardest to maintain what it is you've always
had and you and we keep going back to the arthur beats and running out and i think it was 82
whenever it was you know like uh by the way new south wales
there were talks about um you know max crowley's running i don't know what the hell it is but uh
back in the same year but we keep having the conversation even here in new south wales we
talk about it fox tell talk fox sports talks about it uh channel nine talks about it and it
has had its origins here in sydney um do you feel as though there's some obligation
um no not an obligation it just sort of comes naturally but you're right it's a really good
observation that we all and billy right so billy's a current queensland coach
and he he's probably at the forefront of this where for queensland where for the people where
for the families of queensland the communities it's all it's not about this team it's about
the state and it's a it's a bigger sense of self and a bigger sense of responsibility and
bigger sense of being a role model whether we win or lose how you conduct yourself in both
you know with the ball and without the ball on and off the field that is the main driving purpose
you know be be great people at the end of the day and
um yeah billy's really grabbed that i know some people like to poke fun at some of his
post-match press conferences but um i'll tell you what up in queensland they're laughing i love it
they love it well it's it's nearly like billy's running for premier like it's to me he might
i'd vote for him yeah a lot of people would by the way compared to the current bloke a lot of
people would but but but but but i don't know if billy ever thought when he was maybe contemplating
being the queensland coach that this would be something that he'd be prosecuting that's
hard and that he would actually even articulate and recognize these things back then when he was
just contemplating becoming the coach you know when he was just out he was just out of footy
himself he'd only been out a year or two or a couple years um it's a big responsibility yeah
you are doing something for the state do you know it's funny when i first moved down here
uh 2010 2009 so i got that and um and i noticed people from sydney you know you go what school
do you go to where you're from where do you live right so it's all very what job you got yeah
but yeah so it's all very like oh we we live in north shore we live over in the east we live
out west you know that's basically kind of it and then you run into another queen you go where you
from oh queensland you go beauty so people just say queensland like a broad sweeping
like no one goes oh i'm from nambour on sunshine coast like you just say queensland and
and that's enough like that's you're off and running we're brothers yeah that's right you
just have to say like no one ever says i'm from new south wales like it's not a you're
so you know you're right from a particular spot in new south so i don't know yeah i think
in terms of our how we like to see ourselves it is very connected and yeah i don't know what it
is but you've touched on something yeah i i mean i'm sure someone maybe someone's thought about
doing a study on this but but i think it goes to the very heart of why queensland has been so hard
to beat even when new south wales wales is winning there is something and gus always talks about it
but queensland don't give up for the until the 80th minute and try and
and uh you know madge has done a great job amazing getting the new south wales guys to
sort of think similar similarly but i think it's it's it's going to be a constant thing it's going
to be a hard thing to keep prosecuting keep prosecuting keep reminding them of of this this
process because i think people here like if you said to me if i was in queensland and some and i
was living up there for i can sing some said to me where you from i'd probably say the west of
sydney right i wouldn't say sydney i'd say west right see it's more localized in fact i do say
i said i come from the west suburb of sydney and proudly so yeah i'm proud about that yeah
because we actually divide ourselves up into quarters here i know whereas queensland just
go anything sort of north of stanthorpe that will do that'll do yeah yeah that's close enough yeah
it's quite amazing well i've just gone a little bit aside because i actually want to talk about
you but i've always wanted to talk to a passionate queenslander about this now i have because i've
never really understood it and i've never because i never really understood the size of the mission
over that you know i met up with madge prior to the origin and he was taught you know he met a
whole lot of people but he was talking about you know observations mark what do you think blah blah
and uh and i i just i mean i've touched on this area and i've never really thought about it too
much but i i was actually uh quite sort of discombobulated in terms of not really understanding
other than saying it's the queensland thing to be a queenslander i never really articulated what it
was and i've never really articulated what it was and i've never really articulated what it was and
understood because i'm not a queenslander and it's quite a it is a big psychological game that
someone like matt only someone like madge has been able to actually get on top of more recently
and we've had a lot of coaches who have had difficulty with it and all your queensland
coaches use it to get the best out of their the best possible thing out of their particular players
and it's it's been quite a brilliant exercise in psychology just as a student of the game which
is a much bigger student of no just a fan just a fan listen bonnie you are in particularly in
relation to females uh and probably males too to be honest with you you're not a you didn't play
the game maybe did you play the game uh sunny coast sirens starting number nine number nine
okay and the the new nine for the all night the new number no no no the new nine okay so you're
a number nine so you're in the spine yes i was in the spine um you've never seen anyone move slower
out of dummy half than me and i would shut my eyes until i was in the spine and i would shut my eyes
into the spine and i would shut my eyes until i was in the spine and i would shut my eyes into the
tackle so i was a horrendous hooker but um love the game and how many how many years you play that
oh i think just oh probably two seasons and i was old i was i was like 27 well that's really
old yeah so like did you enjoy it i loved it and i got out there with my little that's something
not many people would know that it's quite funny i'll see if i can find an old photo
we've got to get an old photo we've got to put up on our promos i'd love to put that up on the
promos so uh but you are a you you are a student the game before we walked in here
you were telling me some stories about various icons of the game some of most of whom you know
in their very elderly years and i won't say who we're talking about but you you know stories about
people and you just go back to when you're a little kid you were writing stories about what
happened to your grandpa's race day um maybe because as when you go to school it was like
show and tell or yeah you gotta what'd you do on the weekend and all that sort of stuff i presume
they still do that sort of stuff but yeah definitely the only
little girl like writing stories on the back of the tab tickets and the you know the old betting
um turnstile so i'd use that paper and write my little stories so you were a storyteller
but to be a storyteller you got to find out the stories yeah yeah then that takes curiosity
curiosity and curiosity is that a big part of your life oh definitely i think you've always
got to be curious about everything or just everything yeah you are yeah where where are
you from what do you like what is it about your story that's interesting everyone's got a different
perspective and I think even more recently we were lucky enough to go to Vanuatu and back to
Tanner Island with Mal Meninga because just retracing his history and heritage not only in
the game but also where the Meningas came to Australia and his great-grandfather left this
tiny village you know 130 years ago jumped off a ship that was cruising up and down the coast
looking for black labor and they were it's what they used to call black birding so they'd bring
those you know the tallest strongest men that they could find back to Queensland to work in
the cane fields and give them you know hardly any like basically a slave food board yeah and you're
allowed to stay for three years and then white Australia policy came in they were all going to
get kicked out luckily Mal's great-grandfather had met a beautiful Irish woman in and around
the White Bay area and they went on but they there were he the Meningas that he was a Manninga
Manninga was their original surname but it was lost in translation on the ship on the way over
with the people you know signing the card and the number on Mal's great-grandfather's ticket
to board to Australia was number four now that was Mal's first number in that state of origin
because Artie was number one because he was and then it went down so even though Mal was playing
um you know out of position a little bit but he got number four so for that sort of synergy to
be happening for him um what a wonderful story to be able to share
so everyone's got a great story and I think if I'm in a position that I can ask you some questions
about you know not just where you're from but what you want to do how do your areas of interest I
mean you're obviously a very curious person as well I think just being able to talk and relate
and connect to people's the greatest privilege so when you were say teens or later on did you get
to get to become a journalist did you have to go to uni yeah I did it because it was always
traditionally a cadetship right um being a journalist and then did you do a cadetship
well you end up serving one anyway I did three years at university at QUT in Brisbane um
what's that a degree in journalism yeah degree in media yeah media comms um and
do you know even then I knew that I wanted to be a sports journalist and it wasn't really
encouraged and a lot of the academics sort of looked down their nose at you and said well
you're not a serious journalist so you know I don't know why because they only really wanted
to foster those really hard nose breaking kind of news journos and can I just stop because just
now what the process was in those days because as I recall it one of the things everyone wanted
to be would be a political correspondent yes or yep yep or um go to LA or go to London or go to
Washington or run the office over there yeah that's right but I was I love sport and for me
that was my ultimate goal so um which today by the way is the biggest part of the newspaper
which I know which is probably the only silo of the news system or the information and content
that I've heard is that it's the most marketable and it drives billions in revenue and broadcast
rights whereas I can't tell you how many newsrooms I've seen go through rounds of redundancies with
because you know you can pick up your phone right now and get the latest news so the 6pm
bulletin isn't what it used to be for everyone you didn't have to rush home and see what's
leading the news because we've already had so much news filtered down 20 times over that's right
but not live sport you've got to be there you've got to watch it you've got to tune in you go over
if you can't get a ticket to the next one you've got to go to the next one you've got to go to the
game then you know you're tuning into the broadcaster but you wouldn't have known that
at the time no I just love sport but no but but it turned out perfectly for you but you didn't
go down this um traditional route of um you know trying to become a political writer maybe you had
to do the economics correspondence or whatever yeah I go through this process very good at it
to be honest it had no interest to you oh I did I hadn't interested but I just I knew it wasn't
going to be my future and um and I think the pushback from university was really disappointing
even in those days so that was like 25 years ago
so for instance the academics deliberately put one of our um final assessments and a test on
state of origin night where Brisbane were hosting game three it was a decider yeah serious yeah and
so they said if no if anyone who doesn't show up for this test um you'll be automatically failed
no yeah so and I thought how ridiculous I've been going to state of origin so especially if it's in
Brisbane like it's a great opportunity for like a sport fan like myself to get involved
and just be there and and I thought no I'm uh definitely not showing up for the test so I didn't
and uh and I had to I had to sign a stat deck saying my car broke down and I couldn't make the
test so um I'm coming clean 25 years later my car didn't break down I went to state of origin
did you hear that but did you get to the exam again or something yeah I just had to reset it
so that's fine but I think it was just their deliberate obstructionist um attitude towards
sport and how low down that was on the pecking order
and even in newsrooms when I first worked in newsroom it was very discarded like a joke and
you know I had so many news directors say to me well why are you doing sport you know can you
read the weather can you serious yeah can we put you on I don't know like a current affair style
you know today tonight style you know um but it just wasn't my strong point um it's not it's
wasn't my passion but where was the crossover then so where was the point at which what was
the point at which um an opportunity arose and do you remember that yeah I um
did year 12 by distance education um so which means so at home on the farm yep um because I
was riding horses at quite a high level at that stage and in a competitive sense yeah yeah I was
on the Australian dressage team and um yeah I thought horses were going to be my life and um
but still really wanted to be part of I still wanted to further my education so um finished
year 12 I sat my um it's a OP in Queensland but it's the HSC at the local post office because
that was the only JP in town so I did all my my uh exams and I was like I'm gonna do this I'm gonna
get out the back room of the post office um got into university started doing work experience for
free for like maybe a year at my little local newsroom in Richard or and uh and again focusing
on sport and just hung around you know it's stubbornness just persistent stubbornness
um until one of the sport journos went on holiday over Christmas and I got my first paid gig
and just covered everything and it was in Maryborough so I drove up to Maryborough
um you know cricket and pigeon racing and sailing and whatever they do around Maryborough and I loved
and and so that's was that like a uh like one of the subsidiary newspapers of um News Corp or any
of those no it was just a little local news on TV so it was like local news television yeah
and and so how did you end up getting into Fox then like Fox Sports that is I mean
what was that process oh so oh gosh um so I probably did local TV in Queensland for 10 years
yeah lost my job a couple of times through that walked away from TV thought it was full of people
like was going to go back to horses went and rode in dressage studs in Denmark and prepped yearlings
for thoroughbreds in um you know in Tattersall's over in um in Europe and golfs and um came back
hated TV full of dickheads didn't want to you know all that sort of stuff and then um went
straight back into a newsroom because I didn't have any money and um I think by the second time
I lost my job I ended up coming down to uh Sydney and just trying my hand so Sky News gave me a shot
there for a couple of years which I loved um Channel 9 picked me up after that was there for
four years so just remember what what did you do at nine were you like a sport journo did you do the
footy show and stuff like that oh was that around off and on um I wasn't very good at the um gag
stuff so I did um sort of feature pieces you're like a straight straight yeah yeah I kind of love
a good time you were you were around about the same time yeah so Aaron had jumped in and I think
he had just left yeah um or maybe slats I can't remember now um but yeah it was good it was a good
time it was and I just timed it to the extent that like so Steve Crawley was head of Wide World of
Sports at that time and he called me in and said look you know we're thinking about having a woman
involved in the coverage what do you think I said oh well that'd be like that's bigger than my wildest
dreams like to be working on rugby league on the broadcast since it's phenomenal so um yeah I started
but that was at nine that was at nine and then crawls left in Wild World Sports went across to Fox
and called me 12 months later and said we're starting up a 24-hour Fox League Channel do you
want to come across and what do you think about that um but people sort of saying we want to get
a female yeah it's funny I mean I understand at the time yeah and I know that they've had to level
the playing field and and I don't I know the conversation can be a bit confronting like hey
take that into consideration um but to be fair I'd have to say a majority of the people I've worked
with have never really treated me like the female hire um they treat me like a journalist they treat
me like a broadcaster um they treat me like a fan of the game like any other person so I've never
felt one out do you know I've never felt not included but equally you don't want to be treated
as one of the blokes I don't I definitely don't want to be one of the boys because I think um
we've had women who have felt the pressure to be one
boys yeah i'm not one of the boys just want to be i just want to turn up and do my job because i
remember it at the time i remember that crawley going to fox sports i remember or fox league or
fox sports was saying i'm a fox league and but i also remember the decision to drag you across
and i remember seeing you on the nine show and then i remember i remember seeing erin and i
remember seeing the difference between the way the two of you pitched your positions so you both
you both pitched totally differently yeah and i'm not you know she's gonna do great as well erin i
mean i love her and she's great um but i i sort of remember you were more to me anyways my assessment
you're more the straight the straight person what i mean by that is um no i get it yeah you you you
i wasn't you're straight to the camera you're you're a you're actual proper journalist and
not saying erin was not but she was more part of the gags as well yeah she played along with stuff
and like she sort of was one of the boys so to speak and i actually thought to myself at the time
the decision to i thought about the decision um and i and i thought to myself that's interesting
um whether it was judicious or not on crawley's part of you from his point of view i thought it
was quite um i thought it was a smart decision because instead of them more in terms of how you
projected yourself because
i thought as a viewer i don't want to watch a journalist in rugby league who wants to be
one of the boys i want a journalist rugby league who wants to be journalist
and i just thought that was a good point of difference because the footy show was very
slapstick yeah it's hilarious very funny and you know fatty forgetting shit and all that sort of
stuff you know like you know you know it was it really was it was must watch for like 20 totally
like i used to i used to sit up at up at my farm
on Thursday nights and I'd get a half a bottle of wine
because you buy half bottles those days.
And I'd drink a half bottle of wine and pass out watching it.
It was just like an escape for me.
And that was the tonic every single week.
And it was beautiful.
But I thought to myself too though that if you're setting up
a new competing channel, I thought it was very clever
from Crawley's point of view putting, let's call it a serious journalist
on sport but someone who actually, when I say serious journalist,
it wasn't how you looked.
I mean you sort of looked different, obviously looked different, Aaron,
but you came across as very detailed.
You really hit the points.
You look like you knew what you were talking about to me and on the view.
I don't know whether you do know what you're talking about
but you look like you did and I was convinced.
And I thought it was a very smart thing and actually funnily enough
as a result of that I started to watch less of the footy show
and more of what you guys are doing.
I now would say, I would say, you know, Channel 9's my partner,
please don't get upset about this, but I would say the coverage
by Fox today, particularly today, is the best coverage of rugby league
there is in the nation by far.
I think and what you've touched on there was a shift in the desire
from fans and the expectation from fans.
So yes, Channel 9 has always been this amazing pillar of rugby league
and the cricket and, you know, the Olympics and all those big ticket
Big entertainment.
Big entertainment.
But I think also there was a shift for fans and it's sort of been
in the rise of this what I call a super coach generation of kids
who may have not even played the game but they know the stats
and the data and the detail behind every single player out there.
And so fans want that sort of dynamic played out on TV.
So I don't mind asking, you know, the Immortals and Champions
and Premiership winners that I'm so lucky to sit beside each
and every week a tough question about the team or a player or a tactic
because I think fans at home now have an appetite for what's happened
Do you know you can't all and there is, of course, rugby league
and we're a very broad church and it doesn't matter where you're from
and, you know, where you went to school.
If you love the game, then there is a place for you in our fandom.
And we've got an opinion.
And we all have opinions and we love a good time and there is a huge sense
of silliness to the game, which I think you've got to lean into as well.
So there is always the light and shade of rugby league
and I think that's the cut and thrust of the game itself
and the people involved.
But I think if you can offer something different,
which I think the fans were sort of ready for at that time
and just in terms of seeing and hearing me,
I didn't know fans were ready to hear a female voice.
I was told by numerous people fans will never accept a female voice
if you're switching on for the football.
And the first thing they hear is a female voice,
they're going to switch off.
And I didn't know if that was true.
I knew it would have been true in the past.
I didn't know if that was still the case.
But I was happy to give it a go.
Were you nervous?
Because there's a lot on your shoulders.
And you're right, it wasn't just about me trying to do a good job
and be ultra prepared.
It was like I think it was built up with this gender thing underneath it,
you know, first woman.
So I felt like if I mess this up, I've let the whole sisterhood down.
Like this is bad.
But it wasn't really that.
And that wasn't the point either, by the way.
No, but it was sort of how I felt.
But that's how it was being portrayed.
Like that's what people were talking about.
Yeah, which I had never sort of – I've never walked into a room
leading with the gender thing.
Like it's the last thing I – you know, I don't introduce myself as,
oh, hi, I'm Yvonne, I'm a female.
Like, you know, like it's a bizarre thing to sort of lead with
in terms of the story.
But, yeah, I just – I was so desperate to A, do a good job for the people
who put me in that position.
B, do a good job for the fans who are watching at home.
C, do a good job for all of my family who were beside themselves.
Like my poor old dad passed away when I was 20.
And for him to have even contemplated that I was sitting there beside,
like Blocker – he was my own boy, right?
So Blocker and Benny and Ciro.
Like for him to even think that I am lucky enough to meet those guys
rather than like talk to them and socialise and have barbecues,
like I just thought, my God, that's such a big moment.
So I wanted to do everyone proud.
And last of all, I didn't want to embarrass myself, to be honest.
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When they sit, and I guess it's more a quote,
but when all the executive producers and the whole team sit down with you and they say,
well, this is the show we're contemplating,
it's going to be called Fox, it's going to have its own channel,
and you're going to be the host.
Um, do they tell you what?
The objective is that they say we're trying to drag people away from the opposing
station, which is Channel 9 at that stage.
Do they tell you that?
Do they give you objectives?
No, I'm sure those conversations are had like far above our level.
But they don't share it with you.
So they don't put pressure on you.
No, I think they just sort of, they go, well, here's the rundown.
You know, we've got so many minutes before our first ad break.
This is the overlay we've cut.
And you read off a.
No, I wish I had a teleprompter.
Gosh, I haven't had an.
I haven't had an auto cue for, since I would have read some of the news
bulletins on Channel 9 eight years ago.
So this is all just off the cuff.
Because I think as you know.
That's more natural.
Well, it's a conversation, right?
And footy, I think, I don't think it would work if you had an auto cue.
I know some people use it, but.
Have you got a bug in your ear?
Usually people screaming, get to an ad break.
Please make that person be quiet.
Jimmy Graham's gone.
He's gone for too long.
Michael Ennis has not drawn breath for five minutes.
We've got to get to an ad break.
Actually, I've got to catch up with him.
And same as Ennis.
Yeah, they're the best.
But the bug's not sort of leading you along.
They're just saying.
Or the producer will say, oh, hey, we've got, you know, Nathan Cleary.
He's ready to go out at the ground.
Cross to him, yeah.
He's in position.
That is a question I get a lot from people.
Is someone telling you what to say or do you have it all written in front of you on an
I do all my notes.
Like, I'm old school.
I have to write all my notes out and I spend, you know, hours before every game, you know,
listening and writing and doing all that.
But no, I just don't think autocue would work.
Well, you would see in the old days.
Remember Fatty used to pull his earpiece out.
Because the extra voice in your head can be a little overwhelming.
It's quite distracting.
I was working with Joey one day.
And we started, we were talking about, we were on air and he just went, oh no, I don't
He answered them.
And I was like, pardon?
And then I realised he had spoke, he had answered the voice in his ear.
He's speaking to the producer.
I was like, oh my God.
The footy players don't need to have earpieces.
I used to have one when I did The Apprentice and they used to be saying to me, look to
Pauline's about to cry.
That is detailed.
And ask her a question.
And then just push a little bit.
And I used to really get to me, but it took me years to get used to it.
In the end, I got used to it.
But they can be, because I was often wondering whether your material is your material or
whether you're getting fed material.
Because I asked Braith the same thing.
And Braith basically gets told to wind up Gordy or whatever.
Or Buzz or whatever, whoever is having an argument.
It's usually those two.
But most of the stuff, it's his material.
And so, because now I want to ask you about your material, because I had Maddy John sitting
right in that chair there, and Maddy is the most detailed researcher with a memory like
no one I've ever known before, like amazing memory on information, data, dates, years,
who sung what, who played what position, like, you know, what tribe.
What is your prep like?
Oh, look, I would love to say I've got a memory like Maddy, and I just don't.
I can't even remember what happened last week.
You know, like I've got to get back to my notes.
I don't know anyone who has a memory like Maddy.
And by the way, I'm amazed he's actually got a memory.
After the way he's lived his life.
He should donate his body to science after this.
And even his notes, like they're sort of like, you know, it's a bullet point of something.
And only, it's almost like doctor's script.
Only he can, he looks down.
It's like a code.
And it's written in like texture or whatever he could find at the time.
I have to have it all written out in front of me.
And have myself covered enough so that if, because I just find it disrespectful if, if
the conversation goes in a direction that I can't keep up with that conversation.
Like I didn't play to any sort of level.
I was lucky to have a bit of a run around.
But if I can't keep up with what the experts are saying, I haven't done my job.
So my prep for a Super Saturday, for example, I'll start looking through the week, listening
to all the press conferences, picking out little cherry picking bits that will be a
You know, whatever Wayne said or whatever.
I haven't clearly said or whatever, you know, and then we bring it all together, pieces
of overlay, any latest injuries.
And then hopefully it's just a fun, easy pregame leading into kickoff.
And then once the game's underway, we sit there, I take time codes, notes of, you know,
penalties or turning points or, you know, tries or kicks out on the full set, restarts,
numbers of tackles, all that sort of stuff.
And then the halftime comes up.
And then halftime.
And then you're able to sort of.
Do you choose who, who, I mean, do you actually.
Sitting there saying, I'm going to, I'm going to ask Cooper Cronk this question.
Sometimes if it's a, if it's specifically.
So if I've got James Graham and a Cooper Cronk, Cooper would get all the halves questions
and Jimmy gets all the forwards questions.
So just to keep everyone, cause that's our other job, right?
If you're in the hosting position, my job is to bring out the best in those people.
So why would I ask James Graham about Nathan Cleary?
That'd be interesting.
And Jimmy would have an answer, right?
It'd be really fascinating.
It totally would.
But I think also just to make everyone feel comfortable and to make sure that they're
across what they want to get, you know, into the, into the broadcast.
It's, and often if it's a tough one, I'll say, Hey, I'm just going to ask you about
Can you have something to say?
And they're like, yep, good as well.
Before, off air sort of thing.
So I mean, what would you, how do you describe then your role?
I mean, you're a sports journalist, I get all that stuff, but how would you describe
your role on the show?
Say pre-show, halftime.
And post-show, like, but just let's pick pre-show, for example, pre-game, I should
The pre-game show.
How would you describe your role?
Are you coordinating the conversation or are you probing the answers with the questions
Bit of everything, I think.
Sometimes pre-game, you're just a bit of a mediator, you know, so they, pre-game, everyone's
And then usually, so if it's after a big game and it's been a dramatic game and there's
something controversial.
Then I've got to be the school teacher and say, hey.
Like, you know, sort of put, put a little bit more pressure on the guys around me and say,
well, you know, cause I remember a state of Oregon.
I can't remember what year.
And Joey was there and he, he dipped out, right.
Cause he was, he had the shits and he didn't want to say anything anymore.
And, and he was just sort of, and when Joey doesn't want to participate.
Yeah, he's really obvious.
It's super, like he has the most obvious cues.
Yeah, I'd love to play him poker.
He gives it all away.
And he does this with his eyes.
He closes his eyes.
He, he totally checks out.
Um, and I thought, and it was, you know, and the, and the, you know, Queenslanders won
and Wally was up and it was all good, but the actual, I knew this, the headlines the
next day would all be about New South Wales failing and, you know, whatever happened.
And I said, Andrew, no, Joey, where, where are we at?
Like, what's happening?
How did that get away on them?
And he's got his eyes closed.
Gus also closes his eyes.
Yeah, he does too.
And Joey learned forward.
And then it just took something like that to bring him in.
And then, you know, and then he sort of went on this big emotional rant about how it just
wasn't where it needed to be.
And New South Wales had failed and they'd failed the state and they did all this and
blah, blah, blah.
And you think, well, there, there you go.
I could have just let him coast along and check out, which he obviously wanted to do
or, or come in and have a conversation.
How do you deal with the over-exuberance end?
Like the opposite.
Um, you know, like if, for example.
Well, Billy Slater's not like this and Cooper Cronk's definitely not like this.
They don't, they don't get overexcited.
They, uh, but like who's, well Jimmy Grain gets overexcited.
Like how do you deal, but it wouldn't be at origin level because you wouldn't have him
there for an origin show, but I don't think you'd probably, let's say it's a, a Bulldogs
game or something like that.
Someone who might be feeling quite excited about it.
How do you deal with over-exuberance?
I mean, how do you manage these individuals?
Because they're, they're big personalities.
They're all so different, aren't they?
That's why they're there.
They're all big personalities.
Big personalities, but for different reasons.
They're all confident.
They're all ex-greats in the game.
So you've got to sort of, you know, have that respect about what they know about the
game or what they know about how they play the game.
How do you manage that process?
And do you ever have to check yourself?
That's Andrew Johns I'm talking to.
You never forget who they are and what they have to say.
And, but I think for me, from my perspective, if I'm a, I'm a fan first and foremost.
So what, what do I want to hear?
What do I want to hear from an immortal?
What do I want to know?
So you put yourself in my spot.
Because I'm trying to bring something for you.
So I just ask it from a fan's perspective.
And it doesn't matter if it's a tough question.
But if he's talking shite, I mean, do you, would you, would you pull him up and say,
well, hang on, that's not really.
I try not to, because also you don't want to put them on show.
That's a big call.
Because as confident and as accomplished as they are, sometimes their egos are a little
And so you don't want to, you don't want to knock them.
But Bonnie, if I look at that, and I agree with that because I know some of these individuals,
but if I look at 360, it's the opposite.
I mean, it's a, like, I enjoy it too, but it's a rabble.
Like it's mental.
You know what I mean?
It is a bull pit.
I feel sorry for Braith sometimes.
I'm looking at him and I can see him listening to the producer.
Sorry for Braith.
But I can see Braith listening to the producer saying, get these two off each other.
I can see, sometimes the camera doesn't pan very well and it gets, catches Braith looking,
Away from the conversation.
And it's clearly he's listening to the conversation that's in his ear, or it's on the other side
and listening to his ear.
And, and I can see that it's sort of not getting out of control, but like he's got to try and
dumb it down a little bit, particularly between the two journalists.
Or Brent Rood, as we called him for a little bit.
Yeah, because they, particularly if it's on a paramatter issue.
I mean, and, and, and your show is completely different.
Is it meant that in order to,
is NRL 360 meant to be like the old controversy corner?
A hundred percent.
It's meant to be that.
And your show is meant to be more, not subdued, but more, let's call it intellectual.
No, well, yeah, yeah, slightly.
You know what I'm saying?
And then Matty can do everything, you know, like he can have a serious footy conversation,
then he can, you know, have all the-
You mean in the podcast?
Or the, the, the thing with Cooper.
With Cooper, yeah, yeah.
And then they can have like, you know, doodle jokes and stuff like that.
And that's all fun as well.
Because that's all part of the experience, but you're right, I think it's 360 and it
has changed so much when you think about when, when Iken and Kenty were there, you
know, it was very different because Iken is, he's got such a brilliant-
And very measured.
And very measured and he's always the voice of reason and comes in from a very different
He's just typical CEO.
Yeah, that's right.
He's, he's excellent.
And then Kenty was the outrage merchant.
And even, you know, even days would, Kenty would come in and say, oh, I don't feel like
having a blue tonight.
And he'd look at the rundown and say, all right, what have I got to pick a fight about?
And so he knew that conflict drove clicks and viewership and people want to tune in
to see him and Buzz go head to head or whoever it is or a coach or, so yeah, it's a little
bit more outrage.
So, but there is role playing.
You think that they get on there and they have, they, I've been in those meetings.
I was very lucky enough to jump in after Ben Eichenleff and was just the relief teacher
towards the end of the year.
But, and I know still they, in the green room, they say, right, so I'm going to say this
and then you say that.
But the best prepared produced shows always look like it's natural, but they all know
what they, what they're going to say and.
And, and, and, and, and in terms of audience feedback, whether audiences like it, I mean,
is there much data being shared with you guys?
There is, there are ratings.
I don't know how to find them, but there is an email that comes out, I think every night
But where's the feedback come from though?
How do you, how do you work out whether or not your shows, your show is, is, is hitting
I think, well, first of all, ratings.
Um, uh, and then, you know, whether it gets picked up on KO, if there's more, um, people
clicking on KO to see, so they'll say, okay, well, that was a big issue that caught fire
that started trending.
So let's do a little bit more of that.
Um, or for like the face-to-face stuff, uh, Wally Lewis was our most watched.
And I think that's just Wally, right?
So Wally still has that austere that you still want to go, oh, it's Wally Lewis.
Like how amazing.
Everyone just sort of clicks on because it's Wally.
But he also got a pretty.
Important story to tell.
Like, yeah, he's.
It's not so much about his origin, legendary moments, but it is about that, but it's also
about what he's going through.
Yes, that's right.
And that's a big deal.
And I think for Wally, he feels very comfortable now talking about it.
I was, I'll never forget my first day I was working at, um, I started at the Channel Nine
sports department in Brisbane.
And so that was like, for me, I was like, oh my God, I've made it, I've made it driving
up to Mount Coot-tha.
I was like, oh my God, I'm in the Channel Nine sports department.
This is the best thing ever.
And, um, I walked in and, um, he'll, uh, Ian Healy was there.
He was there, yeah.
Uh, Wally Lewis had his desk next to mine.
Couple of legends.
And, um, our, our boss of the sport department was the wonderful Andrew Slack.
And I, here's me, nobody from nowhere walks in of day one going, hello everybody.
And I put my stuff down.
Oh, Wally said, oh, lovely to meet you.
Lovely to have a woman in our sports department.
Now we've all had it.
Things are going to be a little bit different around here.
So we want you to feel comfortable.
God knows what they were up to before I got there.
Um, he said, now, would you like a cup of tea?
And I didn't know what to say.
And then Wally trots off.
And I'm like, I don't know what's happened, but the King's just gone off and made me a
I don't know what my life has become, but this is clearly the best moment in my profession
It was pretty phenomenal.
And you've had, you've met some great people in rugby league.
And as I said earlier, you are a bit of a rugby league student and historian to some
So apart from Wally, just tell me who's someone who you've met rugby league wise, either in
administration or player or ex-player, who's some of the people that just come spring to
mind who were sort of a little bit fascinating to you?
Oh, they're all fascinating.
Like really rugby league has such a vibrant Petri dish of personalities, if I can put
Because they're not bacteria.
It's a little bit.
Some bacteria there too.
I mean, I've been in such a privileged position.
I think meeting Gus, being able to work with Gus and developing a relationship.
What was your impression?
Oh, I was terrified.
Because he's quite, he's quiet.
He's not garrulous.
And it's almost that silence that makes you feel more uncomfortable because you're like,
should I feel the silence or should I just let it hang here?
He seems happy to just sit here quietly.
So I'm just going to let that, and I think it probably took Gussie and I really a little
while to connect and now I can call Gus for anything really.
He's actually a good guy.
He's actually such a good guy.
Like I know if you knew he, again, he plays this role in this character that he's happy
to be the bad guy and happy to, you know, couple the hits in the media.
Well, he's got this super intellect.
Isn't it just the most fascinating thing?
I mean, the guy could have been a judge or something like that.
He should have been.
In fact, he was doing a law degree at one stage.
He could have been something like that or a prime minister or something like that.
Or a cult leader.
He could convince me.
The grass is blue and the sky is green and I'd be like, fair enough.
Well, I've seen him with players.
He'll talk to them and they feel like they could jump 15 foot near.
He's such a powerful person.
He's very persuasive.
But, you know, he's complicated, Gussie.
Yeah, totally, totally complicated.
It was probably one that I'm very lucky to call a friend now.
Yeah, all of them.
Like, you know, Joey, Lockie, Sterlo.
I remember growing up, my first little footy crush when I was about seven or eight years old was Paul Hoff.
He's a sergeant or a police officer or something.
And I was like, oh, hello, Mr. Hoff.
We were talking outside about Arco earlier on.
And you met Ken Arthurson.
What a gentleman of the game in every regard.
Like, what would you say today that rugby league personalities,
and today we've got female personalities coming through too,
and I don't mean so much administration but I mean more as players,
young women now coming through, some great personalities.
What would you say that they've given to you?
The female ones or someone like an Arco?
Or just the personalities in general, whether they're Arco
or whether they're Joey or whoever.
But what do you get out of it?
What is Vonnie getting out of all this?
What a great question.
I think for someone like a Ken Arthurson, you get a sense of gratitude that someone of that ilk has devoted an entire life to the game
and has seen every possible scenario play out, good, bad.
You know, it felt like it was going to be a good game.
It felt like it was going to be a good game.
It was going to be the death of the game at that point where Arco was at the forefront of it.
This is the Super League period?
Yeah, Super League period.
When he was a Manly guy and Manly was part of the non-Super League group.
Yes, and it felt so divided and you felt like this game that my family would get together and huddle around the TV
and is that game going to be there?
What will happen?
What will happen to my favourite players?
Where am I going to see any of this?
So, yeah, it felt like a really risky time.
And, you know, for a Ken Arthurson to give up his time,
to just sort of answer some of my questions and to be able to go back through some of his incredible journey,
that's such a privilege.
I think, do you know what I always get?
I feel gratitude whenever I meet anyone in the game because they all have different stories,
whether it's a young up-and-coming NRLW player and she talks about her drive for the game,
how she fell in love with the game, where she wants to take a game,
why she's the future of the game and how they see footy changing,
which is, I think, has always been a strength of rugby.
We're not resistant to change.
We're pretty agile to it, which I think is why we've been able to adapt and stay very current.
As opposed to our competitor game.
A little bit, which I want rugby to thrive.
We don't need them to die.
But they haven't adapted.
So I think to be able to stay alive to the young generations coming through in those parameters is very important.
I was at Steve Hoyle's in a couple of weeks ago talking about exactly that extra frame,
maybe the unit guy, and currently the coach around me saying exactly what you just said.
That their game's failing, their fans, and failing the game,
whereas rugby league has managed to adapt.
You can't just do that.
It's a business thing, right?
Like you can't just…
Because something worked for you 20 years ago doesn't mean it's going to work for you today.
And how important then is someone like Vlandis and Abdo in making sure that this adjustment gets made
and gets made in the right time?
I mean, of course, best example, we started this whole conversation talking about Vegas.
But, you know, take…
Taking risks and being curious to try something out.
And then put the risk with it.
If it fails, at least we gave it a shot, right?
And I think rugby league's very forgiving for that.
If we try something, doesn't work, we're happy to again go,
all right, let's just flush that, start again.
Well, that didn't work.
And I know people like to argue.
And again, I think that's why 360 or, you know, those fan forums,
everyone just gets on and they have a whinge and they vent
and they blow their stuff.
And then we all sort of push on.
Yeah, but, you know, what's interesting, what you guys did at Fox League,
that is trying new things out.
They're all different forums, different sort of formats.
I mean, and what you do is you backfill the whole time.
You say, hang on, the format's okay, but we need to do this,
change here, change that.
And eventually you get it right.
But it takes a fair bit of courage because if you stuff it up, you know,
it's going to look like it's your fault or Crawley's fault
Well, it won't look like Crawley's fault because he's behind the scenes.
No one knows who he is other than the people that are important know who he is.
The rugby league supremo of creepy Crawley is the best.
But that's my point though.
You're being part of a pretty courageous effort by Fox to create another format
which gives fans an alternative, an additional or a choice as to how we want
to consume our rugby league.
Yep, that's right.
And that's a big deal.
And like a lot of people, like my mum,
has always just watched Channel 9 on a Friday night.
And so she'll still probably watch it, not really knowing, oh, am I on Channel 9?
She doesn't really know the difference.
So there's a lot of-
It's not a loyalty thing.
No, just like she goes, oh, I'm just watching the footy.
Like, you know, and there's a lot of those fans or sort of casual fans that'll switch
on and off and definitely watch Origin, definitely watch Grand Final, but, you know,
might sort of catch a game here or there.
But then I think there's been such a rise of fans who have this,
this insatiable appetite for rugby league 24 hours a day.
And so that's what Fox League is for.
But in terms of trying something new and not being afraid of it failing, like what was
your gut reaction when someone said, yeah, we're actually, like the Roosters are going
to Vegas, like we're taking round one, round zero to Vegas.
Did you think it was going to fail?
No, I didn't think it would fail.
Well, did I think it would get a whole lot of people betting on rugby league, which is
one of the things I wanted to get done?
I didn't think that would be the case.
Did I think it was going to get broadcast across America?
I didn't think that.
But I think it would be a good thing for the Roosters and a good thing, therefore,
for rugby league generally.
I thought that would be a great outcome.
I know our players love it.
Our fans love it.
And our players were so excited to go, like ridiculously excited to go.
A lot of them have never been to America for a start.
Then we, and then coach got excited and then we started finding ways to put them up.
We put them in UCLA, you know, they're walking around a famous university campus.
You know, we put famous ex-players, UCLA, NFL players in front of them.
We got them exposed to the gym environments there.
So it just keep, I just saw it would keep building on, on itself.
And, you know, of course it's, you know, Nick, who's really was behind a lot of this.
What an innovator.
Totally innovator.
And one of the things that rugby league, I think, gives to everybody, and we're talking
about it now, just in terms of the broadcast, it doesn't mean one show is better than the
It's about innovation.
Rugby league's innovated.
The administration rugby league has innovated.
I mean, when you can see that.
When you consider that we were being torn apart in the late nineties, 96 through to
99, 90, whatever, in the 98, we've been torn apart by two opposing sides, two opposing
media icons who then did a deal.
And if you look at where rugby league is today, it's just unbelievable.
And you've been part of it.
And all these new innovations, new things that we're trying, it's just so cool.
And the fans haven't gone off.
The fans have actually got, we've got.
And I, and talking of fans, I don't want to embarrass you, but your biggest fan is one
Isn't that right, Mrs. O'Keefe?
I'm his biggest fan as well.
Do you know what's funny?
When I actually hear you talking to him sometimes, because he rings you sometimes.
I go, have you got nothing else on your show?
Why are you calling me?
I'm listening to it too.
What time is he on?
Between three and six or something?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I'm thinking, hang on.
What am I doing listening to Chris O'Keefe?
Yeah, what are you doing with your life?
Well, if I'm leaving here the studio and I'm going back to the office, which is what I'll
do today, and if he's on, I'm always on 2GB.
So I'll listen to what he's got to say.
But he is one of your biggest fans.
Can you suffer through all the dragons chat that he puts on 2GB?
Him and John Stanley.
You two, forget it.
But let's just talk about this guy, right?
You guys have an unbelievably great relationship.
You're really close, good mates.
We're, um, so we-
How do you work that together?
We've just always been like, we just were connected really from the moment we met and
we were both working up in Brisbane.
He just started as the young crime reporter and I was working in sport and I think we
went out for a couple of work drinks or whatever.
And then because I was in Brisbane, I didn't have a lot of friends around.
He was in Brisbane.
He didn't know anyone either.
So on Monday nights, remember we used to have Monday night footy.
So I said, oh, well, you know, do you want to go watch the game?
Cause I don't think I could afford pay TV.
So we had to go watch the game at the Paddo and I think they did $12 stakes.
So that became like a bit of a Monday night thing for us rather than us sitting at home
in our little rentals, you know, not watching the game.
Um, and I didn't know it at the time, but that was sort of the beginning of our courtship
and we've always just had the best time together.
We just love each other's company.
Well, the way he talks about it is ridiculous.
He's so beautiful.
He's so beautiful.
So that's been like, gosh, that was, you know, 2012.
So it's been a long time now.
Um, and he's been there for, for all of it.
And he's been such a huge supporter of mine and he's never made me feel, which is such
a silly thing to say, but never made me feel bad for working all the weekends, which is
not, um, a usual way of going.
If you're in a relationship, people want to say, well, why can't you come to my birthday?
Why can't you come to my mate's wedding?
Why can't, well, cause you know, rugby league happens on the weekend.
Like I'm just not around.
Um, but I'm available on a Wednesday if you want to do that.
Get into my diary.
I'll send you a diary message.
So yeah, it was probably hard to have relationships.
Um, and then Chris just got it and he never made me feel apologetic about wanting to do
well or saying yes to opportunities that would take me away.
Um, and then we both ended up in, in Sydney at the same time.
And yeah, we've just had the most amazing time and it's just flown.
Like we talk to each other all the time.
I'm like, can you imagine?
We're like, we, we met each other so long ago now.
Like it just feels like we're just starting.
It's, um, and equally, I hope that he feels like I've supported him through everything
And he's, now he's been on, um, the afternoon drive, what, for two years?
So you took over Deb Knight.
Uh, Jim, Jim Wilson.
Who is the, um, brother of, uh.
Who we were talking about earlier on.
The late Rebecca Wilson.
Um, and I have to tell you, and I don't mind saying this, but don't get a big head, uh,
Is that, um, David Gingell.
David Gingell rang me one day, about a year ago, I think.
And he said, mate, you got to talk to this guy, meet this guy, because he will be, I
He said, his name's Chris O'Keefe.
He said, he will be one of the leading journalists in this country in the future.
And that's come from Gingell.
And Gingell knows his stuff.
Ginge has to be one of the most phenomenal people I've ever had the joy of working for
and, and to, um, even just spend some time in his company.
Lachlan and Lachlan have been like so supportive, so loving, so generous, so open, um, even
Um, they were amazing.
And, uh, Ginge is just one of a kind.
Like I, if you could bottle some of Ginge, um, and just that brilliance that he has, I
don't think anyone.
One of the great communicators.
I don't think anyone knows how to communicate like Ginge.
You know, and what works.
He is probably, in my, my life, probably the best communicator I've ever met in my life
How's his barometer on stuff?
He, yeah, he, yeah, he's very contemplative.
He's very contemplative though.
And, uh, and he doesn't really read a lot, but he hears a lot and speaks a lot and talk.
He does a lot of conversations, but you know, it's a little bit off topic for us today,
but give me, I agree with you.
I mean, I speak to him probably at least once a week, probably sometimes many more times
And him and Layla have a equally like, you know, you and Chris have this unbelievably
great relationship.
Which is rare in the industry.
And he has to be forgiving for her because she might have to go down to Sydney to do
the current affair.
Or she's right now.
Layla, are you listening?
She was having a picnic, I think, um, out in the park, you know, probably in the shadow
of the Eiffel Tower.
You're looking after kids taking them to school.
I don't believe that.
Yeah, just doing the hard yards.
Just doing school run.
Yeah, school run.
But, and probably putting in plenty of time with Mick Fanning and his mates going surfing.
How is it all of that whole crew up around that Byron area, um, area look like the peak
The peak of happiness.
They're gym animals.
They rest really well.
They live like really normal lives.
Take the kids to school at 8.30 in the morning.
Pat Raft is another one.
Yeah, no, Raft is another one.
There's a big gang of them.
There's a whole crew of them.
And they're just killing it.
Um, but, but your, I just wanted to say to you that, um, as an observation, both to you
and Chris, that it just looks like one of those wonderful relationships that's pretty
I wanted to say that.
And, and, you know, well done.
Like it's, uh, it's because he says it's actually rare.
I want to congratulate people in relation to their relationship.
It's just a rare thing.
I really appreciate that.
We've, we've, we're so aware that, um, yeah, what we have is, is pretty amazing.
We're very protective of it.
Um, we don't do, you know, the big double page Stella shoots.
Not making Stella, but you know, like we don't just, and I think because so much of our lives
and so much of, um, our, you know, our voice and our image and everything, it's like every
time you go to work, you're on TV, you're broadcasting, you, you feel so out there.
So when we go home, not that we're like weirdly private, um, but we just, you know, we.
But you enjoy your own privacy.
Put the drawbridge up and.
You enjoy, enjoy your privacy.
We just love each other's company.
So we never get bored.
That's absolutely critical.
It doesn't matter what we do.
Like it's like days before responsibilities and, and marriage and, and a child, um, like
we would just go to the pub and have a few bits and then go for a lunch and like, just
me, like nothing exciting, but would have the best time.
Do, do you think you epitomize or represent like a very typical, and I mean in the best
possible way, typical Australian, normal, um, happy or happy enough, um, gainfully employed
and occupied, loves her job, loves her family, just loves being who she's, who she is right
That's a pretty wonderful place to be.
Which I think is a blessing because if you're not content, it can lead you down a path and
some decisions that you can find yourself in quite a lonely place.
Um, but I've always been very content with anything I, that comes my way.
And, and I think, um, for me too, like my sense of identity has always been in.
A funny one and a long journey just because I was adopted when I was a child and, um, and
just to be grateful that you have a beautiful family and you have all these wonderful things.
You have the, all these wonderful opportunities that a great education I had ponies growing
I had everything that I know was, and you know, and above all that, I was always told
you can do anything you want.
And my father and my grandfather probably, and they would hate to hear this probably,
but they were feminists.
They wouldn't have identified that.
But they were, they said, you can do whatever you want.
A soft version of a feminist.
What I mean, I don't mean us being soft people.
But it just empowered me to do whatever I wanted to do.
Like don't, don't let anyone tell you no, no, don't, don't let, you know, people put
you in a, uh, you know, to the side if you want it, you got to go work for it.
And I think that value is sort of served me and that work ethics probably served me pretty
And you have a boy or a girl?
I have a little boy.
And what do you and Chris, do you sit down and sort of, um, muse about how you'd like
your little boy to live his life?
Yeah, we do actually.
I think, um, we, I think all parents do that and you go, what are we going to do to give
this child the best possible shot?
How do we build resilience?
How do we build, um, a sense of empathy?
How do we build a sense of responsibility?
How do we empower this young person to become all their potential?
The best version of themselves.
The best version.
And I don't, because I'm not from Sydney, so I find it really difficult with the whole
school system and some of the values that go along with that.
But, um, all that aside, what I think the most important influence on your child is
what's going on in the home.
And so for us, yeah, be kind, work hard, um, be grateful.
One of the things I learned, I got four kids, but one of the things I learned, maybe too
late, but I learned in relation to raising my sons.
I know I've got three grandchildren.
I've got seven sons as well.
But there's nothing you tell them ever ends up being represented in the way they live
But everything they saw you do is somehow burnt into the memory and forms part of their
Everything they saw you do.
So just parting bit of information, um, yeah, just make sure you, what you say is what you
That's actually really true.
And, um, and that they see you do it often.
And empathy, like if they see you empathetic, I think they'll be empathetic.
And, uh, you know, cause it's, uh, you know, I often think about some of the characteristics
of my sons and I think it's probably cause he saw me do this and, uh, and by the way,
I don't have regrets or anything, but like we're all learning, you know, we're all learning
And, uh, it's, it's quite an interesting, I mean, world today if I was, if I had a young
Um, I don't have a lot of family, but I don't really want to interfere in how they grow up
I was going to say, are you, are you the one that spoils them?
But, but not in a overly way, but I also got to be careful when they're in, I don't try
to be the parent when they come to stay with me.
I got to, I can't be the parent or that's my instinct.
Say like I got George who's six, hey George, what are you doing mate?
You can't do this or you can't look at the iPad.
You're going to bed at this time.
Um, and I, I usually get a pretty poor response from him.
when I say that, especially when he was young when he was like four,
three, four, four especially when he was very upset
that I took the iPad off him.
Yeah, I'm like, they're iPad addicts.
What's with that?
Again, they know how to work and they know everything.
They know how to go to YouTube.
They know all of it.
He even knew the code to get in and everything.
So it's quite interesting as a grandparent.
Sometimes I feel like I want to do for my grandsons
what I didn't do for my sons but I've got to be careful I can't
because they've got a mum as well.
I might be able to tell my son, hey, you need to do it
but I can't tell their partner or wife.
That's how you should be bringing your son up.
So it's quite interesting.
You've got this great opportunity, you and Chris, right now
as having a young three-year-old.
And I'm late to motherhood as well.
I'm in my early 40s.
We have more kids.
We might be lucky but, yeah, we'd love that.
Well, maybe it's because and do you worry about having an only child?
Do you worry about your child being an only child?
I'm an only child.
Well, because I was adopted, right?
So I grew up as an only child and, yeah, clearly loved it
and was the main character of the household.
So but, yeah, I think I never really thought about a family.
Isn't that funny?
I never thought about a husband or a partner.
I never thought about until I met Chris.
So A, I didn't think anyone would put up with me.
B, I didn't know if I could put up with anyone else.
C, I just never thought anyone would want to marry me
I think because I was an only child, I've never been around kids
so I didn't really know.
Like I wasn't really motherly, you know, like people go,
do you want to hold the baby?
I was like, oh, no, thank you.
Good for you though.
It all looks a lot.
Yeah, so that's probably a regret of mine.
I would have loved to have started my family a bit earlier
because now that I've had one, I'm like, oh, my God,
these things are amazing.
I'll have 10 of them.
So we've spoken about adoption maybe which would be really nice
to sort of bring that into a full circle.
I think that would be so cool.
To give someone else a chance.
At experiencing you and Chris as parents.
Well, I don't know.
We like to think we're doing a good job but who knows.
And I would be empathetic obviously to a baby or a child coming in,
you know, being adopted and some of the challenges that come with that.
Yeah, but, you know, it would be pretty special.
Well, Yvonne, Sam and Bonnie, thanks to this episode of Face to Face.
I've really enjoyed, you know, your honesty
and your kind words.
And actually, you're so easy to talk to.
I can imagine those Monday nights with Chris in the early days.
No wonder he was hanging out to meet you at Monday Night Footy
and have a pie and a beer or whatever you guys were eating.
And I just wish you and him the very best for your future.
And thanks for giving us all the stuff you give us on Fox Sports.
I actually love watching you so thanks very much.
Oh, I really appreciate it.
You're so generous and kind and thank you for the invitation.
I was a little bit nervous coming in here
but you are so kind.
You're so brilliant and, yeah, it made me feel very comfortable.
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