The NRL has been forced to take action after it was faced with an awkward scenario with one of its referees.
Kasey Badger was working in the bunker for the South Sydney Rabbitohs game on the weekend, while her husband Gavin Badger was in the Bunnies’ coaching box.
Gavin Badger (a former ref) is helping out Souths’ interim coach Ben Hornby.
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Needles to say, the sight of a wife officiating on a husband’s game — or vice-versa — is not a great look, and the NRL, on this occasion, was quick to fix the glaring issue.
NRL’s “senior management” reportedly met on Monday and promptly banned Kasey Badger from South Sydney games.
“It won’t happen again,” NRL football boss Graham Annesley said.
“We do not question Kasey’s objectivity or professionalism but we acknowledge it’s not a good look.”
Kasey was not involved in any controversial calls during the game and no conspiracy theories or calls of umpire bias emerged.
But from now on she will not be allowed to be a referee or touch judge at Souths games.
The decision, however, is a complete backflip from the stance the NRL took in 2022.
Back then, Kasey Badger officiated in a Tigers match when Gavin was hired by that club as a referee consultant. He was also sitting in the coaches’ box for the game (a loss to the Dragons) which raised the eyebrows of rivals.
“Kasey is a very capable match official with a great deal of experience,” Annesley said when the issue of conflict of interest was raised in 2022.
“Her integrity is beyond reproach.
“What her husband does for a living has no impact on her role or duties with the NRL. Like anyone else in the game, people should only be judged on their performances, rather than who they are related to.”
The move by Gavin Badger into the Bunnies box has been relatively low key although he has been a consultant there for two years and spends one day a week at the club for a training session.
It was reported by News Corp that “the NRL had no idea Gavin Badger was working for Souths” when it booked in Kasey for the bunker job on Saturday.
Curiously, when the situation was highlighted this time, the NRL took immediate action with Annesley obviously changing his mind about his officials and their relationships.
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