PARRAMATTA has secretly grantedTimana Tahu a week's leave after relevations the Eels star has been
missing from training and continues to battle his personal demons.
The admission comes from Eels chief executive Paul Osborne after claims Tahu has been AWOL from Parramatta pre-season training since Monday.
Parramatta denied Tahu has gone missing instead blaming his absence from Monday's session on car trouble, however, he hasn't
been back to Parramatta Stadium since.
This latest drama involving Tahu follows his omission from the Indigenous All Stars team voted on by the public.
Tahu has also reportedly refused to enter mediation talks after
accusations that he racially abused a 16-year-old player at an
Aboriginal knockout tournament in October at Woy Woy.
Osbornesaid the NSW State of Origin star had asked for a few days leave - a
request that was approved by new Parramatta coach Steve Kearney.
"Timana has asked for a few days off," Osborne said.
"He did have car problems on Monday but I knew about that. I have spoken to Steve and he knows about it [Tahu's absence].
"There are no dramas. He has been training really well, training the house down."
Pressed again on whether Tahu had gone AWOL, Osborne reiterated: "No. He is spending time with his family."
Parramatta players are talking among themselves about Tahu and say he
has in fact gone AWOL. The Daily Telegraph spoke to one player privately
who admitted the former Australian star had not been seen for nearly a
week.
"We don't know where he is," the player said.
The Eels are handling Tahu delicately after a bizarre season involving
two racial vilification dramas. After leaving camp with NSW over a
racial slur from assistant coach Andrew Johns, Tahu was then accused of
racially abusing Caleb Binge at the Koori Knockout tournament the week
after the NRL grand final.
Tahu, who is yet to re-sign withParramatta for next season, has strongly denied the claim. However there
is little doubt Tahu is a troubled footballer.
One source close to Parramatta said: "He seems a lost soul at the moment."
Following Tahu's snub in the Indigenous All-Stars team, Preston
Campbell has claimed the Parramatta player's image had been tarnished
this year.
Chris Binge, father of the teenager Tahu allegedlyracially abused at Woy Woy, said the Parramatta player continues to
refuse any mediation talks with his son Caleb, who was allegedly called a
"black c***."
Binge, who stands by his allegations against Tahu, has told the media the NRL star's credibility is on the line.
Replies
6 months of TT being mentally unstable is getting a bit old now.He is obviously on the verge of a complete breakdown, and we have only seen a glimpse of that over the past months!
Maybe the pressure is too much being in the lime light and maybe he should move on with his life and find a different job.
Less Stress, pressure and media attention would help him no end.
I really believe that TT has not been the same since the death of his father, and that he is suffering depression on a scale that is sky high.
The NZ Maori game , as well as the Australian selection for the 4 nations, IMO would have been better if he had not been selected, not out of disrespect for the bloke, but more to the point he needs to sort his shit out in his head. When TT left us to go to union, he was a imposing figure, but since then he has lost his father, hardly played footy, and been involved in several scandals, and to top it off he had to live next to Sinbad for god knows how long!
Timana Tahu is damaged goods, we will not see the TT that we are expecting or deserve to see until this bloke sorts out the demons that are destroying his reputation and killing his head!
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