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Russell Packer - NRL Newcastle Knights
UPDATE 21/09/15
The Illawarra Cutters Players were also recognised on the evening with prop Russell Packer named the ‘Illawarra Coal Player of the Year’ whilst lock Sam Coster was awarded the ‘Illawarra Cutters Coaches’ Award.
https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2015/09/20/ah_mau_named_player_.html
UPDATE - 26/06/15
Playing for the St George Dragons feeder team the Illawarra Steelers. Is playing well by all accounts and set for a return to the NRL next season...
DRAGONS
Who’s hot: The Dragons’ most controversial recruit, former Warrior, Knight and convict Russell Packer has acquitted himself well in his initial stint with the Illawarra Cutters in the NSW Cup.
While his match fitness is still returning slowly Packer has lost none of his impact carrying the ball or his ferocity in defence and he’s boosted the Cutters in the middle of the field.
While Packer is ineligible to be called up to the top grade this season, once he gets a full pre-season under his belt he’s sure to quickly return to the form that saw him become a New Zealand Test regular.
Russell Packer has been in fine form for the Cutters.
https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-lowdown-round-16-whos-on-the-cusp-and-whos-on-the-block-at-your-club/story-fnp0lyn3-1227410903054
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Sure we all know the back story to Rusty ending up in jail. He was released January 4th. No word on what he's up to. Said to be a few clubs chasing him and no doubt we will be updating this post sometime this year...
Jailbird Russell Packer walks free after just 12 months for vicious assault and seeks NRL contract
CHRIS BARCLAY
CONVICT: Russell Packer attends his court case before conviction.
Russell Packer reportedly walked free from a Sydney jail today after serving just half of his sentence for the vicious beating of a fellow New Zealander, but his return to the NRL remains an unlikely step-by-step process.
Packer, who turned 25 while behind bars last October, is understood to have been released on parole after spending 12 months in jail for an assault that left aspiring former Auckland league player Enoka Time with head injuries.
The former New Zealand Warriors and Kiwis prop was originally jailed for two years on January 6 last year after he pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Astonished to be handed a custodial sentence for what Magistrate Greg Grogin labelled a "cowardly" attack, Packer changed his legal team and in April he successfully appealed the severity of his punishment.
Packer punched Time, then aged 22, to the ground outside a Sydney CBD hotel and then stomped on his head during an alcohol-fuelled night out in November 2013, shortly after he signed a four-year contract with the Newcastle Knights.
Time suffered a fractured eye socket, lacerations and needed to wear a neck brace until he recovered.
The Knights were initially supportive of Packer, their marquee recruit for 2014, and supported his partner and children who relocated to Newcastle after the incident.
However, a week after he was jailed the club terminated his contract - the NRL had already refused to register the deal.
Packer, who played 110 games for the Warriors over six seasons, was still sought after despite his criminal record with St George Illawarra, Penrith, Newcastle and Brisbane reportedly keen to assist his rehabilitation from long-standing issues with alcohol.
The Dragons subsequently emerged as the club most likely to sign Packer, although that depends on whether the NRL is willing to register a contract.
Packer's future is also clouded by the Department of Immigration and Border Security, which has the power to cancel the New Zealander's special category visa.
The department has already started assessing whether Packer - who undertook alcohol-related counselling before and during his incarceration - will be allowed to remain in Australia.
Convicted criminals who are sentenced to 12 months or more invariably fail the "character test" associated with the 1958 Migration Act and are deported.
St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor last month argued Packer should be allowed to return to the code immediately saying 12 months was a "sufficient sentence" - a view that angered some Dragons fans.
McGregor said the Dragons would be prepared to meet any conditions the NRL might impose on the front rower, including an alcohol ban.
Former Kiwis captain and Dragons playmaker Benji Marshall also backed the club's desire to sign Packer.
"Look at all the people who have been given second chances who have done misdemeanours off the field as well, so I think it is fair to give him a crack," Marshall said.
"He put himself in a situation that he will regret now and I am pretty sure that won't happen again. So we would be happy to have him."
Packer was visited by former team-mates during his sentence and regularly called the Warriors dressing room on game day.
Penrith coach Ivan Cleary, who handed Packer his first grade debut at the Warriors, also monitored his assimilation to life in custody.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/64678079/jailbird-russell-packer-walks-free-after-just-12-months-for-vicious-assault-and-seeks-nrl-contract
rimary
