The ARU has seen fit to terminate Lote Tuqiri's contract for as yet unknown reasons. Reportedly, Lote's extrememly expensive contract was due to run until 2012. One would find it hard to believe that Lote's dropping from the Wallabies squad has not played a role in this decision.

One key factor yet to be noticed is that the ARU has deemed it fit to take this action on 1 July. In what could only be a coincidence, this happens to be the day after the registration deadline in the NRL.

I think there is going to be very little to this action other than a bold attempt by the ARU to save itself significant money and prevent a publicity coup by the NRL. We await further details.

News Limited and its agenda against football

A nice simple and easy post here driving into one of my pet hate areas. Media bias and the influence of advertising in major news organisations. Reading the dailytelegraph.com.au website I am drawn to an article discussing John Hartigan's recent comments.

He took aim at news editors and journalists who have "self interests as their primary ambition" rather than readers' interests.

Taking a phrase from former US president Richard Nixon, Mr Hartigan said news needed to cater for the "silent majority".

John Hartigan would do well to have a quiet word with his editor of the Sydney Daily Telegraph regarding his sports editor Phil Rothfield. In a recent interview with the SBS journalist Philip Micallef Phil was only to happy to point out that it is the advertising dollar and not the "Reader's interests" which drive the content of the telegraph's sporting section.

The Sydney Morning Herald throws a lot of space at rugby union because they get a lot of money from rugby advertising, we give rugby league plenty of space because we get a lot of money from rugby league advertising.

What an indictment on News Ltd's journalistic integrity.