EXCLUSIVE
Former rugby player Robbie O’Davis has been kicked out of the family home by his former cheerleader wife as he continues to battle the devastating impact of a progressive brain disease.
The shock split comes after an ugly incident that saw the Newcastle Knights legend plead guilty to domestic violence-related common assault charges and resisting arrest earlier this year.
Louise O’Davis, who had provided constant support to the former football star as he battled his debilitating brain condition, confirmed the split and said she was ultimately left with no choice but to walk away from her troubled marriage.
“It was hard to stay, but it was even harder to leave,” she told Daily Mail Australia. “But I had to do what was best for my daughter and me.”
Her football star ex said she had found the split less difficult, telling Daily Mail Australia: “We have nothing together… so it was an easy getaway.”
“I won’t watch it again and I won’t even try,” he said.
O’Davis’ second wife, a former Knights cheerleader, said she had asked the former State of Origin and Australia fullback to move out of their suburban Newcastle home in May and they were no longer in touch.
“My daughter and I are fine. I paid him and kept my house,” he said.
Robbie O’Davis and his former entertainer wife Louise have split after her progressive brain disease caused irreconcilable problems within their troubled marriage.
The decorated Newcastle Knights legend believes his condition is linked to the repeated heavy knocks he received throughout his explosive 243-game domestic and international career.
-I don’t know how he is, we are not together anymore.
O’Davis, known to fans as ‘Robbie O’, has been struggling with symptoms of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
CTE is an incurable brain disease related to repeated traumatic brain injuries that can cause early-onset dementia and premature death.
The insidious disease has left him struggling with constant mood swings, worrying behavioral changes, and battling severe bouts of depression that led him to repeatedly contemplate taking his own life.
The two-time winner of last year’s championship revealed he nearly jumped off a cliff after drinking an entire carton of 24 beers and throwing the empty bottles over the edge and watching them smash against the rocks.
“I was sitting on the edge drinking a carton of beer and I threw one over the edge and looked at it and it broke and I thought ‘I’ll keep going’,” he told 7News Spotlight.
The episodes of depression became so bad He repeated the grim cliff ritual six times.
Each time, she said she resisted the urge to end her life after thinking of her teenage son and daughter.
She said she had no idea at the time that her mood swings and depression were symptoms of CTE.
She was eventually diagnosed with the disease by Dr Rowena Mobbs, Australia’s leading CTE specialist, in April last year.
He believes the illness was caused by repeated heavy blows he received throughout his decorated 243-match career as a national and international player.
The 51-year-old, who now works as a labourer in Newcastle, pleaded guilty to one count of common assault relating to domestic violence and resisting/obstructing police in the execution of their duty at Belmont Local Court in February.
At sentencing, he was granted an 18-month conditional release order (a type of good behaviour bond) expiring in August 2025.
The charges relate to an incident that occurred in November last year.
“The victim and the accused went out to dinner and drink alcohol with friends,” police records presented to the court stated.
‘In the early hours of the morning, the victim and the accused began to argue verbally.’
The court was told the dispute escalated to physical contact which caused the victim to fall to the ground and the incident was caught on CCTV.
Police said when officers were called, O’Davis resisted and hindered arrest before being escorted to a police van.
O’Davis was known for his aggressive approach to the game and suffered a particularly horrific injury that left his nose crushed and his palate broken after an on-field collision in 2003.
Former Knights cheerleader Louise O’Davis had been helping him battle the disease.
O’Davis lodged an appeal against his sentence on May 27, but told Daily Mail Australia he ultimately decided to cut his losses and try to move on with his life.
“I withdrew the appeal the day it appeared in the newspaper, then moved and never came back,” he said.
“She’s been an ex for a long time, thanks for devoting yourself to something that doesn’t concern anyone.”
Ms O’Davis has previously described the devastating effects of her ex-husband’s condition, which included extreme memory loss.
“It’s frustrating, but also annoying,” Louise told Spotlight last September.
‘Robbie forgot to pick up one of the kids this week from drama class and I spoke to him at 3.30pm and he said, “I’m leaving work now and I’m going to leave.”
“Then my daughter called and said, ‘There’s no one here to pick me up.’”
O’Davis has revealed that he is terrified of illness and the effect it has on him.
The impact has been so severe that he can no longer remember entire sections of his life, including his performance in the 1997 ARL Grand Final that earned him the coveted Clive Churchill Medal for best player.
“The only thing I remember is that I played for a good team and for a good city,” he said.
‘Even watching the grand finals now, I’ve seen them so many times I don’t remember doing them.’
Reflecting on his career, which saw him represent Queensland and Australia, O’Davis said his height (just 172cm) probably made him vulnerable because he regularly tried to get under tackles.
“I was a little guy in a big guy’s game, so my height level allowed me to dodge (opposing players’) forearms and I had a habit of seeing stars, getting hit and seeing stars,” he said.
“I was excited by those stars and people cheered me on. It became an addiction.
“If I don’t see stars and I don’t run as hard, I’m not having a good match.”
An alarming (and growing) number of former rugby league, Australian rugby and rugby union players have been diagnosed with CTE, along with many other contact sport athletes around the world.
O’Davis pleaded guilty to domestic violence-related assault after a night of partying with friends
The disease is strongly associated with athletes who suffer repeated blows to the head and especially concussions.
While there are now stricter rules to protect players who have suffered blows to the head, that doesn’t help the legends of the game who have long since retired.
Last year, the NRL created the Life After Football Foundation to fund medical expenses such as the cost of an annual brain scan for former players.
O’Davis had been one of several high-profile former stars spearheading ongoing campaigns to obtain the all-important codes to help former players.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted him for comment.
For free mental health support, call Lifeline Australia: 13 11 14
For help with anxiety and depression call Beyond Blue: 1300 22 46 36
WHO IS ROBBIE O’DAVIS?
Robbie O’Davis was born in Kurrajong, New South Wales, in 1972 and grew up in Toowoomba, Queensland.
He played 223 games for the Newcastle Knights, scoring 78 touchdowns, 45 goals and one field goal, between 1992 and 2004. He is considered the club’s best fullback.
Robbie O’Davis was born in Kurrajong, New South Wales, in 1972, but grew up in Toowoomba, Queensland.
O’Davis won two championships with Newcastle (1997 and 2001), winning the Clive Church Medal as player of the year in the 1997 Grand Final against Manly in which he scored two tries.
He played a dozen State of Origins for Queensland (1995-2002) and eight matches for Australia (1995-1998).