- Kasey Badger will not referee South Sydney matches
- A connection has emerged that the NRL was not aware of
- Football boss admits new detail ‘doesn’t look good’
A football referee has been banned from working matches involving the South Sydney Rabbitohs in an extraordinary turn of events for the NRL.
Saturday night’s game between Cronulla and the Bunnies was marred by awkwardness after Kasey Badger was left in charge of the bunker while her husband Gavin Badger was in the Souths box assisting Ben Hornby.
Gavin, a former leading referee, has been a consultant to the Rabbitohs for two years and the NRL has therefore deemed it unnecessary for Kasey to referee any matches involving the club.
According to News Corp, the NRL was not aware of the potential conflict of interest before the Sharks game and admitted it was “not a good look”.
“It won’t happen again,” said director of football Graham Annesley.
“We don’t question Kasey’s objectivity or professionalism, but we recognize that it’s not a good image.”
There were no major controversies during Saturday night’s match, which would have left the NRL with plenty of questions to answer.
A female football referee has been banned from refereeing matches in South Sydney
Kasey Badger is married to Gavin Badger, who is a consultant for the Bunnies.
Kasey is widely regarded as one of the best referees in the game.
Football officials are concerned about potential difficulties that could materialise if a dispute were to arise while the married couple are in their respective positions.
Kasey is a highly reputable referee who enjoys a solid reputation in the game.
Most fans and pundits were unaware of Gavin’s role at Souths until they saw him in the coaching box during Saturday’s game.
