It sounds to me that Conlon was going to be made the scapegoat and bailed out. Gallen appears to have too much power for a big mouth standover thug.
NRL judiciary chairman Paul Conlon quits following Paul Gallen $50,000 fine
Updated yesterday at 2:52pmWed 29 Oct 2014, 2:52pm
PHOTO: NRL fine ... Paul Gallen(Getty Images: Ryan Pierse, File Photo)
MAP: Cronulla 2230
NRL judiciary chairman Paul Conlon has resigned in protest over the $50,000 fine the league imposed on New South Wales captain Paul Gallen following last week's offensive social media post.
Gallen had posted a comment criticising the NRL via social media last Thursday while holidaying in Hawaii in relation to Steve Noyce's departure as chief executive from the Cronulla Sharks.
He was
fined by the NRL on Monday and is banned from playing for Australia next yearunless he completes a leadership responsibility course.
Gallen is appealing the fine.
"I can confirm I have stood down effective immediately," Conlon told the Daily Telegraph.
Conlon believed the penalty handed to Gallen was over the top and did not take into account pressure he had been under for the past two years during the ASADA investigation.
A District Court judge, Conlon has headed the NRL judiciary for eight years but he emailed a resignation letter to NRL chief executive Dave Smith and ARL commission chairman John Grant on Wednesday.
"No player in the history of the game has been under as much pressure, stress and tension as Paul Gallen over the last two years," Conlon said.
"None of this or his medical condition was taken into account."
NRL head of football Todd Greenberg confirmed Conlon's resignation, while paying tribute to his time as judiciary chairman.
"Mr Conlon has given great service to the NRL Judiciary and we wish him every success in the future," he said in a statement.
AAP
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-...-following-paul-gallen-/5851222?section=sport
