NRLW star Nita Maynard comes clean about Cronulla, Sydney pub assault and wants to be a role model

Footy star comes clean about the night she assaulted two bouncers and refused to leave a pub in a very unwelcome first for the women’s game

  • Nita Maynard was the first NRLW player to break the law earlier this year in May
  • Now she wants to change her legacy and set an example for other NRLW players 
  • She said as the sport grows players all need to be responsible for their actions 
  • Maynard will end her playing career in 2022 to begin work with the RLPA in 2023


NRL Women’s star Nita Maynard has vowed to change her legacy for the better after  assaulting two security guards and refusing to leave a pub six months ago. 

Maynard was fined almost $3,000 over the clash with security workers at Cronulla’s Northies hotel in Sydney’s south in May. 

In doing so she became the first of the league’s players to break the law.

She was not signed to a NRLW contract at the time of the offence and so avoided any further punishment from the sport’s authorities.

NRLW star Nita Maynard was fined almost $3,000 after assaulting two security guards and refusing to leave a Sydney pub in May of this year

Maynard (above) says she wants to change her legacy in NRLW after she became the first NRLW player to break the law back in May of this year

Maynard (above) says she wants to change her legacy in NRLW after she became the first NRLW player to break the law back in May of this year

Now she is standing up and said she understands as NRLW becomes more popular players need to be responsible for their actions and act as role models. 

‘That was a first for an NRLW (player) to be in trouble with the law. And nobody wants to be that person,’ Nita told The Daily Telegraph. 

As NRLW players prep for one of the league’s biggest years yet, Maynard has called on players to represent the sport with pride.

‘You don’t want to be putting a bad light on the women’s game when we’re growing and fighting for these rights,’ she said. 

2022 is set to be a big year for NRLW with an All Stars clash lined up, to be followed by the postponed 2021 season.

The State of Origin game will follow in June and the league will  then return in September. 

Women’s rugby league will climax with the World Cup in England in October. 

Now Nita is saying she has learnt from her mistakes and hopes other players will take responsibilities from their misdoings in the future

Now Nita is saying she has learnt from her mistakes and hopes other players will take responsibilities from their misdoings in the future

Maynard has reminded NRLW players that as the sport grows in popularity they need to be mindful of how their actions on and off the field represent the sport

Maynard has reminded NRLW players that as the sport grows in popularity they need to be mindful of how their actions on and off the field represent the sport

Maynard (left) has called on players to act with pride when representing their sport and to learn from her mistakes

Maynard (left) has called on players to act with pride when representing their sport and to learn from her mistakes

Maynard will finish off her playing career in NRLW after representing New Zealand in the World Cup and will move on to work with the Rugby League Players Association.

In her new role she will assist in player wellness programs, ensure high quality training conditions, and give a voice to players.

‘(As an NRLW player) you’re told just to be grateful but being in this role has given me an opportunity to speak as a current player but help develop for the future,’ she said.