Root of Evil

Nobody asked me, but... I bet Robin Brooke never believed that a drunken shag – which he thought had got away with 12 years ago – with a couple of groupies would come back to bite him in the arse so many times?
In fact, Brooke probably thought he’d already paid a big enough penalty for his jack-the-lad antics and partaking in a slapper sandwich when the All Black captaincy was offered to and then quickly withdrawn from him back in 1999. His instant promotion and demotion happened (although it is still officially denied) after the fish-heads at the NZRFU suddenly became aware of this rather nasty, skeleton floating around in Brooke’s changing shed locker.
Unfortunately, this meant the poor, hapless incumbent Taine Randell was again lumbered with the burden of the All Black skipper’s role and he went on to lead New Zealand to yet another unsuccessful rugby world cup campaign. This finished off his and a number of other player’s careers – including the aforementioned Brooke’s.
So, the former All Black lock then set about carving out a life in his rugby retirement as a successful supermarket owner and family man. However his peaceful existence suddenly came crashing down this week when allegations about him having sex with the 18 year old girl after a night of heavy drinking with her and a friend in1998 was aired on national TV.
These latest allegations of sexual shenanigans by the former rugby hard man (no pun intended, well ok maybe a little bit) follow revelations - which emerged earlier in the year - that Brooke had groped a 15-year-old Auckland girl at a Fijian resort on New Year's Eve and then assaulted her 17-year-old male friend, who had come to her aid.
This had led, back in February - and again on national TV- a shame-faced Brooke to publicly apologise to the girl, as well as to the New Zealand public, for his behaviour. He paid a financial settlement to the families of those involved and swore he had not engaged in any similar behaviour before. What’s the betting the 68 test match veteran thought that was the worst day of his life. And it probably was up until he switched on the TV on Tuesday night and witnessed just how wrong he had been!
The latest incident (although it was actually prior to the Fiji debacle as it happened a decade earlier!) is so much worse on a whole number of levels.
The former All Black is now facing the music on a number of fronts after partaking (or even just taking) in some horizontal lineout practice with a couple of slappers more than a decade ago. Apparently, Brooke met up with one of the said slappers and had had consensual sex a year earlier, when she was 17 and he was 30. This was only 8months after he had gotten married to his current (well, at this stage anyway) wife Hayley.
What’s even worse; the happy couple had sold their wedding ceremony to one of the women’s magazines and been the subject of the obligatory cover story about their mutual love and blissful life ahead together. What’s the betting things are not so blissful in the Brooke house now right now - after Mrs B worked out her hubby was cheating on her less than a year into their wedded bliss!
Meanwhile, a year down the track it appears Brooke again met up with the groupies and bought both women multiple shots of a liqueur, before accompanying them home. Apparently the self-confessed “non angels” then happily smoked pot and then both voluntarily jumped into bed with the former All Black – and it appears- husband of the year. The details of what happened after this are a bit sketchy, but even your average prop (and not doubt... Hayley Brooke) could work out that some slap and tickle took place between the supposedly happily married Mr Brooke and less-than virginal teenagers. Then apparently one of the angels awoke from her slumber to find Brooke having sex with the other comatosed teenager and told him to stop, an allegation backed up by a male flatmate. Brooke was asked to leave, but was refused to stop playing hide the salami with the unconscious angel number 2 until threatened with the police arriving.
One of the women complained to the New Zealand Rugby Union at the time, but did not go to the police. Brooke then eventually paid her $1500. He probably thought that was the end of his naughty, little adventure until the captaincy saga and then this week’s Close Up programme.
And now just when Brooke thought things could not get worse – his reputation in tatters, his proud rugby achievements tarnished and undoubtedly a lot of explaining to do to the Mrs. (You reckon she will believe that tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum were the only rugby groupies Brooke has had dalliances with? That actually looks more like a Tui billboard claim than an answer his upset wife is going to buy!)
Now Brooke’s future as a New World supermarket owner remains unclear after a meeting with senior management following these allegations coming to light. The revelations seem to have affected his plans to sell the New World supermarket he owns in Tauranga to buy a bigger branch in Warkworth, north of Auckland.
Parent company Foodstuffs has refused to answer questions about whether the deal was on hold, but said an internal inquiry was underway.
"Foodstuffs can confirm that senior management met with Mr Brooke on Wednesday to discuss allegations made in the media. Foodstuffs will now consider the matter in accordance with its internal processes," a frosty statement released by company stated on Friday.
What punters may not realise that Foodstuff’s is a New Zealand co-operative, tightly controlled and very family-orientated. I doubt Brooke’s sexapades have endeared him to the co-op’s bosses or his long-term future with the organisation.
While it’s said that money is the root of all evil, I reckon Robin Brooke is living proof that a sly root is likely to do a lot more damage than a few dollars ever will!