Fallen Wallabies star Israel Folau has admitted during a church address in Sydney how he turned down a peace offering from Rugby Australia.
Israel Folau has revealed how he resisted the “temptation” of a peace offering from Rugby Australia that would have allowed him to resurrect his playing career.
The Wallabies star described his fallout with the governing body as “challenging” and spoke of being tempted by the “opportunity” to rekindle his career with the NSW Waratahs and Wallabies during a Sydney church address.
The fundamentalist Christian faces being sacked by Rugby Australia after being found to have committed a high-level code of conduct breach for an Instagram post that said hell awaited “drunks, homosexuals, adulterers” and others.
An independent three-member panel is expected to announce Folau’s sanction this week after deciding the controversial posts left him open to having his four-year, A$4 million contract torn up.
But, in a video of him speaking at a church service on Sunday afternoon, Folau insisted the process was not finished and the “outcome is yet to be known.”
“Potentially I could get terminated, which means that there’s no more playing contract and therefore no more finances or money coming in,” he said from the lectern.
“It would be the first time it has happened to me in my life.
“All the materialistic things I have been able to have over the last number of years are slowly being taken away from me.
“It’s been really challenging but also it’s been encouraging to myself to see what my God is actually doing.”
It’s understood Super Rugby’s all-time leading try-scorer would have been allowed to resume playing again had he agreed to take down his latest controversial post.
“There have been many opportunities to potentially make the situation a little bit easier. I could go back and play the game, get everything back to the way it used to be,” Folau said.
“The way Satan works is he offers you stuff that could look good to the eye and makes you feel comfortable, and if you follow that path all the worries and troubles will go away.
“(But) it is always the will of God that comes first.”
The panel deciding Folau’s fate is considering written submissions from both the player’s legal team and Rugby Australia before handing down their verdict.
Both parties then have a right of appeal, meaning the most divisive matter in Australia could drag on for weeks and months yet.
