Patrick Carrigan's admission about Ezra Mam fallout at Broncos as Uber driver speaks out
The man driving the Uber involved in the collision with Mam has given his account of events.
Broncos forward Patrick Carrigan admits Ezra Mam and the Brisbane playing group have issues they need to address in the wake of the latest drama to rock the NRL club. Mam checked himself into rehab on Monday just days after he was involved in a car crash with an Uber driver that left a four-year-old female passenger in the vehicle with a fractured hip and her family traumatised.
Queensland Police are yet to press charges but are alleging that Mam was driving an unlicensed vehicle and failed a roadside drug test after the accident in Brisbane last Friday. Police are awaiting the results of a second blood test for drugs before deciding their next move, with Mam's $4 million contract at the Broncos at risk of being torn up if he's found guilty.
Speaking about the situation at his club during camp with the Kangaroos ahead of Sunday's Pacific Championships Test against New Zealand, Carrigan says he's spoken to Mam and accepts that he made a mistake. But the representative forward threw his support behind the 21-year-old playmaker and admitted that Mam - like the Brisbane club as a whole - need to lift their standards.
“He’s pretty disappointed, can’t comment too much on things but, yeah, next steps for himself is to make amends and sort himself out with some rehab stuff and move forward as a club and for him individually,” Carrigan told Channel 7. I know the quality human he is, he’s a great young kid, got a heart of gold and obviously he’s just made a mistake. We have some work to do as a club and so does he and he acknowledges that.”
Broncos boss puts club on notice after Ezra Mam drama
Broncos CEO Dave Donaghy also gave his players a brutal reality check after the Mam incident by insisting they needed to grow up and admitting there were issues around the culture at the club that new coach Michael Maguire will be keen to address. "I've seen commentary previously about this being a line-in-the sand moment. I think for this group it's a grow-up moment," the Broncos CEO said. "We've been very deliberate about investing in our leadership capability and our culture in the football program.
"We have been disappointed across the course of the year with where we are. I'm not going to shy away from the fact I do believe we've got some cultural challenges. Part of it is back to leadership. It's an area I've highlighted we need to invest in. We know that is going to take a lot of hard work. We might not fix it overnight, but we will certainly be very deliberate about designing it."
Uber driver and female passenger speak after Ezra Mam crash
It comes after the Uber driver and one of the female passengers in the car that collided with Mam's vehicle spoke out on Tuesday about the ordeal. The mother of the young girl that suffered a fractured hip in the crash told Nine News the Broncos had reached out to check on their welfare but admits the crash left them very shaken up.
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"I can't rest because every time I close my eyes all I see is that vehicle," the woman told Nine News. "But not just only that... (it's) the impact that it's had on my family, who have supported me (and my daughter) through all of this."
The driver of the Uber also gave his account of events to Nine News and admitted he will "need some help getting over the mental hurdles" and anxiety about driving again. The driver says he "blacked out" momentarily after the crash, before helping to free the young girl from the back seat after she was left trapped inside the car.
"The lady was saying, 'I can't breathe, I can't breathe', and I went holy moly, I've got to do something," Uber driver Marcel Van Den Camp told 9News. "I tried the back doors, couldn't open it, they were locked so I went back to my door, reached over to the back door on my side, unlatched it. So I got the girl out, they were pretty shaken to say the least."
