More than 1.5 million Aussies tuned into Nine last night to watch the South Sydney Rabbitohs honour the career of ex-Bunny and Queensland Maroon representative Jai Arrow.
The Rugby League community was rocked in May when 30-year-old Arrow announced his immediate retirement from the sport. He was forced to step away rugby league after he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND). MND is an umbrella term for a group of progressive, neurological disorders that destroy the motor neurons—the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control essential muscle activity like walking, speaking, swallowing, and breathing.
So, last night the Rabbitohs and the Brisbane formed a guard of honour before kick-off for Arrow. Here he rang South Sydney’s legacy bell with his one-year-old daughter in his arms and his wife by his side.
This motivated the cardinal and myrtle to honour its ex-player with an incredible 48-6 victory over the defending premiers. A total TV national average audience of 658,000 tuned in to watch the demolition job.
Adding to the evening, South Sydney wore a special ‘whiteout’ playing strip. The all-white playing strip will saw the Rabbitohs’ usual red and green stripes replaced with white stripes. All of the Rabbitohs’ playing kit sponsors agreed to have their logos whited-out, creating a striking look to the Rabbitohs one-off playing kit.
Seven’s coverage of the AFL just edged out the NRL with a reach of 1,750,000 and an average audience of 648,000. The broadcast featured the Adelaide Crows dismantling the Western Bulldogs by 57 points.
Over on 10 Taskmaster claimed 19th position on the TV Ratings thanks to a reach of 682,000 and an average audience of 349,000.
