NRL scandal: Cam Munster’s heavily-pregnant partner hits out after ‘death threats’ over white powder saga

Cameron Munster’s heavily-pregnant partner has spoken of the toll of the white-powder affair, revealing the Queensland Origin star has been buffeted by abuse and death threats in the lead-up to entering rehab. Munster’s long-term partner Bianca McMahon has opened up about their private pain and blasted critics just days after the Maroons playmaker was fined $30,000 and suspended for one-game by the NRL for his role in one of the biggest scandals in Melbourne’s 23-year history. Munster entered a Queensland rehabilitation facility on Wednesday to address a longstanding battle with alcohol. The $1 million Origin and Test five-eighth has surrendered his phone and will spend a month in rehab, hoping to check out in time for the scheduled arrival of he and McMahon’s first child in December. As Munster was kicked from pillar to post over the past fortnight following an NRL integrity unit probe into footage of the Storm pivot and teammates Brandon Smith and Chris Lewis in a hotel room with a mystery white substance, McMahon had enough. She took to Facebook on Saturday morning to lash social-media trolls and critics of Munster. McMahon quickly deleted the post, but her initial thoughts were an insight into the pressures Munster has felt as one of the NRL’s highest-profile players. “Just imagine, having your life under a microscope since you were a teenager,” wrote McMahon, seven months pregnant, three days after farewelling Munster before his entry into rehab. “Being judged, criticised and bashed through every media outlet in the country if you stepped one foot out of line. “Just imagine, receiving negative messages and death threats towards you, your family and your unborn child.” It has been a traumatic year for the couple. McMahon’s mother passed away in March following a battle with cancer and the couple then suffered the heartbreak of a miscarriage. Then came the Storm white-powder saga which saw Melbourne issue Munster a suspended $100,000 fine. For all his talent, the Rockhampton product is one more indiscretion away from the sack. While Munster is the first to admit he deserves being punished by the NRL and Storm over his partying antics, McMahon says he has suffered privately for too long. The abuse first mounted three years ago. In the weeks after Melbourne’s 2018 grand-final loss to the Roosters, in which Munster was sin-binned twice, a member of the public knocked on his front door and threatened to kill him. “Just imagine, people only ever seeing and reporting the bad you do and rarely the good,” McMahon added in her post. “People making fun of your image and questioning your integrity but not actually knowing anything about who you are as a person. “Just imagine, being attacked and scrutinised, after you’ve endured family loss, baby loss and two years of uncertainty, all whilst trying to uphold a public image and maintain the professional pressures in your workplace. “Just remember, we are all human. We read, see and hear things. No ones (sic) perfect and it’s the imperfections that make us who we are and allow us to grow and learn from our mistakes. We’re all human beings and we all have feelings. “But most importantly, we all have hearts and this man has the biggest, kindest, most caring heart anyone would be lucky to ever come across.” After removing her comments, McMahon issued a new post saying in part: “Hi all, apologies for my earlier post. “I’ve felt the pressure throughout the last two weeks, along with being heavily pregnant and Cam being away in rehab for another three weeks. “I should know not to vent online and I’d hate for anyone to think that I’m making excuses for Cam’s behaviour. “I’m not. I know he’s stuffed up. I also know this isn’t the first time he’s misbehaved. “I know that the media has a job to do and that’s understandable. “After all that’s happened over the last two weeks, I just want to focus on the fact that he’s actually taking this time to become a better man, a better partner and a better footballer. “He has a massive heart and I know he’s going to come out of this better and stronger in every way.” In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Mail in December 2018, Munster first revealed his private battle with booze. It came after he was sent home from Australia’s 2017 World Cup campaign following a drunken altercation with Origin and Test teammate Ben Hunt at a Darwin pub. Munster has been working with Melbourne psychologist Jacqui Louder for the past four years. He said at the time Louder, who helped organise Munster’s stint in rehab, has saved his NRL career. “I’ve had a difficult relationship with alcohol in the past,” Munster said in the interview. “Alcohol had become an issue. It was an outlet and it was a worry that I felt a lot better when I was drinking. “I thought that I had dealt with the issue, but clearly I still have some hurdles to overcome. “I’ve had fans and members of the general public abusing me and just giving it to me (over the years). “I was happy to cop some of it but some other stuff I copped privately went a bit too far. “When you are going well, you have a lot of people jumping on the bandwagon, but it’s interesting to see who your friends are when your back is against the wall. “Unfortunately, that’s the world we live in these days with social media.” Following the NRL’s punishment on Tuesday, Munster vowed to confront his demons. “I know I’ve let a lot of people down and I’ll do whatever it takes to restore your faith in me,” he said. “Hopefully you’ll see by my actions, that I am dedicated to change. “I want the kids out there to know that my behaviour was not OK. I owe it to you to be a better role model, and I’ll strive to do that in future.”