The woman who has accused former NRL player Tristan Sailoxjmtzywr of sexual assault claimed she woke up barely able to work out where she was and with her bed saturated in urine, a court has heard.
The District Court trial of Mr Sailor, 23, is drawing to a close, with a number of rugby league figures, including super coach Wayne Bennett, providing character references for the former St George Illawarra utility on Tuesday.
Crown prosecutor Jeffrey Tunks used his closing address to argue the woman, who cannot be named, was too drunk to consent and could not remember the incident.
The court has heard she spent the afternoon and evening drinking at a Mexican restaurant at a Bondi bar where she met up with Mr Sailor, before going back to her southern Sydney apartment on October 3, 2020.
Mr Sailor has pleaded not guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual assault, arguing he engaged in consensual sex with the woman after playing drinking games at the Wolli Creek unit.
Crown prosecutor Jeffrey Tunks read to the jury snippets of the woman’s testimony, where she said the last thing she remembered of the night was sitting on her couch drinking vodka drinks which had been poured by Mr Sailor.
Mr Tunks said she told the court: “I remember I was having, like, headspins.
“I felt really wobbly. I didn’t really have much control over any part of me.”
The court was told Mr Sailor met up with the woman at the Beach Road Hotel in Bondi, before they went back to her apartment with one of her friends and Mr Sailor’s teammate, Eddie Blacker.
The woman claims she did not consent to having sexual intercourse with Mr Sailor, the son of NRL great Wendell Sailor.
Mr Tunks told the jury that when asked about the first thing she recalled the next day, she said in evidence: “I woke up the next morning completely naked, 5.30-ish; I didn’t know what had happened.
“I barely knew where I was. I just remember I was in pain.
“And yeah, there were no sheets on my bed. One sheet was totally saturated with my urine and that’s when I called my ex that morning and I said I think I’ve been raped.”
Mr Tunks said: “The accused’s state of mind was such that he failed to consider whether or not (the woman) was consenting and went ahead with the sexual intercourse.
“Even though the risk that (the woman) was not consenting would have been obvious.”
Mr Sailor said during his testimony he didn’t believe the woman was drunk at the bar and instead had a bubbly demeanour.
The jury was played CCTV of the woman drinking at a Bondi Mexican restaurant during the evening, with Mr Tunks telling the court she did a fingernail of cocaine before leaving.
Mr Tunks told the court that after arriving at the pub around 5.55pm, the woman messaged a friend saying “I’m so lit I can’t function” and “I can’t even see straight”.
Earlier, Mr Bennett told the court that he had known Mr Sailor since his birth and took a great interest in the 23-year-old’s progress because of his connection to Mr Sailor’s father, whom he coached at Brisbane and St George Illawarra, and mother Tara.
Mr Bennett departed the Dragons in 2011 and hadn’t had much personal contact with Mr Sailor since then but had regularly asked fellow coaches and managers for reports on his behaviour and conduct.
“I wanted to make sure he was on the right track,” Mr Bennett told the court via audiovisual link.
“I always asked about him because I was terribly interested to make sure he was on the right track with his behaviour, particularly alcohol and drugs.
“And his respect and how he conducts himself on and off the football field.”
Asked about the reports he received back, Mr Bennett said: “I got constant feedback he’s a really decent young man. And had a great training ethic, always respectful, certainly wasn’t into alcohol or drugs in any way.
“None of those staff said he was doing either of those things other than having a few beers.”
Former Dragons coach Paul McGregor told the court that he had known Mr Sailor since he was 10 years old, spending time with him at least once a week before coaching him at the Dragons, where he handed him his NRL debut in 2019.
He described Mr Sailor as a “gentleman” who was involved in charity work.
Asked if he had ever seen him be violent or anti-social, Mr McGregor said: “No, as a professional athlete I was trying to get him to be more aggressive.”
Mr Sailor’s manager David Riolo told the court that in mid-2020 and with his contract expiring, he had pressed upon his client the importance of not being involved in off-field incidents.
He said at the time he had received interest from the Parramatta Eels and rugby union franchise the Melbourne Rebels and didn’t want possible negotiations affected by negative publicity.
The trial is due to conclude with the defence’s closing submissions on Wednesday.
