Photography: Phillip Castleton
Former All Whites player Clayton Lewis and ex-Newshub journalist Narelle Sindos have come a long way in two years. They have new jobs, a new community and will soon be married in front of 50 of their loved ones in Bali.
Speaking exclusively to Woman’s Day, they’re opening up for the first time since their world imploded in May 2024, when police stormed their Sydney apartment while they were sleeping. They were there to arrest Olympian and football star Clayton, 29, on a betting corruption charge related to a December 2023 match he played for Macarthur FC.
“They were banging on our door at 6am, yelling that they had a search warrant,” recalls Clayton.
“As soon as I opened the door, I got flung back and was pinned up against the wall in my undies. I thought it was just a big misunderstanding. I said, ‘You must be looking for the previous tenant,’ and then they said my name.”
The incident at the centre of the case
He was being arrested for intentionally getting a yellow card to influence betting on the game. He was asked to do this on the day of the match by his team’s captain, Ulises Dávila, for $10,000. Dávila was later sentenced for “facilitating and engaging in conduct that corrupts the betting outcome of an event”.
Clayton says, “He was someone I knew really well, who helped me come to the club here and who I looked up to a lot. I felt targeted, but at the end of the day, I still said yes and made the mistake myself. It’s something I fully regret.”
The Wellington-born athlete believes he was chosen because he’d developed a gambling habit in Australia.
I had no idea of the severity
He says, “If I’d been asked days prior, it could’ve been a different outcome, but a few hours before the game, when you have an addiction, it’s tough to process. My whole thing was, ‘Oh, it’s just a yellow card – I get them normally anyway.’ I had no idea of the severity. I had no idea there were other bets placed on the game elsewhere.”
Speaking to us from their new home in the southern Sydney suburb of Cronulla, Narelle, 31, recalls the day of the arrest.
“I thought it wasn’t real, like we were being scammed or robbed. Then they sat us down like they do in the movies and said, ‘Clayton Lewis, you’re under arrest.’ They searched the place and took Clay away in handcuffs.”
The former sports journalist says she knew nothing about Clayton’s involvement in the scandal until police arrived that morning. It was hours before she’d know more.
“They took my phone and laptop, so I had to wait until 9am for the mall to open to buy a phone. Then I walked around Parramatta, where we lived, until I found a lawyer.”
The immediate fallout
The fallout was rapid and serious, she recalls.
“When we got home that day, Clay had an email of suspension from Football Australia, we had the apartment eviction notice and his bank accounts got closed.”
But the biggest blow came next, when Narelle’s career as a freelance football presenter and reporter came in the firing line.
She recalls, “I was meant to present the Euros, which was quite a big contract for me. Then I had a message from HR and I basically lost my job.”
This, says Clayton, was the worst consequence of all.
“I messed up. Do whatever you want to me, but for it to affect her role as well, that’s what hurt the most throughout the whole thing. Her career was what brought us together.”
The sentencing and outcome
Clayton was sentenced last year to a two-year community release order, meaning he has no formal conviction on record. The magistrate cited psychological reports of a gambling addiction provided by the athlete’s defence. He ordered Clayton to continue psychiatric treatment for addiction and to pay $10,000 in penalties.
“In New Zealand, gambling is easily kept to a minimum because there’s only so many things you can do, but in Sydney, it’s next level,” Clayton says.
“Here, you go to any pub or corner bar, and you’ve got the pokies and TABs. When you’re celebrating a win, all it takes is for someone to suggest a couple of drinks and suddenly you’re all in, then things spiral.”
Clayton has completed his psychiatric treatment and says gambling is now in his past. Asked why she stuck by him, Narelle explains, “I knew it was bad and it was quite severe, but everyone makes mistakes. It was just a shame that this one was on the big stage and it impacted us both. But we got through it together.”
While she does miss working in the media, Narelle’s found silver linings.
Life outside football
“It’s kind of nice not being in that football world, where he’s away every second weekend and can’t go to weddings or 30th birthdays with me. I couldn’t imagine having kids while he was still playing and going away all the time.”
After a surprise proposal near Disneyland, the couple was supposed to get married last year but postponed it due to the charges. They say the struggles have made them stronger and they can’t wait to tie the knot in Bali next year, in front of lots of Kiwi guests.
Narelle now works in marketing, while Clayton is a warehouse assistant team leader. They’ve also discovered a new sport together.
“We’ve found an escape in golf,” says Clayton.
A place to reset
“We went to the golf course, where no one bothered us and no one asked questions. It was our way of being able to spend time together outside, actually talk about things and get angry at the golf ball. Since then, we’ve basically played every week.”
Asked who supported him the most throughout the ordeal, Clayton becomes visibly upset.
“Easily Narelle,” he says through tears.
“I told her a couple of months afterwards that I’d fully understand if she wanted to go. I wanted her to still be able to have her career. I fully understood if it was without me, but the fact that she’s still here… I owe her everything.”
If you or someone you love is struggling with a gambling addiction, please phone 0800 654 655, text 8006 or visit gamblinghelpline.co.nz.
