Craig Salvatori. Feud with Gus, losing his wife in the Bali bombings, and Salvo's Pub Crawl!

Craig Salvatori. Feud with Gus, losing his wife in the Bali bombings, and Salvo's Pub Crawl!

From Chiming In - Steve Gillis, Player Manager by FanaticsTV

July 23, 2026 · 53 min · Season 2 · Episode 54

About this episode

Craig Salvatori shares his experiences of grief, sports, and life after the Bali bombings.

Craig Salvatori was a mainstay of the Sydney Roosters front row through the late '80s and early '90s, racking up around 140 first grade games between the Roosters and a final season at South Sydney, three State of Origin appearances for the Blues alongside Laurie Daley, and a Roosters life membership this year that came with the club's Indigenous Round honour. He was also at the centre of one of Australian sport's most confronting personal stories: in October 2002, Salvatori lost his wife Kathy in the Bali bombings, and became an unlikely go-between for the Australian government's response on the ground, speaking daily with radio host Alan Jones and eventually meeting with then-Prime Minister John Howard. More than two decades on, he talks openly about grief, acceptance, and raising his daughters through it. It's not all heavy going, though — Salvatori also revisits the infamous headbutt that cost him a five-week suspension, a near-miss at a premiership in 1987, and a colonoscopy story that nearly blew up his marriage. And after 45 years as a builder, he's about to set off on "Salvo's Aussie Pub Crawl" — a year-long lap of the country's pubs with his wife and dog in tow. In this…

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