An alleged violent assault in Young last October saw Talimalie – who played Group 10 Rugby League for Orange Hawks in the recently-concluded 2018 season –  charged with five criminal offences, including recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and affray. 

He was originally granted bail by the Supreme Court ahead of his January 21, 2019 trial date, but was arrested on July 21 after he was caught in a licenced premises against his strict bail conditions.  

After Talimalie’s bail application was knocked back in Wagga Local Court in July, he then lodged two more applications for release with the District and Supreme courts.

However, when he fronted Wagga District Court on Thursday via video-link from a Bathurst cell, Judge Jennifer English said Talimalie’s decision to lodge two release applications was a “waste of the court’s time”. 

Defence solicitor David Barron explained he had doubled up on applications in hopes to make the Group 10 finals with the Orange Hawks.

“He’s got the application before your honour today and then, I suppose as a back-up, the Supreme Court release application next Tuesday,” Mr Barron said.

“My client is a football player, and he was hoping to be in the grand final, but his team didn’t make the final, so the urgency has dropped off.”

Orange Hawks’s premier league side, for which Talimalie starred at halfback, were eleimited from the Group 10 competition when they were defeated by Bathurst Panthers on Sunday, September 2.

Crown prosecutor Lisa Hanshaw said that, since it was a breach of his Supreme Court bail conditions that landed him back in custody, his release should be left to the Supreme Court to decide.

“It is for the Supreme Court to determine whether of not his flagrant disregard of their conditions should be not overlooked but given a second chance, so to speak,” Ms Hanshaw said.

Judge English agreed, ultimately declining to hear his application for release.

Talimalie will appear before Sydney Supreme Court on Friday.