James Schiller subjected to horrific online abuse despite Newcastle's stunning comeback win over Manly
Schiller had a mixed bag, with five errors, four missed tackles and gave away three penalties.
Starting at left centre to allow for the return of winger Greg Marzhew, Schiller looked lost out of position in the first half.
It saw Knights coach Adam O'Brien move him back to the right wing in the second period and the 23-year-old looked like a different player, finishing the night with a try, a try assist and four line breaks as Newcastle came back from a 16-0 half-time deficit to win the match 26-22 in golden point.
Over the moon after one of the great NRL comebacks, Schiller turned on his phone to see a barrage of hate, namely from one Instagram user who made vile threats towards the winger early in the second half.
'Count your days c*nt I will end your f***ing life,' they wrote in a message shared by Schiller to his Instagram.
The win did little to calm the fan down either, as he doubled down after full-time.
'Doesn't make up for it even though you won,' the fan continued.
'5 errors, 2 penalties, 1 six again and partridge in a pear tree I hope Dane (Gagai) jams his c**k down your throat and you choke and die.'
The threats were then addressed on Friday by O'Brien who labelled it 'worrying'.
'That is worrying,' O'Brien said.
'I want to protect them … and for him to go through that over a couple of errors … it's a game of footy.
'He's got a family. That's partly the reason why you do want to protect them. 'I think it's a societal problem, isn't it? It's not just football players who are getting that sort of stuff.
'I understand there is some legislation, and I think at the moment it's in the hands of authorities to try and help in this situation with James.
'We need to be able to stop people doing it, change their thought process before doing it.
'I don't have social media but I know (the players) get it a fair bit.'
Police have the authority to charge individuals for threats made through social media.
In 2021, two men were charged after sending abusive or threatening messages to NRL star Latrell Mitchell on social media.
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