The lawyer at the centre of a sex scandal with All Blacks star Aaron Smith has told of her mother’s ‘disappointment’ at what she perceived as her daughter’s lack of ‘class’.
Bridget Morton made headlines in August when a series of salacious text messages showing the rugby champion asking her for sex were revealed by Daily Mail Australia.
An investigation by New Zealand rugby this week found Smith covered up the extent of his affair with Ms Morton in a disabled toilet at Christchurch Airport in mid-2016.
Speaking out in the wake of the NZ Rugby’s investigation, Ms Morton claims she only wanted to ‘tell the truth’ while also revealing her embarrassment at having to explain the affair to her mother.
Bridget Morton (pictured), the lawyer at the centre of the controversial sex scandal with All Blacks star Aaron Smith, has told of her mother’s ‘disappointment’ at the incident
Smith (pictured with girlfriend Teagan Voykovich) was suspended for one game over the 2016 incident but New Zealand Rugby ordered an independent investigation into the affair
Revealing the backlash she had faced since coming clean with her story, Ms Morton told the New Zealand Herald one of the hardest parts was telling her family.
‘Mum was disappointed it happened in a bathroom, she felt it wasn’t classy,’ she said.
‘I went through hell last year with all the lies… which had horrendous consequences for me.
‘I am happy this is out in the open now – I’d rather be hated for telling the truth.’
Left angry about the All Blacks halfback’s decision lie about the romance, Ms Morton claims she wanted to come clean without getting Smith into strife.
‘I never wanted him to get into trouble, I just wanted him to tell the truth,’ she said.
Despite being banned for one game over the incident, an independent investigation was ordered by NZ Rugby after Daily Mail Australia’s revelations earlier this year.
As a result Smith was dealt a formal warning for ‘inconsistencies’ after lying about the sex scandal and attempting to force Ms Morton to sign a false legal document.
‘Mum was disappointed it happened in a bathroom, she felt it wasn’t classy,’ Ms Morton said this week
Messages between Smith and Ms Morton before, during and after their romance were revealed by Daily Mail Australia earlier this year
Ms Morton told Daily Mail Australia that the outcome of the investigation had ‘little relevance’ to her
The investigation found Smith lied to New Zealand Rugby officials and coach Steve Hansen about the encounter with Ms Morton.
It was concluded ‘there were some inconsistencies’ between Smith’s account at the time and the later information but ‘this did not have any material impact on the outcome of the original hearing’.
‘Being honest, particularly in a disciplinary proceeding, is critically important for any employer and that is certainly the case with NZR,’ NZR chief executive Steve Tew said.
‘To reinforce this point, we have issued Aaron Smith with a formal written warning.’
The romp took place in a disabled toilet while he was travelling with the team after a test match against South Africa in Christchurch.
The investigation was carried out by an independent lawyer and found the 28-year-old player lied to New Zealand Rugby staff including general counsel Keith Binnie
An independent investigation was carried out into the affair between the star halfback and Ms Morton after explosive new details were revealed by Daily Mail Australia
The investigation found Smith lied to New Zealand Rugby officials and coach Steve Hansen about the encounter with Ms Morton
Smith pressured the woman into signing a false affidavit saying the pair did not have sex in order to save his career and his relationship with his girlfriend Teagan Voykovich.
Now, Ms Morton has told Daily Mail Australia that although the outcome of the investigation was of ‘little relevance’ to her.
‘It wasn’t what happened at the airport that was an issue, it was the lies that were told afterwards that I wasn’t okay with.
‘I had nothing to hide so if Aaron had just told the truth from the start there would have been no problem, it really wasn’t a big deal.
‘The lie was unnecessary. As for the penalty for misleading the NZR, it’s odd, but I didn’t want Aaron to be punished, I just wanted him to tell the truth’
It happened in a disabled toilet while Smith was travelling with the team after a test match against South Africa in Christchurch
The mesages also show Smith lied to All Blacks coach Steve Hansen and the public about what happened in the disabled toilet cubicle
Smith was suspended for one game by the All Blacks as a result of the toilet tryst
Ms Morton said her concerns grew from the way she was portrayed by his misinformation and that his lie was ‘essentially a false sexual violation allegation’.
‘The issue is that this lie implied that the contact was un-consensual or “rapey”. That obviously had a huge snowball affect on me and my family,’ she said.
‘If a woman makes a false rape allegation in NZ they get charged. It’s serious. It needs to be taken seriously when a man does the same.’
She is calling for NZR to pay her legal fees and says issues are still being resolved by her lawyers, but those details are confidential.
‘This investigation was for their benefit and would have been unnecessary if I was listened to when I tried to voice my concerns last year.
‘The NZR’s review into the incident was an employment issue between Aaron and the NZR. My involvement was for evidentiary purposes only,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
At the time Smith was snapped, he said he had made a ‘huge mistake, a huge error in judgement’
Ms Morton and Smith first became intimate in 2014, two years before their toilet tryst
Messages revealed by Daily Mail Australia show that their liaison wasn’t a one-off, but was part of an ongoing relationship
She co-operated with New Zealand Rugby as part of the investigation, providing messages shared between her and Smith.
Those salacious Facebook messages show Smith begged Ms Morton for sex in parks, for ‘good luck’ sex before games and asked her to sign a false affidavit to go along with his fabricated version of events, a request she refused.
The investigation was carried out by an independent lawyer and found the 28-year-old player lied to New Zealand Rugby staff including general counsel Keith Binnie.
Smith’s powerful agent Warren Alcock had been pushing for the result of the investigation to be made confidential.
Upon re-opening the investigation into the affair, New Zealand Rugby said in a statement they ‘believe that it needs to investigate the Aaron Smith matter further’
Facebook messages between the two show Smith initiating their bathroom meeting, suggesting a ‘special toilets f**k’, saying they had to be ‘sneaky’ as other All Blacks were around
At the time Smith was snapped, he said he had made a ‘huge mistake, a huge error in judgement’, and the All Blacks management decided to suspend him for one game as punishment.
Messages revealed by Daily Mail Australia show that their liaison wasn’t a one-off, but was part of an ongoing relationship.
They also show Smith lied to All Blacks coach Steve Hansen and the public about what happened in the disabled toilet cubicle.
Ms Morton and Smith first became intimate in 2014, two years before their toilet tryst.
‘When we got caught he lied about what had happened and asked me to stick to the story he had told his new girlfriend and coach, which essentially put the blame on me,’ Ms Morton said
After footage of the pair leaving the toilet was leaked to the media, Smith frantically messaged Ms Morton to get her onside with his version of events
Smith tried to convince the woman to agree with his made-up version of what happened between the two
Facebook messages between the two show Smith initiating their bathroom meeting, suggesting a ‘special toilets f**k’, saying they had to be ‘sneaky’ as other All Blacks were around.
After footage of the pair leaving the toilet was leaked to the media, Smith frantically messaged Ms Morton to get her onside with his version of events.
‘He asked me to go along with his story which he had told both his girlfriend and his management, he had said that I saw him at the airport and I asked him to talk in the bathroom about my boyfriend, but I didn’t have a boyfriend at that time, that was just something he made up,’ she said.
Smith told the woman only his coach Steve Hansen had been approached about the incident while hoping it did not leak to the media
Smith begged the woman to pick him up before games, and to send pictures of herself to him
Smith’s partner Teagan Voykovich has stood by Smith throughout the scandal
Smith’s partner Teagan Voykovich has stood by Smith throughout the scandal.
‘When we got caught he lied about what had happened and asked me to stick to the story he had told his new girlfriend and coach, which essentially put the blame on me,’ Ms Morton said.
‘He just told me if anyone asks to say nothing, but if I have to then to just go along with that story, which I wasn’t happy about because it made me look like more easily attainable than what I am.’
Upon re-opening the investigation into the affair, New Zealand Rugby said in a statement they ‘believe that it needs to investigate the Aaron Smith matter further and has instructed an independent lawyer to do so’.
Smith asked the woman to sign a false affidavit, asking her to send one to him