There seems to be a lot of Burgess envy by NRL fans.
To be clear;
I am strictly a NRL fan.
I do not rate English Super League as highly as the NRL as a competition because the player depth is shallow and genuine quality more scarce when compared to the NRL.
However, I do rate Sam Burgess. You are either blind or stupid to not rate this kid. I do not care if he has a shocker in the final. He is the biggest thing to enter a league forward pack since SBW. I do not care that he is a pom playing in a lesser comp - with the right mentoring and prevention of homesickness he will show shine in the NRL. I am convinced. 2 years ago he monstered Fuifuimoimoi and I do not think he has stepped backwards.
To grow in popularity with youth the game needs superstars. Not just in Australia but England too. It does not matter that the superstars are not Australian, does it?
Sam Burgess is no Greg Inglis in superstar quality, yet. But I hope he develops into one. We need kids in England wanting to be the next Sam so they do not join Union. This will improve the standard of English league, thus the international standard. Ellery Hanley and Adrian Morley (when not suspended) displayed great feats in the Australian competition and I hope Sam Burgess does too.
Not every kid can run the 100 metres in 10.7 seconds flat or better. So superstar forwards are required as well. The likes of Fuifui, Hannant, Taylor, Burgess, Mason (3 years ago) are needed to encourage slower kids from playing union and keep the game popular and interesting.
Critics know it is true that the work of the Kevin Campion, Sam Thaiday, Andrew Ryan, Lance Thompson, Dallas Johnson, Bryan Fletcher, Nathan Hindmarsh is under rated and under valued to the game changing highlight reel creating likes of Burgess, Lauititi, Taylor, Fui, and SBW. But we need those highlights. Lets celebrate them all, no matter what country they come from. Because if we do not, union will be more successful in pinching them and destroying them.
