Very few if any can be away from the NRL for 2 or more years and come back as good as they were before let alone late in their career.
Carney is just like Benji past their best and on the slide before they exited the NRL and Benji never came back and neither will Carney.
Hutch deserves his chance and how could he actually have done any more to earn it?
How do you know he's on the slide OT? He looks just as hungry as ever to me and barring injuries he was playing very well for Catalans. I think that a full off-season behind his belt and he'd thrive. And for the record Benji had an excellent year in 2015, he was actually tied second in the Dally M standings.
I also refuse to engage in this shit about his age. So many spine players are in that age bracket, even older, and are killing it.
James Maloney is 30, he just played for Australia and is in the form of his career. The NSW halfback.
Cooper Cronk is 32, just won the Dally M Medal.
Johnathan Thurston is 33, don't really need to add much to that.
Robbie Farah is 32, as much as he's a goose he's still a very good player.
Michael Ennis is 32, just played the year of his career and was instrumental in his side making and winning the GF.
Pretty much every game that Hutch has played in First Grade, people have said that he's not up to it. Seriously I was sitting on Facebook groups for the Dragons during live games he was playing and nearly everybody was on his back saying he's not First Grade standard. I watched most Cutters games this year and he definitely didn't set the world alight. His best game was the Grand Final. I just want to avoid a scenario where in case Hutch fails, who do we turn to? It will be another year or testing and trailing halves like the whole Chase Stanley, Nathan Fien debacle.
At least if Carney fails, we can turn to Hutchison.