For SBW

[hugzy]

i know this topics gonna get quite a few replies, so im gonna create a separate more "for" SBW

ok i saw the interviews and not saying wat he did was right, but ihave to say i get how he feels now (obviously not exactly cuz i never been offered $500k)

firstly, i was PISSED when he left (cuz he was my 2nd round pick :roll
but theres ALWAYS 2 sideways to a story (lemme re-iterate, theres ALWAYS, 2 sides to a story), and i think the story is a bit more clearer now

obviously the media is a load of bs, but the interview gives me the impression that hes pretty clear headed and he was telling the truth (or his side of the story). from his view:

*he stayed loyal in 2004 and signed $400k instead of $1.2 mil (i forgot the exact figure he mentioned)

*then the examples he gave about Cleal and Hughes made him internatlise that it's just a business

*mason set that in stone

if i was in his shoes, i would be pretty f**king pissed as well

but then again ....

depends how much u been through in life i guess

 

[eastsrule]

I think he did the right thing for himself. Which he has every right to do.

However, he owed his teammates the courtesy of telling them he was leaving.

 

[Moffo]

loyal? f**k off dont ever mention loyal and him in the same sentence. do you know his history? he is a merkin of the highest order

 

[East Coast Tiger]

He makes some good points. There are people involved in the NRL and the NRL clubs that should hang their heads in shame at the way they treat players. It is a cancer that has grown and grown in the game ever since SL. Loyalty is dead. It shouldn't be, but it is. There are massive problems in the NRL and how it is run and there does need to be change. But we all knew that already. The thing that f**ks him up is that he says he is standing up for himself. But he isn't. He didn't stand up, he ran away. No one has heard from him in two weeks. That's not standing up for himself and other players. If he was fair dinkum he would have stayed and made an issue out of it with is club, with the NRL and with the RL public. But he didn't. He pissed off. What that shows is that he understands the problems but he doesn't really give a sh*t about the solutions like he says he does.

 

[hugzy]

ok after seeing the footyshow responses and reading some of the rsponses in the other thread...

i think im the only one speaking for him...

 

[Knightmare]

SBW= Sellout Boy Wonder.

 

[bartman]

I know understand (instead of just guess or presume) that SBW is so far up his own arse it's not's funny.

His reasons might make sense in SBW world, but sounded like a whole bunch of bullsh*t from a child-man who has been hoodwinked by one of the best self-hype merchants around.

Thanks Sonny, and piss off into obscurity now.

 

[eastsrule]

ok after seeing the footyshow responses and reading some of the rsponses in the other thread...

i think im the only one speaking for him...

I will speak for him.

You will find that if he had gone to a French RL club, a lot of people on this forum wouldn't be so aggressive.

Whilst I don't believe SBW gave all the reasons why he left and why he chose that time to leave, he mentioned Tana Umaga. Having a few Samoan/NZ friends, I know he is a HUGE role model. I actually believe Tana would have been a huge influence on SBW if he was in his ear which Kearney has come out and said may have happened.

 

[sass]

even assuming everything you say is true - that sbw learned that footy isn't about loyalty, it's about business, I still don't respect his choice.

if it IS a business, he has shown no integrity in business. he's walked out on his contract and hoped to avoid the consequences by running off overseas and threatening to challenge the salary cap.

he's run out on his obligations and acted like a child.

 

[eastsrule]

even assuming everything you say is true - that sbw learned that footy isn't about loyalty, it's about business, I still don't respect his choice.

if it IS a business, he has shown no integrity in business. he's walked out on his contract and hoped to avoid the consequences by running off overseas and threatening to challenge the salary cap.

he's run out on his obligations and acted like a child.

What about clubs that cut contracts for players due to injuries, poor form etc.

 

[OurRedV]

 

[mik01]

He makes some good points. There are people involved in the NRL and the NRL clubs that should hang their heads in shame at the way they treat players. It is a cancer that has grown and grown in the game ever since SL. Loyalty is dead. It shouldn't be, but it is. There are massive problems in the NRL and how it is run and there does need to be change. But we all knew that already. The thing that f**ks him up is that he says he is standing up for himself. But he isn't. He didn't stand up, he ran away. No one has heard from him in two weeks. That's not standing up for himself and other players. If he was fair dinkum he would have stayed and made an issue out of it with is club, with the NRL and with the RL public. But he didn't. He pissed off. What that shows is that he understands the problems but he doesn't really give a sh*t about the solutions like he says he does.

so what was he supposed to do against the legal might of the dogs and the nrl?
they made it very clear before he left that there was no way out of the contract and that if he didn't like it - too bad.
its all well and good to say he should have stuck around and fought, but his legal advice said different - I'd be trusting my lawyer rather than some romantic notion of 'honour' and 'loyalty'.

ps - he did approach the club about his problems and issues. I believe the Dogs couldn't do anything if they tried - he was their only trump card after Willy etc left so had to shoulder all the promo crap, they couldn't pay him any more for the added responsibilities due to the cap, and the nrl didn't give a sh*t.
he is a young bloke that looked up to Mason, who told him to 'stay loyal' - so he did. then Mason does a 'runner' and he thinks - what is loyalty?

i can't wait to see Sonny playing for the All Blacks - he will be one of their greats if he can stay fit. shame he couldn't stay and play for a better nrl club though...

 

[no name]

What about clubs that cut contracts for players due to injuries, poor form etc.

But the player's who get cut don't turn up to training to find out the club has moved and no one told them.

The problem most people have with what he did was the way he went about it.

 

[sass]

What about clubs that cut contracts for players due to injuries, poor form etc.

the difference is knowing what you're getting into: you go into a contract with your eyes open. you know the number of years, when they can drop you, when you can leave.

sbw signed a contract knowing all that - not for three years, as they offered, but for five years because he requested it - and then decided he Just Didn't Like It.

he will cost the bulldogs and the nrl (and by extension all the other players in the club and the nrl) a fortune in the courts, and screw them for at least the medium term until the case is resolved, because he didn't like what he signed.

I know he's not the sharpest crayon in the box, but are you telling me he doesn't have to follow the same laws as everyone else?

 

[mik01]

What about clubs that cut contracts for players due to injuries, poor form etc.

exactly.

all this sh*t about loyalty honestly makes my guts churn.
clubs demand it from a player, but are quick to sh*t on them at a moments notice. what about the BS at newcastle when BS (Brian Smith) took over - where was the loyalty the club showed to players who still had games left in them?

the clubs have screwed players for years, and when it happens back - its the worst thing to ever happen

 

[Kiki]

there is NO EXCUSE for doing what he did. and the way he did it. i simply cannot believe anyone is apologising for his actions. especially him. it galls me beyond belief.

 

[[furrycat]]

A contract wont just end if a player is injured or something like that unless hes dumb enough to ptu that clause in there and sign it. If I sign a 3 year deal and injured for 2 years and play sh*t for 1, why should they resign me?

I have no beef with the reasons why SBW has left league and done what he has done. What irks me is the fact that he walked out on a contract. I'm not annoyed he has left, I'm annoyed at the way he left.

All this talk of other jobs that he went on about... bus drivers etc. A brickie doesn't stop building a house 10 mins into it because a bloke up the road offers him more money to build his house now. A bus driver doesn't stop driving his route half way through because a rival company says stop now and I'll pay you more. You finish what you started.

If he wanted out ,he should have talked to the club about it and found a way out. I have respect for the man and always will; but he went about this the wrong way

 

[mik01]

the difference is knowing what you're getting into: you go into a contract with your eyes open. you know the number of years, when they can drop you, when you can leave.

sbw signed a contract knowing all that - not for three years, as they offered, but for five years because he requested it - and then decided he Just Didn't Like It.

he will cost the bulldogs and the nrl (and by extension all the other players in the club and the nrl) a fortune in the courts, and screw them for at least the medium term until the case is resolved, because he didn't like what he signed.

I know he's not the sharpest crayon in the box, but are you telling me he doesn't have to follow the same laws as everyone else?

no you don't - the coach can relegate you to park footy just cos he doesn't like you. you as a player can't even get out of the contract and play first grade for someone else if the club doesn't let you. don't tell me it hasn't happened a few times cos it has.

the clubs have all the power and the player has none - unless he ups and leaves for another code.

 

[sass]

I'm not even talking about loyalty to his club as some special rugby league mojo that has to be observed.

I'm talking about sbw the same way I would talk about any other person who ran out like he did - of any obligations.

his dash is worse though for the fact the he has teammates that he also shafted. that's just tacky.

 

[eastsrule]

he will cost the bulldogs and the nrl (and by extension all the other players in the club and the nrl) a fortune in the courts, and screw them for at least the medium term until the case is resolved, because he didn't like what he signed.

They don't have to take it to the courts. And shouldn't. The money would be far better spent on junior rugby league, promoting matches and paying players.

I know he's not the sharpest crayon in the box, but are you telling me he doesn't have to follow the same laws as everyone else?

If any other person wanted to quit their job they have a notice period. RL players don't have any standard way out of their contracts, which they should be entitled to. Maybe that is a failure of the contract that every club uses (created by the NRL) or something. But it is a failure on the NRL players association part for not doing anything in this area.

As far as I'm concerned, the club didn't treat SBW well. If he was playing sh*t and didn't turn up to training, they'd be entitled to rip up his contract. However it is seemingly not okay for him to rip up the contract if the club don't treat him well?