Karmichael Hunt goes rah-rah
EXCLUSIVE By Matt Marshall | July 02, 2009 12:00am
BRONCOS star Karmichael Hunt will play rugby union next year because of his burning desire to experience a new culture overseas.
The 22-year-old fullback is set to venture to a rugby union club in England, France or Japan in 2010 with girlfriend Emma Harding and his puppy, bulldog Buddha.
"The thought of going overseas is appealing to me now that I am happily settled with Emma," Hunt said.
"The life experience overseas is definitely appealing. I've been at home all my life, I've been in Brisbane for half of it. We're a couple who like to experience different cultures and enjoy new experiences so going abroad would satisfy that hunger."
Breaking his silence on the reasons behind his imminent exit from Red Hill, which he will officially announce after Origin III, Hunt has quashed reports he is disillusioned in the NRL.
But he declared there were no guarantees he would ever return to Brisbane, a club that long earmarked him as a logical captaincy successor to champion Darren Lockyer.
"I'm in a wonderful position where I have the ability to play at the elite level in other sports which are played internationally," he said.
Hunt rejected the notion his exit was directly related to his involvement in last September's infamous Broncos sex scandal and its ugly fallout.
He has found contentment in his personal life in 2009 after mending his relationship with Harding after a soul-searching trip to his native Cook Islands last summer.
While shielding himself away from the public eye, he has played with trademark toughness and consistency throughout this season.
With his life back on track, the pair are looking forward to a new period in their lives abroad, meaning the star Bronco will also walk away from Queensland's history-making Origin side after game three.
"I've been lucky enough to have achieved a lot at a young age by playing over 100 NRL games, Test matches and State of Origin," Hunt said. "All these goals are what I set out to achieve as a 17-year-old.
"I'm very close (to announcing my future). It's just the time of the year that's not right for me to come out with my decision. I don't want to take the focus off Origin.
"When I make my decision it will be for the right reasons, doing the best thing for Emma, my family and I."
Having rejected Brisbane's final three-year, $1.25 million offer earlier this year, Hunt has since weighed up offers from the UK Super League and English, French and Japanese rugby.
