RUN RABBIT RUN: Beau Champion will play for the Melbourne Storm after being punted by Souths to make room for Greg Inglis. Picture: John Fotiadis Source: The Daily Telegraph
BEAU Champion is not filthy with the Rabbitohs. Some think he should be after he became South Sydney and Greg Inglis' sacrificial bunny but he is not.
Champion insists he left the Rabbitohs to join Melbourne on his own accord and did so to further his career under Craig Bellamy.
A Souths junior, who does not hesitate confessing his love for the Redfern-based club, Champion admits he was hurt when he was told he could look elsewhere with still a year left to run on his contract. But he knows rugby league is a business.
"Everyone knows how much I love the club," Champion said. "Every time I pulled that jersey on I gave it my all.
"As a kid my dream was to play for the Rabbitohs. I have accomplished that now and that is something that will always be with me.
"I always wanted to play my career out here but these days it is almost impossible to be a one-club man. It is just very difficult with the cap.''
Champion was told his future at the club was in doubt two weeks ago. He was pulled into the club's office and hit with a salary cap bombshell.
With Greg Inglis future at the club in doubt because he could not be fit under the NRL salary cap, he was told the club would have to shed a player and he was firmly in their sights.
"I was a bit hurt at first," Champion said. "They said 'Beau you can stay if you want this year but you are off at the end of the year. We can resign you but the amount of money you get won't be as good as you can get elsewhere'.''
Champion thought long and hard about what had been put to him. A superstar in the making, he knew he had plenty of options. He also knew he had to do the best by himself.
"It has been the biggest decision of my career," Champion said.
"But I basically had no choice. The decision I made was inevitable because of their situation.
"In the end, we just have too many players at the club and something had to give. Going forward, with six players off-contract, it was going to very hard to fit me under the cap at a price I could get elsewhere.
"When I sat back and thought about it, I really thought that I was going to be in the same position in six months."
In an ironic twist, Champion was the man who Russell Crowe used to make first contact with the Inglis.
When the Melbourne superstar's tenure at the Storm was thrown into doubt following the salary cap bombshell, Champion phoned his distant cousin Inglis at Crowe's request and told him of the club's interest in signing him.
Champion did not know that it was the phone call that would end his career with the Rabbitohs.
"They have an opportunity to have Greg and improve their chances of winning a comp. I am happy that Greg can stay in rugby league. I have no hard feelings at all towards him."
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