It seemed only fitting that a rugby league week which witnessed the strange and unspeakable antics of Joel Monaghan should end on yet another sour note. It is, of course, the rugby league way.
On Saturday, the Brisbane Broncos withdrew their offer to Queensland and Australian centre Greg Inglis that has seemingly sat on the table for months. It was believed a deal was done three months ago when it was widely reported that the former Storm centre had agreed to a two-year deal with Brisbane. Inglis was allowed to walk by the Melbourne Storm on compassionate grounds after seeking a release to follow his girlfriend to Brisbane. The Courier Mail, back in August, stated that “the long running Greg Inglis affair is over.”
They could not have been more wrong.
Since that apparent deal was reached, Inglis and the Melbourne Storm have argued over a $113,000 legal bill stemming from Inglis’s court case earlier this year where he faced domestic violence charges with the Storm stating Inglis owes the club at least $30,000. The Storm have refused to release Inglis until the bill is paid. As the bill will count against the salary cap, the Broncos have also refused to cover the legal costs.
In step South Sydney and the Anthony Mundine camp and all of a sudden the landscape changes dramatically.
Inglis did not report to Brisbane training this week despite the Storm removing barriers preventing same before it was reported that Inglis was considering a move to French rugby late last week. By Saturday afternoon Inglis was no longer a Bronco for the 2011 season with The Sun Herald reporting a move to South Sydney was “all but a done deal”. Allan Gainey, manager of Inglis, suggested in an interview on Triple M that South Sydney appeared to be the front runners.
It comes as no surprise that Inglis has left the Broncos in the lurch. That is the calling card of the Anthony Mundine-Khoder Nasser camp, a cadre that must surely be pleased they have got their claws into another big name. Money is all that matters to that crew; decency and personal integrity be damned. It was, of course, Mundine and Nasser who encouraged and then assisted the walkout of Sonny Bill Williams on the Bulldogs in 2008.
It seems almost certain a deal with the Rabbitohs has been completed with Bunnies owner Russell Crowe and Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest integral in luring Inglis to Redfern. Forrest is reported by The Daily Telegraph to have offered Inglis a third-party deal for over $100,000 a season as the ambassador of Generation One. Souths will supposedly then use the extra space created by an increased in the salary cap and the increase in the marquee player allowance to put together a back-ended deal suitable to Inglis, the club and the NRL.
The only winner out of this whole saga will be South Sydney. There is no doubt that Inglis is the Bunnies' biggest signing since luring Phil Blake from Manly in 1987, surpassing other recent big name purchases including Sam Burgess, Roy Asotasi, Craig Wing and Nigel Vagana.
If Inglis shows up fit and ready to play - something that clearly wasn’t the case this season with the Storm - he could push a team that has underperformed over the last four seasons to a Grand Final. Inglis has known nothing but success at all levels of the game and he is one of the elite players in the NRL when fired up and in condition.
South Sydney will still be without a quality halfback but they will have a three-quarter line that has scored a combined tally of 149 tries over the last three seasons. The projected starting three-quarter line of Inglis, Beau Champion, Nathan Merritt and Fetuli Talanoa have all scored double-figure tries in the last two seasons.
While South Sydney may win out of this Days of Our Lives like drama, none of the Brisbane Broncos, the Melbourne Storm, Greg Inglis or the NRL have come out on top.
Brisbane now has a plenty of cap room but nobody to spend it on. Inglis was the big name replacement for code-defector Israel Folau, a marquee signing that was expected to be an on-field plus as well as an off-field morale boost. The Broncos, a team accustomed to success, missed the finals for the first time since 1991 this year and were desperate to lure a big name player to restore that sense of entitlement that has nearly always existed at the club. Inglis is one of the biggest names in the game, an undeniable superstar with unparalleled athleticism in the NRL. His alleged signing had the Broncos as short as $8.00 at some betting shops. They should now be twice that quote as their roster does not appear to have improved much. And there simply isn’t a player on the open market at the level of Inglis.
The Storm have also lost out of this whole Inglis saga. There seems little doubt they were deceived by Inglis. Inglis was released on compassionate grounds so he could move to the same city as his fiancée. Those plans have clearly now changed with Inglis seemingly on his way to Sydney. The Storm will free themselves of the legal bill but are clearly embittered by the whole ordeal with chief executive Ron Gauci saying it was unlikely Inglis would ever play for the Storm again. Inglis had previously stated he one day hoped to return to the club.
The character of Greg Inglis has also been dragged into question and there is no doubt his popularity will plummet. Only the overly-optimistic, naive or delusional have any belief in club loyalty or even code loyalty in these days of full professionalism but there is at least an expectation that a man’s word is his bond and if an agreement is reached then an agreement is reached. Inglis deceived both the Storm and the Broncos and will wear the brunt of both fanbases over the coming seasons. His links with the Mundine-Nasser camp will also do little for his personal appeal to rugby league fans either.
The NRL have also suffered out of this prolonged quarrel. Little leadership has been shown by the game in settling the Inglis legal bill matter and the fact Inglis can turn his back on Brisbane after agreeing to terms is an indictment on the code and once again pushes the case for transfer-market reform.
Greg Inglis is a bona fide superstar. He is an athlete who could excel at any sport. South Sydney have had their premiership hopes boosted as the Broncos have had theirs shattered. But was it worth it? He is now a rugby league villain with major character issues who has burnt bridges at two clubs and done further damage to the game when it least needed it.