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The recent news that Sisa Waqa will be playing for the Canberra Raiders next year was heartbreaking for Melbourne Storm fans.
He is a fan favourite and as much as I hate to say it, it is clear as to why he would leave. Financial security was key and Melbourne knew it. They released him early, as he was initially contracted until the end of the 2015 season.
I’m frustrated and disappointed about announcements that players at your club will not be with you next season coming mid-season. While this is nothing new, as a fan it is starting to take its toll.
As fans we are meant to barrack for and love the team, not the individuals, but this is getting harder and harder to do when there appears to be a constant revolving door of players in and out of clubs.
The personalities of those players make you either love or hate a team.
Waqa is a great player for the Storm and was a vital member of their 2012 premiership winning team. I will miss watching him charge down the wing, taking sky-high grabs and diving over for game changing tries in purple.
You can’t hate a player for wanting to maximise their money making potential, and that is not what my problem is. It is the culture the NRL has around player signings. There are very few professional sporting codes around the world that announce player signings while that player is still competing for an opposing team and is in the middle of a push for finals glory.
When a player signs with another team I find myself not cheering for that player as much. If they don’t want to be with us next season, why should we want them to be with us in the present?
Maybe this one hurts more because the ‘Flying Fijian’ was my favourite player. Or maybe it’s because I’m sick and tired of clubs raiding other clubs lists for talent that they grew and deserve to reap the benefits of. Instead these players get offers that they simply can’t resist and off they go, often with their best football ahead of them.
Keeping Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk was a huge battle, and it is clear other potential stars will leave the Storm.
I would love to see the NRL take a stand and not allow clubs to release details of future signings. I understand this may not be a high priority for them at the moment, but I know many fans who are strongly against the current system.
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