I don’t know how much money Todd Carney has made from rugby league, but had he been a cleanskin it would have been much, much more.
Why do I bring this up? Because of St George Illawarra’s decision to sign Ben Hunt on a long-term deal understood to be worth close to $1 million a year.
Good luck to Hunt. When it comes to the crunch, you’re effectively worth whatever some club is prepared to pay to get you, but in reality Hunt is not a $1 million a year player.
He’s a good player, possibly a very good player, but not a great player.
All things are relative and Hunt was in the right place at the right time. For a while there, the Dragons refused to pay big money for the halves player they obviously so desperately needed, but in the end reality bit so hard they simply had to react.
So the club that offered Benji Marshall $300,000 to re-sign for a year and wasn’t prepared to offer much more for others finally went in hard for someone – Hunt.
They won’t actually get him until next year, but hey, better late than never.
Carney was one of the players the Dragons passed on, and you can understand that.
It had nothing to do with his ability as a player. He’s a tremendous footballer, but his track record away from the field is a massive turn-off and apart from that there was no guarantee the NRL would allow him to be registered to play this season.
There was absolutely no chance the Dragons were going to get Hunt this year, but when they finally decided to splash out they chose to zero in on him anyway.
Carney, meanwhile, is returning to Super League in the UK to play with the Salford Red Devils.
It obviously wasn’t his preference. He was desperate to return to the NRL this season and was also hoping to have his wrongful dismissal wrangle with Cronulla sorted out.
But he isn’t returning to the NRL – and probably never will, when you consider he’s now 30 – and the legal matter with the Sharks still hasn’t been finalised.
Carney, the 2010 Dally M Player of the Year, is a better player than Hunt. Not by a long distance, but he’s a better player. But Hunt isn’t weighed down by a history of off-field dramas, while Carney has a rap sheet as long as your arm.
Rugby league is still a forgiving sport, but not nearly as forgiving as it used to be and that is the most important thing young players have to learn these days.
Repeat offenders do so at the risk of being shut out of the NRL for good, eventually.
That is unfortunate for Carney, but he had plenty of chances to learn. He ignored the writing on the wall until it was too late. Players don’t have a long shelf-life playing a game that is incredibly hard on their bodies.
Carney, at his age, should be a very important player in a leading NRL team and earning a huge amount of money. Perhaps if he had pulled his head in when he still had the chance he would’ve been a premiership winner with the Sharks last season.
Instead, he hasn’t played in the NRL since 2014, having been moved on by Canberra, Sydney Roosters and finally Cronulla.
Hunt, meanwhile, will next year move into the top bracket of earners, on a five-year deal with a one-option.
Turning 28 shortly after next season begins, the worst thing he has done is break curfew at a Queensland State of Origin emerging players’ camp last year. He has kept his nose clean since.
The biggest lesson for NRL players is also the simplest: stay out of trouble – and if you do get into trouble then, whatever you do, don’t become a repeat offender.
It could cost you a fortune.
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