Despite a horror year of off-field blows, Karmichael Hunt’s defection to AFL was probably the last thing rugby league expected.
While 2009 has seen the NRL lurch through a series of sex scandals, alcohol-fuelled benders, positive drug tests and the resignation of four club chief executives, losing a player to Aussie rules has never really been on the radar.
But now the game has lost a player to a code preparing to challenge NRL’s dominance in the Gold Coast and western Sydney markets – and not just any player.
Despite being 22, Hunt has already won a premiership with Brisbane, played over 100 senior games, 10 State of Origin and 11 Tests for Australia.
His decision to join the new AFL franchise on the Gold Coast is a watershed for both codes.
For the past decade league has had to endure rugby union cherry-picking its top talent, but AFL poses a completely new threat.
Hunt says the switch is all about a new challenge, but the reality is money talks at contract time and the AFL has more cash to throw at players than NRL.
And it seems rugby league will have to find alternatives to money to ward off future raids by AFL scouts, with a general agreement funds just aren’t there to lift the NRL’s salary cap any further.
“I know that’s an impossible dream, the money in that regard is not in our game,” Brisbane chief executive Bruno Cullen said on Wednesday.
“The only compensation you could gain would be through third-party agreements.
“We can’t compete against the dollars. I don’t know what K’s contract is but I know the money in AFL that players want certainly exceeds what we can pay.”
Manly coach Des Hasler agreed with Cullen about the salary cap and suggested it was time for NRL’s powerbrokers to consider how the game will recruit new talent in the future.
He said the proposed AFL franchise in the rugby league heartland of Sydney’s western suburbs would only further heighten tensions between the two codes.
“Sydney’s only going to grow west, just the population and the number of young players that are out there, that are looking for a career path in sport,” Hasler said.
“It’s a real battle of the codes at the moment.
“People have asked me is it possible to increase the salary cap? I don’t know if that’s the answer. It’s hard to increase the salary cap when there’s no money to pay.
“I just think now … it is well and truly gloves off.”
But it’s not gloves off as far as NRL chief executive David Gallop is concerned.
Gallop issued a brief statement before heading to Singapore for a three-day meeting of international rugby league powerbrokers where he tried to play down concerns about Hunt’s defection to AFL.
“Karmichael has been looking for a change for some time and we wish him luck in finding what he is looking for,” Gallop said.
“This is an individual decision, the sky is not falling – only a week ago we had (Wallaby centre) Timana Tahu coming back to rugby league.”
While Cullen admitted losing a talent like Hunt was a blow to the Broncos, he said rugby league had shown its resilience in the past when high-profile players headed to rugby union or overseas and would do so again.
“I don’t see it as a serious threat, but it shows it could happen and we might lose one or two players over one or two years,” the Broncos boss said.
“It’s a fair whack out of our club and our code and a great coup for the AFL I suppose.”
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