Ben Cross=new signing?

Quote: LS16_Rhino "It's now becoming a bit of the norm now for top draw Aussie players to finish their careers in SL, why is that do you think?

Eastwood was the exception but from the 3 year contract he signed with us how many games did we get out of him and where is he now?

There's even talk of Matt Orford not returning to the Bulls after his convalescence in Oz and also that Darren Lockyer wants to finish his playing days in SL. Why do you think that is?

I remember watching the Footie Show’s tribute to ‘retiring’ players which included Buderus and Menzies.

The Australian media see a move to SL as a Players Retirement Home. I find it hard to see it any other way either.'"

I don't disagree with any of that. There are several reasons why only a few top drawer players from down under finish their careers in SL. Financial incentive/retirement pension top-up - though this is becoming less so now given the slump in exchange rates. Consequently, we are more likely to witness the signing of average overseas players instead like Brett Delaney and Ben Cross. Another reason is to prolong one's playing career in a less intense playing environment.

There has been very few top drawer marquee players from down under in SL during their prime anyhow. I can only think of Jamie Lyon and that was due to exceptional personal circumstances which necessitated him getting away as far as possible from Parramatta. Trent Barrett is arguably another, though I still consider his best years were already behind him. Matt King is ok but overrated - I don't recall other NRL clubs scrambling for his signature alongside Warrington. Others like Danny Buderus, Steven Menzies, Bradley Clyde, Brett Mullins, Matt Orford, etc, were already well past their best.

I'm no longer an advocate of SL or summer rugby. Playing standards have stagnated domestically resulting in us becoming less competitive at international level. We produce hardly any world class players of note because SL clubs are always looking for a quick fix and that means signing average or over-the-hill overseas players. Any player we produce with the potential to become world class ends up stagnating at a domestic playing level in competition with predominantly 100+ overseas players who are not, or no longer considered quite good enough for the NRL. Our current crop of top players like Peacock and others complain about playing too many fixtures and the short off-seasons when pre-SL the likes of Schofield, Crooks, Hanley, Connolly, Davies, Ward, Lydon, Edwards et al played a lot more domestic games as well as guesting stints in the Winfield Cup during the UK domestic off-season. Similarly, our domestic clubs had the opportunity to sign top drawer Aussies and Kiwis on a similar basis during their off-season. We also had proper international tours.

The entire SL-era has redefined the ordinary and screwed the game's integrity from top to bottom. No amount of broadcasting hype from the paymasters at Sky will alter that either.

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