Reckon the ink is dried unless Mr Crowe wants to buy out his contract..

James Packer (worth over $7 billion) looks like investing in Souths. Maybe Russell and him are thinking about it?

It is to be hoped that Samuel Ignatius Theophorus Burgess returns to gods game real soon, da ya hear?

Where Sam plays will come down imo how quickly he learns to ruck and maul and a couple of other skills. IMO the 2 positions he'd be best suited to, is like you say open-side flanker and also No 8.
By and large the No 8's job is to tackle, get over the gain line and support the backs, which is what Sam is great at and he's decent with his hands which the best No 8's are. I also don't think he'd after lose any of his muscle mass for that role.
The best Open-side Flankers like Neil back and Richie McCaw, were/are renowned for being literally everywhere on the pitch, getting the turnover at rucks and tackles and also being on the shoulder of the man with the ball in attack. Basically they are generally a pain in the to the opposition. It might take longer for Sam to pick up some of those skills. Personally I think it would be slightly easier transition for him at No 8. Although I can see the benefits of Sam at Open-side.

It wouldn't surprise me at all if Sam picks up the relevant RU skills up quite quickly and becomes a very good RU player, the dudes got it all. How long he stops and if he comes back is anyones guess.

Well we already know Sam has the squirrel nut squeeze in his dirty tricks repertoire, when he's added head butting, gouging, stamping on fingers, raking defenceless opposition players with his studs and punching someone from behind he'll be well on his way to being a proper Rugby Union player

Samuel Burgess has a family in Australia -- a mother and three brothers! It is inevitable that he will want to return to his family in Coogee and play for South Sydney after his jaunt with rugby union becomes very boring in year 3 of his contract. Also he will never forget the high of winning the NRL Grand Final and the Clive Churchill medal in 2014 in front of nearly 84,000 adoring fans.

He's only moved to union for the cash and to experience what it's like to beat the aussies.........he'll be back soon enough.

Didn't they allow any Canterbury fans into the Stadium for the Grand Final?

Hang on... are you suggesting that not everyone in Australia simply adores Samuel and the rest of the Burgess family?

My info is that should Australia ever loosen its ties to the mother country apron by choosing their own head of state, it could be Samuel... or King Samuel I.

If he does well and becomes a regular member off the England team then he will be in with a shout of a place in the 2017 British Lions tour and I doubt that he would say no to a chance of taking on the All Blacks in New Zealand. Plus would he want to go back to playing in front of 20,000 crowds in Hull, Huddersfield and Wigan when he can be playing in front of 50-80,000 crowds in London, Paris and Edinburgh?

A well baited hook that......

Finally I've read the last 2 pages wondering what the hell everybody was talking about, "Sam Burgess" who in the world is he??? It makes a lot more sense now I realise your talking about big Samuel

Hang on a second, when was the last time Hull or Huddersfield had a 20,000 crowd?

Unless diagnosed with dementia of course

Samuel Burgess.