Playboy Magazine publisher Hugh Hefner (C) poses with playmates Holly Madison (L) and Bridget Marquardt (R). Source: VALERY HACHE / DailyTelegraph
IT might be the biggest Chinese whisper in South Sydney history, but that's what makes it all the more interesting.
In 2002, long before Russell Crowe bought the Rabbitohs and as South Sydney prepared for their return to the NRL, an incentive was issued to the group of misfits cobbled together for the club's glorious comeback.
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No one is sure whether the offer came directly from Crowe, but the story has certainly been repeated over the past 11 years.
If the Rabbitohs made the finals, Crowe would organise a party for the players at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles.
"I heard the same, but I don't think it ever came out of Russell's mouth," former prop Paul Stringer said.
"It may have come out of some coaching staff's mouth that Russell had said it but I don't think it ever came out of Russell's mouth."
History shows the Rabbitohs never reached the finals. Three wooden spoons in their first five years meant Hugh Hefner's kingdom, much like the NRL finals, remained the promised land players could only dream about.
Over time the legend has grown. Some say for the Bunnies to party with the Playboy Bunnies now they must deliver South Sydney a premiership.
Craig Coleman was the coach of the 2002 Bunnies side and laughs when you ask him about the Playboy Bunny carrot.
"It's one of the great stories, people just like to believe it," he said.
Backrower Bryan Fletcher arrived at Redfern a year later and certainly believes there's an element of truth to the tale.
"Apparently he promised (the 2002 team) if they made the eight he would take them to the Playboy Mansion," Fletcher said.
"In my years there I did ask him about it and he didn't really say yes or no."
Russell Crowe surrounded by red and green at a Rabbitohs game this season. Picture: Mark Evans Source: DailyTelegraph
It is indisputable that Crowe's influence on the club and players is beyond measure.
"Russell is very passionate about his football team," former centre Adam MacDougall said.
"He was very hands-on in the early days, and would often be part of training sessions with the boys and encourage them.
"He has been very generous with his pockets and his time and he deserves all the success he is experiencing at the moment with Souths."
Russell Crowe and Mario Fenech in the crowd. Picture: Mark Evans Source: DailyTelegraph
Crowe's involvement did not start in 2006 when he and Peter Holmes a Court officially bought the club. Before their return to the competition in 2002, Crowe invited Coleman's team to Coffs Harbour for a training camp.
The players dined at Crowe's Nana Glen farm alongside Sydney Olympic stars including Kerri Pottharst, Lauren Burns and Jane Saville.
"He took the whole team to his farm and invited all our Olympic gold medallists to have dinner for us," Coleman said.
"He did a lot of things behind the scenes that he didn't want people to know about."
Slowly over time Crowe's influence began to increase, even if it was only in the background without fanfare.
Fletcher remembers his "chalk and cheese" experience of going from a premiership at the Roosters to training at Erskineville Oval on a pitch covered in holes and using outdated gym equipment.
Then, suddenly, new weights arrived.
)Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner and wife Crystal Harris. Picture: GABRIEL BOUYS Source: AFP
"I don't know if Russell actually did, I just presumed he did because all of a sudden we got new weight gear," Fletcher recalled.
"When I was there he was just like a sponsor. After the games he would say let's go for a feed and put a feed on.
"He was just a genuine supporter, just a little bit different in the sense he had won an Oscar."
The respect from the rest of the league world was a long time coming. Fletcher, a Test and NSW star, was on the team bus when the Newcastle gatekeeper turned the team away because he did not believe they were first graders.
"We had to park around the corner and walk in," Fletcher said.
"He said 'I don't recognise anyone, you must be the reserve grade side so you have to park around the back'."
It was not that way to their fans though. Stringer's greatest memory is how the Bunnies faithful embraced their team, even in defeat.
"It was crazy, it was hard not to get caught up in it," Stringer said.
"We would get beaten by 40 and go back to the club and there'd be three or four thousand people in the auditorium cheering at us.
"They treated you like a bit of a rock star."
And if the Playboy offer is still on the table?
"If it is, I will be coming with them," Fletcher said.
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