How Benji blew his one-club chance

Written By Unknown on Senin, 28 April 2014 | 22.07

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1 IT TOOK an advertising billboard on Milton Road to underline for me on the weekend the extent of Benji Marshall's folly in walking away from the chance to be the first legend of the Wests Tigers joint venture.

There was Shane Webcke, larger than life (really), advocated a product, a couple of weeks after we had talked about how he was convinced he did the right thing by electing to become a one-club player.

Webcke could have earned hundreds of thousands more as a player by joining another club but stuck solid because it was he wanted to be a Bronco for life and he also thought there might be some advantages in retirement by sticking solid.

Eight years after his retirement, Webcke is still in a long-running television advertising pitchperson for the Broncos' main sponsor because they evidently feel he best represents what the company is trying to portray.

Marshall convinced himself that he was such a good chance of transforming himself into a Super Rugby flyhalf at age 29 that he even gave up the chance to play domestic games in New Zealand to build his knowledge.

Football fans are famously forgiving of their club's players, especially ones who win a premiership.

But Tigers fans will take some getting over his admission that in his last year with their team he was "lazy, out of shape and lacking desire''. And pocketing, we read, $20,000 a year from the Tigers for two seasons he will not play for the club he held under the terms of his Tigers contract.

Still Benji — as his Sydney media fans refer to him, like he is Madonna or something _ is in no doubt about the overriding issue when he joins the Sharks, Storm, Cowboys or whichever NRL club thinks he will be good for their football and their club culture.

"I have made a lot of decisions in the past about what is best for everyone. This time it's about what is best for me,'' he said.

2 The Broncos' two-point loss to South Sydney confirmed there is more commitment and far more attacking variety in the side than there was last year.

But there were a woeful lack of direction and a willingness to put in one more big hitup in Brisbane's efforts to set up for a field goal when the scores were 26-all.

It was, admittedly, the 77th minute, but Ben Hunt had to kick from too far out. Kicking before the last tackle would have also made it less likely a semi-trailer like Sam Burgess would charge the attempt down.

It was a pity for the Broncos, as they did so much right on the night in overhauling a 14-0 deficit but are 4-4 going into the first bye weekend.

3 It took only a few lazy minutes watching a 21-year-old Fox Sports replay of a rugby league game on the weekend to underline why the video review is a very good thing, regardless of the regular blow-ups from coaches, players and fans.

There were two tries disallowed in a trans-Tasman Test in 1993 which would have been awarded correctly by a video referee and were called as such by the commentators.

Would we really be better off by going back to one referee, with no video assistance out of a belief that a fast game is a good game?

4 Rafael Nadal has lost his grip on opposition throats on his claycourt domain this month.

Rival players will smell blood after Nadal was beaten in a quarter-final at claycourt tournaments in Monte Carlo and Barcelon in consecutive weeks.

It is the first time that has happened to the Spaniard by that stage of two clay events since 2004. His loss to Nicolas Almagro in Barcelona was his first there since 2003, when he was a 15-year-old.

The best-of-five-set format next month at the French Open, where Nadal has won eight finals, will require even more of opponents, but some will not be quite as glum about their chances as they would have been in past years. The ATP events were best-of-three.

5 Jed Adcock's appointment as sole Brisbane Lions captain in the summer did not send the AFL club's merchandise department into hyperdrive.

Adocck's standing among teammates and supporters as a man who will give everything on the field to his side has been advanced, though, during the difficult start to the season.

Adcock produced two smothers in the last quarter which were essential to Brisbane's icebreaking win over St Kilda last Friday. These are the sort of desperate efforts fans remember.


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