Thread by @AndrewMStarkey

Worried about Hunt? Unsure where the blame lays in this disappointing tale? Again, the
@NRL_Dragons are in the news and in #crisis and there is a decent scoop you may not all be aware of. A thread: 🧵 1/

What many don’t know is Hunt tended his request for release upon Griffin’s axing. Both he and the club (wisely) determined to keep it out of the papers and attempt to resolve it, but Hunt was clear that he was not looking to see out his contract. 2/

Flanagan called Hunt to try and turn him around. Sadly, the incoming custodian was not convincing enough and despite his plea's to get him to come on board, Hunt has persistently advised that he’ll keep to his word – and not his signed contract – to leave rather than rebuild. 3/

His agent reached out to the Dolphins, Gold Coast and Canterbury seeking a new home. Many will point the finger at this being unethical; the problem is not the players and agents looking after themselves but the rules that define that. But I digress. 4/

The situation escalated in the last week when GM of Football Ben Haran mishandled Hunt so badly the Dragons captain identified to #redv management that he was ‘done’ and would be leaving post-Origin. He has, effectively, played his last game for the club. 5/

Haran has been an ongoing problem for the Dragons. He is responsible for the broken pathways, driven away highly qualified staff from the club and overseen the clubs worst era of performance. Of all the people that need to be moved on from the club, he is top of the list. 6/

So this means Hunt is off hook, right? (Pun intended).

No, not at all. In fact, quite the opposite. 7/

Haran has been a problem and many players have had beef with him. What they have all done, however, is banded together and kept true to each other. They knew the unity of the squad and their bond as a team is what would change their on field fortunes. 8/

So when Hunt decided to throw the footballing equivalent of a tantrum, he broke that bond with his teammates. In fact, he’s lost all credibility with them and to quote one player ‘He’s really pissed me off.’ 9/

Historically, Hunt has always been aloof. His leadership was limited to what he did on the field and never beyond. An excellent example of this is BBQ-gate; he knew it was going to happen and never tried to stop it (much to the club’s frustration). 10/

What his latest actions have done is irreparably broken Hunts relationship with the rest of the team. They are hurt by what they see as a selfish decision from someone they were told to look up to and aspire to be like. 11/

More importantly, Hunt has played the victim in this entire situation despite actively playing a role in the debacle. His teammates also feel he’s been dishonest given the size of his new contract and the fact he is choosing to renege on it just because Griffin was hooked. 12/

Truth be told, many of his teammates believed Griffin was not coaching them correctly and felt the team was constructed around giving Hunt the best chance to achieve rather than doing what is in the team’s best interest. 13/

An example of this is believing Hunt would better serve the side playing a 6 or 9 role and letting young Sullivan organise the team – something 'Bud' excels at. Instead, Hunt is still allowed to call the plays and overrides Sullivan on the field. 14/

Thus, when Griffin was sacked and Hunt requested a release, many saw that decision as akin to ‘throwing his toys out of the cot’. The words ‘selfish’, ‘mercenary’ and ‘traitor’ are being thrown around. 15/

In a sport where your bond with your team is critical to performance – and the role of captain still holds esteem – Hunt has made himself a pariah to the club he’s supposed to lead. 16/

The @NRL_Dragons are now in a position where they must mitigate against losing a key player for their ’23 campaign. The likely resolution is Hunt – who is refusing to play – will likely be released and traded for a player that will fit incoming coach Flanagan’s future plans. 17/

Fans will see this as a loss. I disagree for many reasons. The first is any captain worth his salt doesn’t do this to their club. The second is no club should be held to ransom by one player; particularly one who has drained over $6m and only returned two finals appearances. 18/

At this point, I’d like to direct you to this article, which perfectly explains why has not been the player we paid for: 19/

theroar.com.au/2023/06/20/dea…

Additionally, go watch Game 2 in SOO, 2020 when Hunt was called off the bench to play 5/8 after Cameron Munster left the field. At 29 and under master coach Wayne Bennett, it can only be said that Hunt choked in the cauldron. He is not the elite half many think he is. 20/

Losing Hunt provides a young spine of Sloan, Amone, Sullivan and Liddle the chance to develop a combintion and grow. Their upside is far more significant than housing all our eggs in one basket – especially a basket that cannot kick a field goal to ice the game. 21/21

@ReadingThePlay @LeagueUnlimited @cokeefe9 @VonOKeefe @marklevy2gb @9_Moley @AndrewVossy @BuzzRothfield @RedVPodcast1 @LaraPitt_ @Pitt_anthony @TheRoarSports @MattPNBL @zerotackle @hannahhollis_ @Jessica_Yates @BulldogRitchie

Oi, @Former_legend , help a brother out with a retweet of the thread?