Karmichael Hunt to the AFL

[Phantom Gossiper]

wont ever be an afl star, especially because the fact as soon as his contract runs out he will go back to NRL.

Interesting thought.
I am definitely biased here but having played both games, I reckon Aussie Rules is by far the superior sport.
And you'd think the pay rate would plummet if you went back to league, especially with the new TV deal bargaining going on.

I play both and love my rugby league more than aussie rules - however, i do think aussie rules games have more atmosphere to them and more enjoyable to watch live for that fact alone.
I don't think Hunt will return to the NRL in a hurry, the AFL is such a big business - the TV deals, the crowds, the money. I can't see Hunt giving up playing in front of say 80,000 people to go back to 15,000 and get less if not the same as he will with a new reduced AFL contract.
Plus there is the added motivation to prove to all the haters that he can make it.
I still don't know why AFL supporters haven't tried to embrace the poaching of the NRLs biggest stars, this is a massive coup for the AFL!

[OnSong]

wont ever be an afl star, especially because the fact as soon as his contract runs out he will go back to NRL.

Interesting thought.
I am definitely biased here but having played both games, I reckon Aussie Rules is by far the superior sport.
And you'd think the pay rate would plummet if you went back to league, especially with the new TV deal bargaining going on.

I play both and love my rugby league more than aussie rules - however, i do think aussie rules games have more atmosphere to them and more enjoyable to watch live for that fact alone.
I don't think Hunt will return to the NRL in a hurry, the AFL is such a big business - the TV deals, the crowds, the money. I can't see Hunt giving up playing in front of say 80,000 people to go back to 15,000 and get less if not the same as he will with a new reduced AFL contract.
Plus there is the added motivation to prove to all the haters that he can make it.
I still don't know why AFL supporters haven't tried to embrace the poaching of the NRLs biggest stars, this is a massive coup for the AFL!

Agree. Think it's great for the game and I think it's already been mentioned the impact it is having. At least more RL fans are having a decent gander at the game and gives them an interest point in it.
PG - what is it about RL that appeals to you more than AFL, are you just better at one??

[Phantom Gossiper]

Agree. Think it's great for the game and I think it's already been mentioned the impact it is having. At least more RL fans are having a decent gander at the game and gives them an interest point in it.
PG - what is it about RL that appeals to you more than AFL, are you just better at one??

Just like the contact more I guess, love tackling and getting tackled. I love getting belted up and coming off the ground after a tough game. RL is a sport where you can't be a passenger, everyone has to contribute, where you know you've played a game afterwards.
Growing up playing aussie rules, in an aussie rules dominant state, like to think i'm pretty handy at aussie rules as well and do enjoy it but it's just not the same, its more running, finding space, reading the play etc. I find it easier to play aussie rules than RL.

[Phantom Gossiper]

I was just thinking, why does every hate the fact Hunt has jumped codes?

Looking through the paper the other day, there was big hype about Harding looking to play college gridiron for Hawaii.

Then i was thinking, the AFL supporters/followers are happy to celebrate when a former star makes it big else where i.e Ben Graham, Sav Rocca, Darren Bennett.
Also forget the growing contingent of basketball players who are now making the switch to aussie rules.

[cripple]

I was just thinking, why does every hate the fact Hunt has jumped codes?

Looking through the paper the other day, there was big hype about Harding looking to play college gridiron for Hawaii.

Then i was thinking, the AFL supporters/followers are happy to celebrate when a former star makes it big else where i.e Ben Graham, Sav Rocca, Darren Bennett.
Also forget the growing contingent of basketball players who are now making the switch to aussie rules.

Being a supporter of code hoppers most of the time the main thing i can think of is jealousy that someone with no experience can decide to switch sports and be better then they ever were in a very short amount of time. That and ignorance seem to pervade those who are the quickest to jump on the backs of those willing to have a go. The reverse occurs when someone with a similar skill set switches sport, giving the supporter some idea that they could also switch sports that easily without really thinking about the risks and hard work that has gone into making a successful switch.

[FlyingHigh]

I was just thinking, why does every hate the fact Hunt has jumped codes?

Looking through the paper the other day, there was big hype about Harding looking to play college gridiron for Hawaii.

Then i was thinking, the AFL supporters/followers are happy to celebrate when a former star makes it big else where i.e Ben Graham, Sav Rocca, Darren Bennett.
Also forget the growing contingent of basketball players who are now making the switch to aussie rules.

Being a supporter of code hoppers most of the time the main thing i can think of is jealousy that someone with no experience can decide to switch sports and be better then they ever were in a very short amount of time. That and ignorance seem to pervade those who are the quickest to jump on the backs of those willing to have a go. The reverse occurs when someone with a similar skill set switches sport, giving the supporter some idea that they could also switch sports that easily without really thinking about the risks and hard work that has gone into making a successful switch.

Perhaps it's because an untried player is earning the equivalent of the salary cap of three SANFL clubs, ie 120 players, and there is an organisation, ie the AFL, saying one is okay, but the other is extravagant?
PG, did any of those players you mentioned get paid in the top couple of percent of players in their first season in the new sport?
Good luck to him if he can make it, but is being paid far too much up to start off with.

[Media Park]

PG, I don't dislike him for jumping codes.

I dislike, like a few other posters have voiced, that he is less skilled than any $40K paid rookie listed player, and those rookies, most of whom will end up substantially better than Hunt, will never earn as much money.

Example:
Richard (Hack) Douglas, is much better than Hunt will ever be (IMO), and Douglas will never earn half the money that Hunt will.

And as far as generating interest in the game (the most common Pro Hunt argument), it is more a case of looking at the stats post match to see how poorly he went.

Shocking advertisement for the game up there.

[Interceptor]

Hunt not just a "mercenary" or "shocking advertisement for the the game"?

Karmichael Hunt was entitled to take his money, do the promotion demanded of him in his AFL contract, then run back to NRL as soon as his tenure expired.

He still might - his seven possessions against Sydney on the weekend showed he will have peaks and troughs despite his encouraging progress.

But Karmichael has clearly done what few of the critics thought likely and bought into the emerging Gold Coast culture.

It's not ridiculous to suggest his intervention with young indigenous teen Harley Bennell might keep this year's No.2 draft pick at the club.

Bennell was desperately homesick, had missed several training sessions and even returned late from a trip to Perth.

So Hunt took him under his wing and decided he would live with him and his partner.

"He came up to me at training and asked how my life was going outside of footy,'' Bennell said last week.

"And when I told him it wasn't going the best he said he'd like me to come and live with him. I just feel at home every time I walk through the door.''

On the weekend Bennell had 24 possessions - albeit at 50 per cent effectiveness - but the club's culture and leadership group has again won a major battle.

It was always a risk to draft a kid like Bennell all the way across the country, especially without an established culture to fall back on.

But who would have thought it would be the so-called mercenary who was the secret weapon in making him feel at home?

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/tanking-makes-a-comeback/story-fn6cisdj-1226093292241

[cripple]

PG, I don't dislike him for jumping codes.

I dislike, like a few other posters have voiced, that he is less skilled than any $40K paid rookie listed player, and those rookies, most of whom will end up substantially better than Hunt, will never earn as much money.

Example:
Richard (Hack) Douglas, is much better than Hunt will ever be (IMO), and Douglas will never earn half the money that Hunt will.

And as far as generating interest in the game (the most common Pro Hunt argument), it is more a case of looking at the stats post match to see how poorly he went.

Shocking advertisement for the game up there.

Do you live up there??? I had always taken you for living on the EP. From what i have seen it generates interest, more people watching, playing and we might just jag us a Voss, Kelly, Carey or Hirdy who grew up in rugby league heartland.

[Rik E Boy]

PG, I don't dislike him for jumping codes.

I dislike, like a few other posters have voiced, that he is less skilled than any $40K paid rookie listed player, and those rookies, most of whom will end up substantially better than Hunt, will never earn as much money.

Example:
Richard (Hack) Douglas, is much better than Hunt will ever be (IMO), and Douglas will never earn half the money that Hunt will.

And as far as generating interest in the game (the most common Pro Hunt argument), it is more a case of looking at the stats post match to see how poorly he went.

Shocking advertisement for the game up there.

And Douglas will never make a league fan look at AFL. You are missing the point by miles on hunt. How cares about his friggins stats? Even Bluey McKenna doesn't.

regards,

REB

[OnSong]

Set to sign on with GC again and stay with AFL.

I've got to admit, while he might be getting a great pay packet, I love his attitude about improving his game and giving it a red-hot shake.

I would love to see him take a big step forward this year and answer his critics. Good luck to him.

[Booney]

I expect he will take a step forward, mainly with his aerobic fitness base. Most of his GC colleagues would have had multiple Aussie Rules based pre-seasons in their legs, he had two.

Might be a player to watch.

[CoverKing]

He will come pretty handy IMO. Good on him for staying on and working towards a long career at the GC suns

[cripple]

A great move and it appears as though his pay packet will be a fair bit smaller. Well done to all involved.

[tigerland09]

KARMICHAEL Hunt will be named in the Gold Coast's leadership group today.
The stunning elevation to the Suns' hierarchy caps a meteoric rise for the rugby league convert who played 16 games for the club in 2011.
From a forgettable debut in Round 2 against Carlton to his memorable roof-lifting goal against Geelong in Round 10, to being "cooked" late in the season, Hunt held his nerve in a testing, roller-coaster campaign.
Despite being a newcomer to the code, the 25-year-old is held in high esteem by his fellow players, who voted on the leadership group.
Teammates often laud Hunt's courage to switch codes along with his work ethic and toughness.
Hunt already has taken on more responsibility with his successful mentoring role of homesick star Harley Bennell and is expected to re-sign with the club soon.
Coach Guy McKenna has signalled that Hunt will spend more time in the midfield in 2012 after playing mainly as a defender in 2011.
It is believed Campbell Brown will not be in the leadership group. He was stripped of the deputy vice-captaincy after an altercation in Thailand last year.

[Gozu]

GOLD Coast is soon expected to formally announce Karmichael Hunt has signed a new contract.

Hunt, the Suns and the AFL have been in negotiations in recent weeks about the AFL's financial contribution to Hunt as a competition ambassador.

The AFL has agreed to again pay part of his salary, which will allow the club to come to favourable terms with the former Brisbane Broncos rugby league star.

It is a major coup for the Suns and the AFL.

Talk in recent months had centred on rugby league clubs trying to entice Hunt back to the NRL.

But the prospect of an increased pay packet and the chance to further prove his doubters wrong is believed to have convinced the 25-year-old to stay.

The new deal is expected to earn Hunt more than $1 million a season, again putting him in the top bracket of players in the competition, despite having played only 16 AFL games.

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl ... 6288240907

[Gozu]

Hunt signed a two-year contract extension so will be with the Suns until the end of 2014.

[White Line Fever]

Two weeks in a row that Hunt has played at an above average AFL standard.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/133744/default.aspx

I'm actually really happy to see him really starting to shine.
His attack on the ball & player is fantastic.

[David Brent]

Two weeks in a row that Hunt has played at an above average AFL standard.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/133744/default.aspx

I'm actually really happy to see him really starting to shine.
His attack on the ball & player is fantastic.

Yep full credit to him, playing ok atm but don't hear the media talking him up at all. Loved to kick him while he was down last year but nothing when he is generally up & about.

[OnSong]

Two weeks in a row that Hunt has played at an above average AFL standard.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/133744/default.aspx

I'm actually really happy to see him really starting to shine.
His attack on the ball & player is fantastic.

Yep full credit to him, playing ok atm but don't hear the media talking him up at all. Loved to kick him while he was down last year but nothing when he is generally up & about.

x2.

Didn't see Saturday night's game but watched him against the Dons and was really impressed. Scary to be around in the centre square.