MORE: Leaked Todd Carney explicit pics cause Twitter storm | Todd Carney's next career move
NRL players have hardly set AFL alight. Gold Coast’s Karmichael Hunt had his moments and also delivered an all-time highlight with his after-the-siren goal winning the Suns a famous clash against Richmond in Cairns.
But this season, Gold Coast have taken their game to another level and with Hunt also struggling to overcome injuries, he may become the first AFL player to earn over a million bucks for just one game.
Needless to say it’s not surprising he’s been linked with a return to the NRL or Super Rugby next year.
The GWS Giants were also stung by the failed Israel Folau experiment. A gun at NRL, Izzy simply couldn’t translate that into 22-man code.
But it’s not a case of once bitten, twice shy for the Giants as CEO Dave Matthews has indicated the club remains on the hunt for NRL players looking to defect.
“I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again and in fact we’d be better doing it now than we were at the time,” Matthews told Inside Football.
“We need to get AFL on the menu for talented players in NSW and that’s a lateral strategy to do that.
“The guys have broader roles from a promotional point of view and they can be affordable within the salary cap.”
One player linked with the AFL has been Parramatta playmaker Jarryd Hayne but with the Hayne Plane unlikely to land at the Showgrounds, maybe Carney should be given the last lifeline of a controversial career.
Sacked by Canberra, Sydney Roosters and now Cronulla after alcohol-related incidents, Carney would be one serious risk for the Giants, especially as he’s an unknown quantity in terms of skills and may disrupt the young side.
But from a marketing perspective, how big would Carney be for a struggling club like GWS? And, how much of a win would it be for the AFL over a NRL outfit that appears increasingly competitive under Dave Smith’s reign.
Carney sounded incredibly remorseful after the infamous bubbling pics went viral last month, saying how much he’d disappointed his family.
Maybe the penny has finally dropped for him and maybe he could be a useful contributor for GWS - after all, he’s tough and hard and may not need too much AFL match conditioning.
And, with his past and the fact he may be unable to head overseas due to work visa issues, maybe the Giants could get him cheap on a one-strike-and-you’re-out policy.
Although the Giants have improved in 2014, they remain a long way behind the power clubs of the competition, their lack of success contributing to the low crowds at GWS games, as they struggle to make an impact in Sydney’s fickle sporting landscape.
According to Matthews the only way to change this lack of impact and get NSW children interested in AFL may be to use another NRL convert to draw them in, seeing as their attempt to recruit Lance Franklin failed spectacularly.
“Only 10 per cent of AFL players come out of NSW and that’s not enough. If we get someone in to help change that and also add a promotional dimension then that’s a win,” he said.
Although it would be the greatest risk ever taken by an AFL club, Carney would attract a ton of publicity for GWS.
Just make sure the bubbler has been disconnected