I suspect that GH will be absolutely steaming with rage over the publication of that article given his usual level of editorial control over anything that Peter Smith of the YEP publishes about the club



It's a fairly damning indictment of GH's bullying negotiation style which has always been apparent to anyone who is open-minded about him as opposed to placing him on a lofty pedestal and deeming him as beyond critique.

Assuming Burgess can't secure an early release from his contract so that he can leave immediately (which would clearly be the ideal solution for both player and club given the obvious rift), he needs to avoid any further confrontation, see out his contract to the end of the season and not allow GH any opportunity for litigation or further egotistical and vindictive response.

What a sad and disappointing end to his career at the club.

Yep totally.

Attended a couple of Origin games myself in the past... in Brisbane and Sydney... crowd atmosphere-wise, that's as good as it gets over there. Lots of -artistry and shouting from spectators over there but only on an individual or insignificant and isolated small group basis. Culturally, RL fans over there don't exhibit the same mass co-ordinated behaviour that we do to create a genuine atmosphere at games.

Aussie Rules however? Different kettle of fish entirely atmosphere-wise. Absolutely awesome.

When he visits my old man likes the more laid back attitude of the week to week rounds over here. He likes how chilled out it is. It certainly has a different vibe. Good but different. Our lasses family are from Adelaide they are AFL crazy. I didn't really get the game until I saw it live! Now I think it is a cracking sport and you are dead right, the vibe is a lot more partisan.

I didn't like Aussie Rules at all until I attended a few games in Melbourne. It doesn't translate to TV viewing very well at all... you have to attend a game to appreciate it's skill, it's quirkiness and it's subtleties. Every club also has a partisan club song which even I find quite emotionally stirring along with the huge attendances. They make Marching On Together sound like a bunch of choir boys on a sunday morning in church by comparison.

That's it in a nut shell!

The latest article in the YEP regarding the Burgess situation is less than complimentary to GH if true. For those who haven't seen it, basically it says that Burgess was offered a 3 year deal to stay and given 3 days to agree to it. He asked for a bit more time and the offer was withdrawn and he hasn't played since.

Not exactly the right way to negotiate from our esteemed CEO...

The link is a few pages back

that's Burgess's take on it. There are two sides to a story

GH isn't one not to speak out in the media so I look forward to his response in Mondays yep.
Burgess knew he was out of contract. He must have been thinking for the past few months whether he wanted to stay or not. He must have had some financial figures in his head that will make him happy. If they came up short 3 days is enough imo. But if Burgess wanted a few more days I think he should be showed some respect given his services to the club. For the contract to then be suddenly off the table and then not to be played is out of order. Who is picking the team GH or McD?

I think it was sal who mentioned that he'd heard that something along the lines of biff was offered a deal and given two or three days to agree, now luke has come out and aired his side in the media, imo if lukes side is true then he has been treated very unfairly! infact i think reguardless even if he had turned the contract down he should still be treated fairly until his contract runs out at the end of the season. At the end of the day smithy annouced he was off to union at the end of the season two years ago and he was given a fair crack, and went out on a high scoring two tries in the GF. Chev in 06 still got picked despite announcing he was off to bath, calderwood despite rejecting a contract in 05. Id say its Mc picking the team.

We now know why biffs not in the side, just begs the question why clarkson isn't? if biff isnt going to play again i'd like to see singo given a few more games this season

Do we? Really? Because at the game last night I would of loved to have seen Burgess in the pack. Kylie and Kirke, next to useless last night.

I'd imagine Burgess non-selection has more to do with his attitude rather than simply the fact that he's leaving at the end of the season.

As has been said, I don't see why 3 days isn't long enough to work out what he wants to do considering his desire to go to Australia has been known at the club for months so surely he's been thinking of what would be acceptable to him to stay during this time. Why should the club wait any longer on a player who's commitment to the club is unlikely to extend beyond the end of this season and who has shown a poor attitude behind the scenes?
I wish Luke the best wherever he plays but let's not pretend he's been an integral part of Leeds' success. Senior, Peacock, Sinfield etc have proved their "service to the club", Burgess has been a useful part of the squad during his time but only a squad player for a handful of years, so whilst I wish him well I don't necessarily agree he's been badly treated or that it's a major blow to Leeds.

Well we know hes had a bust up with GH or MC or both, i'd love burgess in the side, he's been our most improved forward this year, i'd love clarky in the side too, kirke is 30 and doesnt exactly lead by example with a great work rate, clarky is 21 with great potenial who will tackle all day, but he isnt in the side why? he's obviously had a bust up with mc too

Maybe he wanted more time to see if a move to aus was realistic, just because he wants to go doesnt mean he will, forget the fact he wants to aus at the end of the season, he is contracted to us till the end of the this year, and deserves a fair crack, his performances warranted selection in the team, and for me he's right to be frustrated especially when he sees players like kirke and hauraki constantly getting selected despite some poor performances this season

Expect apologists for GH to mount a campaign slagging Burgess off.

It's inevitable.

i dont see what the difference is calderwood, walker, and smith, have all announced in the past that they were leaving and still got selected, if biff had be woefully awful then fair enough, but he'd really upped his game this season

Did those other players show a poor attitude when not played every single week? As I said earlier in the thread Burgess had played 11 of 17 SL games and had been injured for a couple of those games as well. So he was hardly completely overlooked. Compare to the much maligned Ian Kirke's attitude when dropped for the 2008 WCC. He trained his backside off and pushed his way back into the team.
If the rumours about Burgess' attitude are correct then I can understand why GH might not be too keen to wait for Burgess to make his mind up.

On the other hand if they're not correct then it would seem a bit strange from Hetherington. As has been said there are 2 sides to this, but I don't think the truth about what has really happened will come out for a while yet.

[uAnyone care to place the following events in their correct chronological order?[/u
Burgess displaying a bad attitude at the club... allegedly.
GH's offer of a contract to Burgess which must be signed within 3 days, otherwise it'll be withdrawn!
Burgess getting dropped from the team.

[uAnyone care to speculate on whether GH or Burgess (or both) are being economical with the truth? [/u
Quote GH - [i"I spoke to him at the start of the season and we discussed his short and long-term future. He [Burgess made plain his desire to go to Australia, so we have always been planning to be without him in the longer-term."[/i

Quote BURGESS - [i"We opened contract negotiations with the club and Gary (chief executive Gary Hetherington) put a three-year deal in front of me. He told me he wanted a decision in three days, but I didn’t think three days was enough time and I was unable to make a decision. I asked Gary for a bit more time, but then the contract was off the table. Since then, I have not played."[/i

Burgess states he wants to go to aus next season at the beginning of this season, he has improved his ball retention, looks fitter and was gaining good yards, that to me is a good attitude! I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure kirke was injured for the 2008 wcc. Luke got frustrated by not playing I'm pretty sure if he was playing poorly he'd just get his head down and work hard, but he's probably seen the poor performances of weller, kirke and to a certain extent bailey and thought right if I can't get in the team after we've been beaten 42-6 and 42-16 in consecutive weeks then I want answers can't blame him IMO

Burgess states he wants to go to aus next season at the beginning of this season, he has improved his ball retention, looks fitter and was gaining good yards, that to me is a good attitude! I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure kirke was injured for the 2008 wcc. Luke got frustrated by not playing I'm pretty sure if he was playing poorly he'd just get his head down and work hard, but he's probably seen the poor performances of weller, kirke and to a certain extent bailey and thought right if I can't get in the team after we've been beaten 42-6 and 42-16 in consecutive weeks then I want answers can't blame him IMO

Burgess states he wants to go to aus next season at the beginning of this season, he has improved his ball retention, looks fitter and was gaining good yards, that to me is a good attitude! I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure kirke was injured for the 2008 wcc. Luke got frustrated by not playing I'm pretty sure if he was playing poorly he'd just get his head down and work hard, but he's probably seen the poor performances of weller, kirke and to a certain extent bailey and thought right if I can't get in the team after we've been beaten 42-6 and 42-16 in consecutive weeks then I want answers can't blame him IMO

After 3 times I understand you.

Haha, yeh sorry about that comp was running slow, kept pressing submit and luckily it went through at the third attempt

Just to put another slant on it

The Rhinos have developed Burgess to where he is today. Sadly, thats not an international front rower, but a squad player on the fringes. In modern sport a 3 year deal (for a fringe player) is pretty difficult to come by so its no small offering from GH - for a player who has yet to truly prove his value. If Burgess had any intention of staying he would have signed within 3 seconds, never mind 3 days. Clearly his desire to be in Australia comes before his desire to improve himself as a RL player.

Good luck to him, I think the only reason his departure has generated so much fuss is because our pack is struggling at the mo, I personally dont think Luke would make a huge amount of difference. Sam on the other hand........