The Gold Coast Titans are prepared to break the bank to lure Gold Coast Suns AFL player Karmichael Hunt back to Rugby League according to a News Limited report.
Hunt does not come off contract until the end of 2014, the same time the Gold Coast Titans have a large amount of salary cap space free.
Rumours that Karmichael Hunt would return to Rugby League as early as the 2014 season have been pretty strong in recent months. Most of the rumours have surrounded a possible return to the Brisbane Broncos.
Earlier this year AFL types had talked about Karmichael Hunts future in the sport. A number of prominent AFL figures have said that Hunt has “done his job” for the AFL and that the Gold Coast Suns need to move on and release him back to Rugby League.
It must be remembered that Hunt did have a short stint in Rugby Union before he played in the AFL. That means Rugby League is not guaranteed to get him back when he does come off contract.
Hunt would no doubt come at a cost to any club that signed him. While he is on well over $1 million a season in the AFL, I don’t think he is worth anywhere near that in Rugby League.
I don’t think his ability to return to the game again at a high level is in question. We saw with Israel Folau that a return should see him come back nearly as good as he once was. The problem is that Hunt is not nearly as marketable as Folau is. He simply isn’t a big enough name to demand anywhere near the money he is on in AFL.
Hopefully Hunt is playing Rugby League again sooner rather than later. He would be a good buy for the Gold Coast Titans if he came at the right price.
