And they want them NOW!

[urlhttp://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/south-sydney-looking-to-sing-sam-burgesss-three-brothers/story-e6frexnr-1225936496012[/url

hmm worrying i guess but would they be there for the rugby or part of a circus and marketing ploy, there under contract which is good news for us.

... If only they'd signed Rob Worrincey ...

I note that Shane Richardson has spoken to the boys manager. Good to see Caisley looking after the club he is still majority shareholder in

Does Russell Crowe actually care about Rugby League or this whole thing just a big marketing ploy? Souths -let's be honest - are a poor side and have been for a long time. I can't see how things have improved that much since Crowe and that other bloke took it over.

Burgess would have been better hanging at the Odsal until a decent club wanted him (which would have probably been this winter when he's come off contract) IMO. He's a big fish in a small pond at Souths same as at Bradford. He was going to leave anyway so the Bulls did the right thing in getting a bit of money for him but I think he's picked the wrong club.

Caisley is not the majority shareholder. He is the single largest, with 26% according to latest public information. No doubt he is putting the job that earns him a nice living ahead of an "investment" that earns him nothing. Whether any other true devout Bulls fan would choose to do that is I guess the issue?

at least the club boxed clever and planned for this eventuality by getting the twins signed up on 3 year deals. So in worst case we should at least get a transfer fee and make a profit on money we've invested into them in terms of training,wages etc. Certainly not an ideal situation but dont see what club can do beyond what its already done to stop other clubs coming in for our youth prospects.

be interesting to see whether Caisley is using his shareholding as a method of getting access to our youth setup at an earlier stage than other player agents. If so the club need to block this ASAP. This may be reason why Caisley is seemingly happy to sit on his shareholding and not try too hard to sell it if its giving him a commercial advantage in his player agent role.

What price do you put on them though?

In football you would have an initial fee with further fees triggered for no. of first team games, first international cap etc.

I don't think that has ever been done before in RL, or whether it is even feasible.

Well I hope Souths believe the hype. There's no doubt Tom and George have potential, but they'll never be Sam, and imo they're only interested because Sam has been such a hit, not because of their potential.



If Souths really believe this then we shoulod be quids in, not that I think we should be selling our best prospects.

Liam Farrell, Elliott Whitehead, Joel Tomkins, Chris Clarkson, James Donaldson, Ben Harrison etc will all have something to say about who is the most highly rated young forward!

And Luke Burgess, in the NRL, i'll believe it when I see it.

500k please Mr Crowe if you want them.

I wonder if the recent streamlining of the board will go anyway to stop this? Might also be one of the driving factors for why the changes came (aside from those published)

Being a shareholder, regardless of size of holding, gives you no special rights in the management of the company. The main thing you can do if you are a shareholder, if your holding is big enough or it is with those of your pals, is to get yourself or your protege/s appointed to the board in place of who is there that you do not like. Then you get your hands on the levers of power.

I would be extremely surprised if Caisley was able to - or was allowed to - use his shareholding to give him any advantage in the way envisaged. His historic inside information you cannot stop him using.

Does Russell Crowe know, or even care, that the twins have not even played at SL level yet?

No, but it makes a good story-line!!

Hard to say, isn't it. Crowe comes across as one of those arrogant big heads who think they can get what they want by snapping their fingers, and sadly, film stars are rarely disabused of that by others, surrounded as they often are, by sycophants.

Of course, there may be nothing in it, other than flim flam story for a tabloid hack in Aussie. We all know the three of them have been over there for a holiday, and according to one story I read, they spent some time in a Sydney gym (at Souths?)with Sam. The press seem to give the idea that Sam and Russ are bosom buddies (I don't know why, but I just can't see it, somehow) though just what Sam might have told the coaches, or Crowe, at Souths is anyone's guess.

The whole story about wanting all the brothers falls down with Luke for my money. I don't want to knock him, but his name being Burgess doesn't make him a superstar. He's a decent squad player who does most of his work from the bench, and he is the eldest, which logically should make him the best developed of the four, but he is nowhere near Sam, and he won't be as long as he has a hole in his anus, and he certainly won't add anything to their squad.

The twins, as you allude in your post, are just potential. Neither has played a game, or part of a game, at SL level and the idea that another club would pay mega money for untried youngsters from the A team, just because of their surname, seems fanciful at best. Though, when the Crowes of this world want something, they want it [inow[/i and sense and reason don't always come into it. If they go we should wring every penny out the b*&^*%d though.

The anti-Caisley mantra becomes a little tiresome, not to mention wholly inaccurate. Similarly with Crowe.

To suggest Caisley is "using" the club as some kind of incubator for his "talent" roster is bizarre at best. George and Thomas are wholly unproven at any level as Bulliac points out. Luke is also hugely overrated.

Sam was poor for the Bulls in 2009 and evidently, was the best move for all parties. He has now gone on to become one of the best forwards in the NRL comp. Whether that's as a result of Crowe's marketing, his PR team or delusions of grandeur is irrelevant. As is Souths quality. I don't care if Russell Crowe is arrogant, he is hugely successful at what he does. I'd rather appreciate that/him and his aspirations for the Souths club than have a limp wristed, grey-suit-wearing, coiffered cardboard cut out which is wholly evident in modern paper-shuffling Britain.

Caisley clearly has bigger fish to fry than two unproven academy players given that he negotiates on behalf on England Football players, PL players, managers and PL clubs. Two lads from Cleckheaton won't be earning him a new Maserati.

Aye, Theo Walcott's 85k a week is probably more than Tom & George will get put together in a year.

Steve McClaren and Matthew Hoggard will probably be higher on his priority list than Tom & George too.

Not sure I agree about Sam being 'poor' in 2009. He was poor [iafter[/i the whole going to Aussie business blew up, but IIRC he looked to be progressing well(despite having played for GB, he was still a youngster, don't forget) in the early part of the season. For me, and a good number of others it was the whole film star business and all the nonsense which surrounds it, along with the move to Australia which [icaused[/i the downturn in form.

As for Crowe, well for me he's a come day, go day, transient personality/film star whose whole wealth depends far more on fickle people, brought up in a Big Brother type, personality culture, continuing to go to his (massively promoted) films, than it does on any innate 'ability'. I can recognise that he is trying to his best for his team and if he wasn't trying to do mine down I might even applaud but, as it is, I'm sorry but I can't.

We shall agree to disagree. Sam did little in 2009 for me at club level.

As for Crowe, a genuinely outstanding actor (Cinderella Man for one) who has put his hand in his pocket and walked the walk. I can't knock a fella for that irrespective of his entourage. Like I said, he gets on with it and good luck to him. Nor would he ponce around in an Austin Reed suit whilst arris licking two crumbly, fake, wind-blowing politicians. Each to their own stage.

Do you actually follow the NRL??

You sound like you know nothing about Souths at all

Souths want the two young fellas for the NYC ( National youth competition) It is proving a pretty decent breeding ground for NRL talent, if they can make it through they'll have a future, if they cant, then i'm sure they'll enjoy trying, i'm sure they'll enjoy the Rugby League lifestyle in AUS that Sam seems to be enjoying

Russell Crowe is suprisingly up to date on all issues Rugb y League & has a lot of influence with what is happening at Souths, we've gone from being a basket case not that long ago to having over 20000 payed up members, the most lucrative sponsorship in the league, playing out of the Olympic Stadium & actually turning over a profit on the balance sheets, our NYC team came second this year & with a young NRL team a year older & more experienced next year, look for massive improvement, i think South Sydney will be a pretty good place to be for a Rugby League player in the future

Souths have only offered a contract to George, a two year deal. No mention of Tom as yet.

well going on previous reports, it was said we were after the whole family, whats mum like at cutting up oranges???