Darius Boyd

"Newcastle is that way" Source: News.com.au

Boyd is somewhat of a hot topic at the moment. Hopefully you should all realise that he played for the Broncos when we won the premiership in 06, left us at the end of the 08 season to go to the Dragons, along with Wayne Bennett. He chalked up a second premiership medal in 2009 and announced earlier this year that he will more than likely be moving on. Wayne announces that he's going to coach the Knights and lo and behold, Darius signs with the Knights.

To some, this is ludicrous. Some have called him a mothers boy, homosexual, weak, disappointing. Apparently it's a sin to enjoy playing under a particular coach. To others, including me, he's free to do whatever he wants. In his younger years, his parents had marital issues and he was raised by his grandmother. Is it that inconceivable that Wayne is somewhat of a father figure to him? Personally I don't care what he does. Sure, I'd love to see him back in Brisbane and ripping it up but it wasn't to be.

The public's issues with Boyd are similar to what Israel Folau, Sonny Bill Williams and Karmichael Hunt received when they made their announcements. It seems a little ridiculous that players that change teams regularly (or follow a coach) are in the same bucket as code jumpers. In fact, code jumpers are fine by me as well. Why? Athletes have limited earning potential. You and I can generally work until we are 65 in the same job and shouldn't have any problems. Athletes only have 20 or so years at best to earn as much as they can - and while some manage to study while playing, most don't/can't. Darius would no doubt be getting a very good deal from the Knights and it's his choice what he does. Exactly the same for K and Izzy, while it'd be fantastic to see them on the park in League, it wasn't to be.

The one odd person out in the above is Sonny Bill Williams. Darius, K, Izzy, even Gasnier, all left League in the right circumstances. By that, I mean their contracts had either ended or had exit clauses written into them. SBW on the other hand, outright dogged Canterbury and left mid-contract. He did wrong by the fans, the club and the league. It's no coincidence that the move occurred after he signed with Khoder Nasser but that's another story for another time. Fans have every right to be angry with SBW and the way he handled his situation.

The whole point of this article is to highlight the fact that these athletes that we cheer each week are actually human beings and have every right to make the decision that is right for them. Whether the motivator is financial or professional, it doesn't matter. Let him be.