16 comebacks we’d like to see at the Auckland 9’s
After Ken Nagas announced his comeback to rugby league after 13 years to play with the Canberra Raiders we decided to have a think about other former greats who we would love to see playing at the Auckland 9s.
Sure there are arguments that it should be a breeding ground for youngsters, but forget that! We want to relive old memories and these retired greats will get bums on seats and TV ratings.
Broncos – Darren Lockyer
I dare you to try and tell me that he wouldn’t still carve up. At 37 he’s only recently retired and would very easily swap the microphone for a #6 jersey and do a much better job on the field.
Bulldogs – Brett Dallas
The “King of the Wing” hasn’t played for the Bulldogs since 1995 but after scoring 153 tries in 251 games for the Dogs, Bears and Wigan Warriors, who wouldn’t want to see the red head flashing down the wing?
Cowboys – Matt Sing
He’s now 39 and has been retired for eight years, but he will forever be remembered for his head gear on the wing for the Cowboys with a try every 1.4 games.
Dragons – Wendell Sailor
Sure there have been better players in the Red V over the last five seasons but can you imagine any other players attracting more attention than the big mouthed Sailor?
Eels – Nathan Hindmarsh
Let’s be honest. They can’t all be outside backs in this form of the game and like seeing Freddie Fittler take an intercept, how good would it be to reminisce Hindy running down a player and tackling him from behind?
Knights – Andrew Johns
Whether he is up to it or not, there is no doubting that if Andrew Johns laced up the boots again, the world would tune in to see how he does. Imagine Johns throwing a long cut out pass to Akuila Uate – he might play him back into form.
Panthers – Rhys Wesser
The former Panther and Rabbitoh had speed to boot and loved the open space. He’d look great outside Dylan Walker.
Rabbitohs – Craig Wing
A Rabbitohs junior, he played a total of 71 games in the famous green and red, but would you believe Craig Wing is still only 35. After playing the past few seasons in Japan and even notching a few national caps, he would be a great addition to the Rabbits 9s squad.
Raiders – Ken Nagas
He’s confirmed, which as a Raiders fan is fantastic news. Knee problems may have caused him to retire easily, but the Police worker and Raiders trainer still has speed to burn.
Roosters – Brad Fittler
Turned the clock back at last year’s 9s competition, so let’s bring him back and see whether he’s still got it!
Sea Eagles – Cliffy Lyons
This is probably the biggest stretch of the lot! At 53 he is by far the oldest in our list but I played against a 44 year old Lyons playing for the Umina Bunnies and he still carved up. Let’s pretend he’s just there to feed his outside backs into holes – too easy for “Jesus”.
Sharks – Mat Rogers
Rogers dominated rugby league and rugby union throughout a lengthy career. His pathway to Super Rugby and the Wallabies was through the Australian 7s which he dominated with Wendell Sailor. He’s now regularly running triathlons so is a fit as a butchers dog and we’d love to see him comeback and have one last crack at League.
Storm – Marcus Bai
Most of the Storm greats are still playing at the moment, so we need to go back a few years to find a player suitable to be a cult hero. That man is Marcus Bai. Now 42, he scored 127 NRL tries and would be a great sight in full flight.
Titans – Chris Walker
The man more famous for “Walkers On” in State of Origin than his try scoring feats wants to make an NRL comeback this season, so why not start him in the 9s to see whether he still has it?
Tigers – Taniela Tuiaki
He retired far too early. The Tank retired four years ago at just 28 years old. Without the need for the rigours of week to week footy he would be a huge hit for the Tigers in the 9s format.
Warriors – Stacey Jones
The Little General held the Warriors records for most appearances, tries and goals at the time of retirement. Still involved in the game as a coach it’s a shame the 9s was not around when we was playing.
JB
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