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Bulldog's Trent Hodkinson begins each game with a brand new kicking tee he dedicates to a child suffering chronic illness.
Source: News Corp Australia
EVERY time Trent Hodkinson lines up a kick, somewhere, a heart flutters.
It rises with hope, in the little heart of a small child that knows that this kick, on a kicking team bearing their name, might sail between the posts.
For some time now Hodkinson begins each game with a brand new kicking tee that he dedicates to a child suffering chronic illness, writing their name on the tee and presenting it to them after the game.
There is no better example how grounded Hodkinson is, and why he is on the verge of becoming one of the game’s marquee players.
He did it again Wednesday night, writing a name and seeing his two penalty goals be the eventual difference between NSW and Queensland.
Forget what the bookies say, the Canterbury Bulldogs are the overwhelming premiership favourites.
Wednesday’s Origin match was final confirmation.
Hodkinson and Josh Reynolds flourished in the pressure-cooker of Origin and, on the back of what you expect will be two more performances at this level, they will return to lead the Dogs through the last third of the home and away rounds behind a pack that just happens to be the biggest and best in the competition.
A dominant pack and quality halves?
No club would ask for more as they head into the finals.
After years of injury Hodkinson has picked the right time to come good.
Next year he will be one of four halfbacks off contract. The others are Adam Reynolds, Ben Hunt and Daly Cherry-Evans.
It will be a feeding frenzy for NRL clubs looking to improve their stocks.
There are too few genuine halfbacks in the game, and certainly not enough to go around the 16 clubs.
Hodkinson’s rise in performance ensures he will be part of the dealing in the months ahead.
The Broncos are keenly interested in Cherry-Evans but the thoroughness of the NRL’s investigation into recent allegations of salary cap rorting could impact on Brisbane’s ability to recruit him.
It leaves Cherry-Evans in a bind.
He is on the outs with his Manly teammates, who believe they have lost Glenn Stewart because salary cap money is being stockpiled to re-sign Cherry-Evans, who they believe is heading to
Brisbane in 2016 anyway.
That venom flashed briefly during Origin on Wednesday night when Manly teammate Anthony Watmough chased Cherry-Evans across the park and made sure he put a little extra in his shot.
While it will be dismissed publicly as simply “Origin”, mate against mate and all that, have no doubt it will be recognised for what it is by teammates back at Manly.
There are a lot of questions to be asked about the Broncos? Why did they declare themselves to the NRL, sometime around a month after a whistleblower had tipped off owners News Ltd (publisher of the Telegraph) that rorting was going on?
Why was football manager Andrew Gee let go?
NRL boss Dave Smith and chief financial officer Jim Doyle were at Red Hill on Thursday going through the Broncos’ books.
Be sure, there are countless people close to the Broncos organisation willing to stand up for Gee, not prepared to let him be made the scapegoat for the club’s cap turmoil.
Any sort of rorting can’t be implemented at a club without the knowledge and tacit approval of others.
The NRL has other problems. The whispers in the corridor of power at ICAC suggest phone taps will reveal another club is cheating the salary cap, with the taps a chance to become public when more evidence is tendered against Eddie O’Beid.
This club also recently let go a staffer involved in recruitment.
While there is nothing criminal about the actitivies from an ICAC perspective, the cap rorting will amount to a large headache for the NRL.
Two clubs in one year? How widespread is it?
None of this is a concern for Hodkinson, who along with Josh Reynolds now gets the chance to secure the Blues their first series since 2005 and then lead the Bulldogs the rest of the way.
He is the feel-good story to emerge in what are very interesting times for the game.
Source: News Corp Australia
EVERY time Trent Hodkinson lines up a kick, somewhere, a heart flutters.
It rises with hope, in the little heart of a small child that knows that this kick, on a kicking team bearing their name, might sail between the posts.
For some time now Hodkinson begins each game with a brand new kicking tee that he dedicates to a child suffering chronic illness, writing their name on the tee and presenting it to them after the game.
There is no better example how grounded Hodkinson is, and why he is on the verge of becoming one of the game’s marquee players.
He did it again Wednesday night, writing a name and seeing his two penalty goals be the eventual difference between NSW and Queensland.
Forget what the bookies say, the Canterbury Bulldogs are the overwhelming premiership favourites.
Wednesday’s Origin match was final confirmation.
Hodkinson and Josh Reynolds flourished in the pressure-cooker of Origin and, on the back of what you expect will be two more performances at this level, they will return to lead the Dogs through the last third of the home and away rounds behind a pack that just happens to be the biggest and best in the competition.
A dominant pack and quality halves?
No club would ask for more as they head into the finals.
After years of injury Hodkinson has picked the right time to come good.
Next year he will be one of four halfbacks off contract. The others are Adam Reynolds, Ben Hunt and Daly Cherry-Evans.
It will be a feeding frenzy for NRL clubs looking to improve their stocks.
There are too few genuine halfbacks in the game, and certainly not enough to go around the 16 clubs.
Hodkinson’s rise in performance ensures he will be part of the dealing in the months ahead.
The Broncos are keenly interested in Cherry-Evans but the thoroughness of the NRL’s investigation into recent allegations of salary cap rorting could impact on Brisbane’s ability to recruit him.
It leaves Cherry-Evans in a bind.
He is on the outs with his Manly teammates, who believe they have lost Glenn Stewart because salary cap money is being stockpiled to re-sign Cherry-Evans, who they believe is heading to
Brisbane in 2016 anyway.
That venom flashed briefly during Origin on Wednesday night when Manly teammate Anthony Watmough chased Cherry-Evans across the park and made sure he put a little extra in his shot.
While it will be dismissed publicly as simply “Origin”, mate against mate and all that, have no doubt it will be recognised for what it is by teammates back at Manly.
There are a lot of questions to be asked about the Broncos? Why did they declare themselves to the NRL, sometime around a month after a whistleblower had tipped off owners News Ltd (publisher of the Telegraph) that rorting was going on?
Why was football manager Andrew Gee let go?
NRL boss Dave Smith and chief financial officer Jim Doyle were at Red Hill on Thursday going through the Broncos’ books.
Be sure, there are countless people close to the Broncos organisation willing to stand up for Gee, not prepared to let him be made the scapegoat for the club’s cap turmoil.
Any sort of rorting can’t be implemented at a club without the knowledge and tacit approval of others.
The NRL has other problems. The whispers in the corridor of power at ICAC suggest phone taps will reveal another club is cheating the salary cap, with the taps a chance to become public when more evidence is tendered against Eddie O’Beid.
This club also recently let go a staffer involved in recruitment.
While there is nothing criminal about the actitivies from an ICAC perspective, the cap rorting will amount to a large headache for the NRL.
Two clubs in one year? How widespread is it?
None of this is a concern for Hodkinson, who along with Josh Reynolds now gets the chance to secure the Blues their first series since 2005 and then lead the Bulldogs the rest of the way.
He is the feel-good story to emerge in what are very interesting times for the game.
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