NRL legend Greg Inglis has spoken about the Storm’s salary cap cheating scandal, admitting he still feels like a three-time premiership winner.
Inglis and his Melbourne teammates had their 2007 and 2009 titles stripped from them after the club was found to be rorting the cap across multiple seasons, marking one of the darkest periods in the sport’s century-long history.
Greg Inglis poses with the 2007 trophy. Getty
The decision was made early in the 2010 season, which saw the Storm also lose their competition points and not allowed to compete that year.
Players from those two grand final-winning sides have spoken at length over the years, believing they still won the premierships and Inglis is no different.
“We still believe that we won those premierships,” he told The Howie Games.
“I just couldn’t believe it. I was in disbelief, it was massive.
“As a player, you sit there and think about all the hard work you put in, all the blood, sweat and tears and the injuries you go through. For that to happen – the club did the wrong thing – but at the end of the day, we’re all sticking together.
“To us, we won those and I’ve still got the rings at home.”
Inglis would leave the Storm at the end of 2010 to join the Rabbitohs, while the other members of the group labelled the ‘big four’ – Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk – all remained in the purple kit for many years to come.
The hulking Queensland champion said he felt leaving Melbourne was the right thing to do, given he was the last player of the group to sign a long-term deal.
“When we were going through it all, I remember I was the last person to sign those long-term deals,” Inglis explained on the podcast.
“There was Cam, Bill and Cooper and then I signed. I thought it was the right thing for me to go and ask Craig [Bellamy] ‘can I leave to go elsewhere’ and out of the tough conversations I had to have, that was the hardest, but I just said I think it would be easier for me to leave and find another club.”
Inglis went on to have success with South Sydney, leading the foundation club to a drought-breaking 2014 grand final win over the Bulldogs.
Discover more from BrandedNepal | Shop Nepal’s Best Local & Global Brands
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
