TO hear Cronulla tell it, you’d have thought they discovered Jack Bird sitting on a blanket in Pitt Street begging for loose change.
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The Berkeley junior has copped some flak from Cronulla fans, and it hasn’t been helped by the club’s public dummy-spit over losing the young star to the Broncos. A preemptive media release confirming Bird’s departure, which went to great lengths to list the 22-year-old’s achievements since joining the club, not only broke a long-standing gentlemen’s agreement, was utterly classless.
The fact is the club poached him from St George Illawarra at a time when they were wooden-spooners and desperate enough to promise a 19-year-old a spot in first grade. It was Bird himself who provided the healthy return on that investment. He could’ve quite comfortably stayed at his junior club but he backed his ability and went to the team that ran last for an opportunity.
His performance against Penrith showed he is fully committed to the Sharks until the end of this season. That’s all he owes them.
Mitch Jennings
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
