CONTROVERSIAL Broncos target Matt Lodge has gone out of his way this year to caution young rugby league players against making the mistakes he did.
The NRL is understood to be willing to register Lodge as a player again, almost two years after he forced entry to a Manhattan apartment in a threatening manner.
The Broncos have yet to submit a contract for Lodge to the NRL, but hope the big prop commits to playing for them next year.
The 22-year-old former Tigers prop played successfully for Redcliffe this year and impressed many of the Broncos players with the quality of his training sessions alongside them.
But Lodge especially won over Broncos CEO Paul White, for reasons unrelated to the stock of trade of a 120kg prop’s hit-ups and tackles.
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Matt Lodge during Brisbane Broncos training. Pic Darren England.
“The work he has done off the field has never been in the public domain, but his efforts in speaking to community groups, and young men in particular, has been impressive,’’ White said.
“We run game development programs and our players have opportunities to work with young rugby league players. He’s telling his story, so they take heed and don’t go off the rails.
“He’s told his story in a real way. He’s done that off his own bat. It’s not one or two examples either.
“He’s prepared to give back to the community. I think he’s quite enjoyed that. His message can be a powerful message. Young men and women make mistakes. The problem with it being high profile sport (is that) you pay a price and his price has been two years away (from the NRL).’’
Lodge, ordered by a New York judge earlier this year to pay $US1.23 million ($1.6 million) in damages to four people, has legal matters in the United States to tie up.
“He’s taken total responsibility for his life, good bad and indifferent. He’s a decent young man and accepts what he did (in Manhattan),’’ White said.
Matt Lodge in action for the Dolphins.
In July, Lodge told
The Sunday Mail that he was considering going back to Sydney to combine a landscaping job with park football.
“We’d love to have him with us,’’ White said.
“There’s still a bit of work to be done. He needs to be reassured we’re the right place for him — and we are. We are really confident in who he is and what he can do for us.’’
Lodge, who played 12 NRL games with the Tigers, was touted last week by Bronco Josh McGuire as a NSW State of Origin player within two years if he was able to sustain a shot at NRL level.
