Corey Parker announces retirement

[Sproj]

Yeah agree, especially if Wallace can continue his steady improvement.

Wallace is not fit to even be on our bench remember. ;)

 

[mrslong]

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

 

[GCBRONCO]

The saddest part is that he won't get to beat Locky's record. He would have walked it in IMO.

Maybe Locky pushed him...

You know too much....... :spy:

 

[Super Freak]

Broncos legend’s legacy is the contracts he didn’t sign

COREY Parker’s love for the Broncos was defined by the contracts he refused to sign.

They came in the year 2001.

One from Canterbury worth $170,000 and another from the Storm for $180,000.

He gave both fleeting thought but even though he was house hunting at the time and had only a few pennies in the bank he could not find it within him to put pen to paper.

Instead he signed for Brisbane for $80,000.

“It was all I wanted to do,’’ said Parker, who had been craving to wear a Broncos jersey since he was taken to the airport to greet the players after they won a premiership 25 years ago.

“I knew if I could make it here I could make it anywhere and I played for Australia that year.’’

This story won’t shock young players at the Broncos because Parker has told it to most of them. The simple moral, he tells them, is be happy, be settled, look after the club and if you shine you will eventually get what you deserve.

In essence it was the story of his career.

For many years he seemed to be the player who did everything and nothing but then he blossomed into one the game’s finest.

Parker, the man and the player, is as an amalgam of forces new and old.

He was raised in an old-fashioned era and there were days when he and Shane Webcke would be having a deadly serious, young bull-old bull wrestle on the training park while the rest of the group were at the other end of the field.

Parker may have been ruffled and offended but he never backed down. There were times when he resented the pecking order but in later years he grew to realise its benefits.

“That’s how footy was,’’ he once said.

“There was a really good core of older guys. It was sink or swim. It worked for me. It may not work for others.

“I was 18, I might have thought I was the bee’s knees and they might have been trying to bring me down a peg or two, and that might have been needed.’’

Parker was constantly shunned from State of Origin teams in the middle of his career amid whispers that he was a “different’’ character who did not fit the mould. It hurt him.

“I sat on the sidelines for six years burning every time I watched because I really wanted to play,’’ he said.

But opinions mellowed as Parker grew as a player and man.

He magnificent ability to unload in the tackle improved to the point that the great Arthur Beetson would have been proud to own his off-loads.

And, match after match, he made less errors than a forensic tax accountant.

There was never any doubt that Parker was his own man.

This was evident in his decision, for many years, to defy modern trends and shun managers and negotiate his own contracts. A keen student of all things rugby league, he knew what he was worth and argued accordingly, even enjoying the bargaining process.

As far as professionalism went he was the ultimate performer.

Former Broncos coach Anthony Griffin said Parker’s weight management was so skilful he could get to within one gram of the limit set for him.

When Parker took the field, fresh faced and nervous, in his very first game for the Broncos he sensed trouble, and he was right.

He looked at 110kg Warriors prop Ali Lauititi bringing the ball back from a dropout and thought “you are going to try and run over the top of me.’’

And he did, barely breaking stride.

Parker was rocked but he got up, shook himself off, learnt from the experience and moved on.

Rising from setbacks made him what he was.

No Cookies | The Courier Mail

 

[lynx000]

Something about this does not make sense. All indicators were pointing to him playing on and a new contract being negotiated for 1-2 years. Then suddenly he pulls the pin.

I must admit a bit of a sad day for me because he has been one of my favourite players from the time he came into grade. I just hope that he is going out on his terms and that he has not been pushed, because if the latter, I think it is horrible treatment of one of the stalwarts of the club. Because his form is still so good and his body appears to be holding up, I put him into a different category to Hodgo. I hope that he has secured a plumb media job that conflicts with his ability to play on and that is why he is pulling the pin. If that is the case, he well and truly deserves that.

Thank you for a stellar career CP, it won't be the same without you next year. I hope we can go one better than what we did with Hodgo and send you out as a winner.

 

[Super Freak]

Something about this does not make sense. All indicators were pointing to him playing on and a new contract being negotiated for 1-2 years. Then suddenly he pulls the pin.

I must admit a bit of a sad day for me because he has been one of my favourite players from the time he came into grade. I just hope that he is going out on his terms and that he has not been pushed, because if the latter, I think it is horrible treatment of one of the stalwarts of the club. Because his form is still so good and his body appears to be holding up, I put him into a different category to Hodgo. I hope that he has secured a plumb media job that conflicts with his ability to play on and that is why he is pulling the pin. If that is the case, he well and truly deserves that.

Thank you for a stellar career CP, it won't be the same without you next year. I hope we can go one better than what we did with Hodgo and send you out as a winner.

Well Bennett said in the press conference that he was happy to give Parker another year, but Parker ended up deciding it was time to retire. He wanted to go out on his own terms and not be one of those players that played for too long.

But it's possible Bennett wasn't telling the truth there.

 

[Unbreakable]

Lol, you guys are incredible, instead of focusing on how great Parker has been for us and how brave it is to go out on top instead of playing on too long and potentially letting the team down, we're focusing on some hypothetical where Bennett is an evil puppet master that forced Parker to retire a year earlier than he wanted.. Let me guess, he's doing it so he can start Waddell at lock and bring Stagg out of retirement..

 

[mitch222]

Lol, you guys are incredible, instead of focusing on how great Parker has been for us and how brave it is to go out on top instead of playing on too long and potentially letting the team down, we're focusing on some hypothetical where Bennett is an evil puppet master that forced Parker to retire a year earlier than he wanted.. Let me guess, he's doing it so he can start Waddell at lock and bring Stagg out of retirement..

nah, just Waddell at lock, Reed still at centre, and he is slotting Beau Scott into the second row

 

[lynx000]

Lol, you guys are incredible, instead of focusing on how great Parker has been for us and how brave it is to go out on top instead of playing on too long and potentially letting the team down, we're focusing on some hypothetical where Bennett is an evil puppet master that forced Parker to retire a year earlier than he wanted.. Let me guess, he's doing it so he can start Waddell at lock and bring Stagg out of retirement..

Since when are we not allowed to explore topical issues on an internet forum discussion site. FMD

 

[Nashy]

Lol, you guys are incredible, instead of focusing on how great Parker has been for us and how brave it is to go out on top instead of playing on too long and potentially letting the team down, we're focusing on some hypothetical where Bennett is an evil puppet master that forced Parker to retire a year earlier than he wanted.. Let me guess, he's doing it so he can start Waddell at lock and bring Stagg out of retirement..

I think it's the fact that we have no direct replacement on the horizon.

"But Jai Arrow guuuyzzaaa"

Not tested. Not a replacement.

There are plenty of questions.

 

[Unbreakable]

I think it's the fact that we have no direct replacement on the horizon.

"But Jai Arrow guuuyzzaaa"

Not tested. Not a replacement.

There are plenty of questions.

Can we potentially give Bennett a bit of credit? Do you really think he doesn't have a plan of some sort?

If he could turn our shit pile of a roster into a Grand Final team in the space of a few months, I'm pretty sure he can figure out how to replace a single player, no matter how great he is.

 

[Culhwch]

It's interesting that that article mentioned Parker first coming in and his relationship with Webcke, because this reminds me a lot of Webcke hanging up the boots. He could have easily played another couple of years, but he choose to go out on his terms, at the top of his game. With no evidence to the contrary, I have to imagine that that is what Corey is doing as well.

It's a shame to see him go, but he'll easily go down as one of the best forwards the Broncos ever produced. Exactly the type of player you want wearing your team's jersey. If only we had more like him.

 

[Nashy]

Can we potentially give Bennett a bit of credit? Do you really think he doesn't have a plan of some sort?

If he could turn our shit pile of a roster into a Grand Final team in the space of a few months, I'm pretty sure he can figure out how to replace a single player, no matter how great he is.

Absolutely. But since he announced it all of 5 hours ago, can we have some time to go through our thoughts on the situation?

 

[Syklone]

Any idea on if we're planing on signing anyone this century? Or are we just planing on releasing and retiring all of our top 25.

Why would you say this, then have a dig at others posting similar questions a few posts later?

 

[Super Freak]

It's interesting that that article mentioned Parker first coming in and his relationship with Webcke, because this reminds me a lot of Webcke hanging up the boots. He could have easily played another couple of years, but he choose to go out on his terms, at the top of his game. With no evidence to the contrary, I have to imagine that that is what Corey is doing as well.

It's a shame to see him go, but he'll easily go down as one of the best forwards the Broncos ever produced. Exactly the type of player you want wearing your team's jersey. If only we had more like him.

If only Kennedy had the same heart and determination as Parker..

 

[Unbreakable]

Absolutely. But since he announced it all of 5 hours ago, can we have some time to go through our thoughts on the situation?

Absolutely, I'm just not a fan of posts implying that this is somehow Bennett's doing, it's just ludicrous.

 

[Unbreakable]

Why would you say this, then have a dig at others posting similar questions a few posts later?

Poorly worded on my behalf, I wasn't implying that we forced him to retire, only that he was retiring.

 

[lynx000]

History speaks for itself Unbreakable, although you might have been around long enough to be aware of it. In WB's clubs it is usually WB that is moving a player on. He did it to Lewis, he did it to Gilly, he did it to Hodgo last year and if you give me time I can nominate some more. Tried to do it to Hancock, but he was too stubborn to cop the tip and played on. Did it to Barba.

Also, did you see the tweet from Chris Garry:-

Breaking: with @PMalone_CMail Broncos will announce future of captain Corey Parker today. Parker wanted extension but now expected to retire

From Chris Garry.

Sort of implies to me that there is more to the story than Parker have a Road to Damascus moment and suddenly deciding to retire.