Melbourne Storm star Brandon Smith "regrets" how his off-season comments on a podcast came across.
Smith has barely spent a day out of the headlines since the beginning of November. Kicking off with tours of the North Queensland Cowboys, Dolphins and Gold Coast Titans, the latter of which were public knowledge, Smith then embarked on a tour of the Sydney Roosters.
While the Roosters kept the tour relatively private, Smith did not.
Speaking on the YKTR Sports podcast following his visit to the Roosters, he claimed he wanted to win a premiership at the Sydney Roosters playing or the jersey, while also opening up on an alleged drinking culture at the Storm.
Those comments have been strongly dismissed by the Storm, with head coach Craig Bellamy in particular saying it would be simply impossible for that to be the case while the club has the success that they do, while the club released a statement saying they were "deeply offended" by the comments, and that Smith would exit the club after the 2022 season.
Speaking to 9 News during his return to training as the pre-season got underway in the Victorian capital, Smith said he regretted how his comments came across.
“I just regret how it happened, how it came out," Smith said.
Asked if everything was okay with Bellamy, Smith said yes.
“Yeah mate, gave him a big cuddle. He’s sweet,” he replied.
The Roosters are yet to confirm Smith's signature from 2023 onwards, but it's anticipated the announcement could be made in the coming days.
