The art of the deal; it’s easy if your name is Burgess and you play for Souths

Okay. If you are a South Sydney fan either stop reading or really, really try hard to be fair and balanced in the opinion you form after reading this piece.

I know many Bunnies fans will find that difficult and let’s face it, passions do run high in the burrow. All that ‘kick us out of the league’ and ‘condemn us to hell for eternity’ stuff at the turn of the century was pretty tough to take.

Yet with loyal servants such as Andrew Denton and Ray Martin in the wings waiting to ignite the fire within the supporter base, I guess it was a fait accompli that the cardinal and myrtle would briskly strategise their way back into the competition almost immediately.

To this very day it is great to see the ‘boy genius’ and the ‘human hairpiece’ out at ANZ Stadium most weekends, continuing the passion they extolled on the streets of Sydney in the protest march that took place on November 14 in 2000.

A little later, when a certain gladiator and his rather wealthy business associate became involved, South Sydney morphed into something far removed from the inner city club that became banished from the league.

Subsequently, Souths now stand as a strong and proud foundation club blessed with the resources, infrastructure, and most importantly the financial clout to make an impact on the NRL competition on a consistent basis.

Soak that in Bunnies fans and bask in the glory of your success. Your refusal to adhere to the ‘merge or die’ mantra being spruiked by the powers at be all those years ago sent you to the precipice, but in spades you have returned.

Now that I have softened you up, you must now be prepared to admit that the ‘punishment’ handed down to Sam Burgess early in the week after his insulting comments made towards the governing body and the NRL judiciary is nothing but a farce.

Moreover, it is a proverbial slap over the wrist, reeking of favouritism and intimidation.

After referring to the judicial system as something of a 'Kangaroo Court', Burgess was afforded the pleasure of sharing a cup of coffee with NRL CEO Todd Greenberg, who ran him through some of the quirks, difficulties and misconceptions of the system.

It obviously made things far clearer in Sam's mind and he apparently walked away from the meeting with a more balanced and reasonable view on the processes used to cite, suspend and fine NRL players.

So cordial was the meeting that a $10,000 fine headed the South Sydney forward's way was suspended and despite openly mocking the NRL's judicial processes, all Burgess effectively received in terms of punishment was.....well....a cup of coffee.

Lucky Sam. My question is simple. Why him?

Why was Sam Burgess provided such access to Greenberg and the opportunity for open dialogue, when others before him have not?

A long line of coaches have been whacked financially over the years after making negative comments about referees. Geoff Toovey's famous, "There has to be an investigation!" press conference cost the then Manly Sea Eagles coach 10 grand and never was an invitation extended for discussion or explanation.

Should Greenberg be choosing to handle these matters in the comfort of his local Gloria Jeans outlet in the future, he is going to be one very busy man. He may well be booked in for three or four coffees on a Monday morning should his desire to smoke the peace pipe with erring players become the norm.

His intention to continue to discuss the issues with Burgess over the off-season further complicates the issue and infers that Greenberg believes Big Sam is something of a leader in the game; a man well respected and one through whom a better understanding of the judicial process can be brought to the fans.

Frankly, that is an insult to us all. Burgess has a disciplinary record as long as his arm. On 16 occasions he has been called before the governing body. On 15 of those charges he has either accepted the early guilty plea, been fined or found guilty by the panel.

This season's astonishing decision to reduce his grade two high tackle shot on Matt Moylan and impose a fine, rocked the rugby league world and his suspension from South Sydney's first final for the most courageous of hair pulls on Roosters' Billy Smith pleased fans of any team other than Souths.

It is something of an unenviable record over nine NRL seasons and 181 matches. In fact, it is a trip to the judiciary every 11 games. I guess if anyone should know a great deal about the system it is he.

So a man with a poor NRL disciplinary record, after sitting out the first final thanks to a grubby act, calls out the entire system as a joke. The CEO panders to the player, arranges a coffee and after a token apology suspends the fine.

Moreover, Burgess will now receive special one on one 'counselling' from Greenberg, no doubt a few more coffees, and the rugby league public is expected to believe that the Englishman has received the exact same treatment as any player would in the same circumstances?

Nothing to see here, just move along.