‘I have the club’s support, I think:’ Ryan Papenhuyzen’s shock at being shopped to NRL rival

Ryan Papenhuyzen is keen to track down the third party who recently shopped him to NRL rivals but hopes he has support within the club.

Melbourne star Ryan Papenhuyzen isn’t entirely sure whether it was someone within the Storm or a third party who recently shopped him to a rival club.

Regardless, he is driven by a desire to make them eat their words as he prepares to step up his recovery from a broken ankle in coming weeks.

Papenhuyzen was stunned but not entirely surprised by a weekend report which suggested a rival club had been asked whether they were interested in taking over his contract, which has a further two years to run.

Rugby league, he concedes, is a business and Papenhuyzen through no fault of his own has spent large chunks of the past 18 months on the sideline.

After the report was aired, he was fortified by the support he received within the club – coach Craig Bellamy and head of football Frank Ponissi both called to reassure him he was part of their plans, as did several teammates.

However, he knows the only way he can fully silence the rumours is by returning to the field and playing the way he knows he can.

Ryan Papenhuyzen has the full support of Storm hierarchy. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

“You just realise it is a bit of a business don’t you,” Papenhuyzen said.

“It is a harsh industry at times. I have the club’s support, I think. I think it was just someone within the club or a third party – they are just doing their job and seeing what is available.

“The way I see it, I know they will be making a mistake if they did (move me on). So if they genuinely think that then good on them … but people are wrong sometimes.

“It is one of those ones where I am like it is my job to come back now and do what I do, make them eat their words I reckon.

“I would like to know who the third party was but at the same time what is the point? Like I said, it is a business at the end of the day.

“So you are trying to move pieces around and get your best squad in there. I am doing my best to come back and be in a spot where I can play that footy I was playing before I was injured.

“I am going to trust the work I do. If they see it different, then they see it different.”

On that front, there is good news. Papenhuyzen visited his surgeon this week and was told he can start walking without the aid of a moon boot next week.

He was in Geelong on Wednesday returning to his roots in touch football, running clinics and presenting a cheque for $13,000 to the Geelong Touch Footy Club thanks to the DoorDash Footy Cash prize.

Ryan Papenhuyzen is fighting back from another injury. Picture: Adam Head

Papenhuyzen was a handy touch footballer himself, playing for Australia alongside Newcastle superstar Kalyn Ponga. Those experiences laid the platform for him to become one of rugby league’s genuine excitement machines and he remains confident those days will return.

“Had a good meeting with the surgeon yesterday and everything is going really smoothly,” Papenhuyzen said.

“Quite a bit of difference from 12 months ago with the knee but I am aware at the same time that can change as I progress into more activity.

“But so far, so good. He (the surgeon) said he was happy for me start getting out of the boot now and start weening off it.

“Two hours out of it one day, the next week six hours out of it – getting out of it to get used to walking around on the foot again.

“He sort of said it is going to be a process of the next 12 months of waking up, looking after it, doing your exercises and then by the night, having a good recovery.

“It probably will swell up – that is just the nature of it. He said just stay on top of it and he was really happy with where I am at. So it was good to hear.”

Once he is back, he will return with fresh motivation to prove his doubters wrong.

“Now it is just about trusting myself and having confidence in myself that I can get back there,” he said. “Whatever happens, happens. I am still contracted and still have the opportunity to come out and prove them wrong.”

Originally published as ‘I have the club’s support, I think:’ Ryan Papenhuyzen’s shock at being shopped to NRL rival