NRL halves, Adam Reynolds target of scathing attack from English legend
Nathan Cleary and Luke Keary may be career-best form but that hasn’t stopped harsh criticism from a former English star over the standard of NRL halves. One player, in particular, was reserved for a special spray.
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Great Britain legend Garry Schofield has castigated the standard of Aussie halves before controversially claiming South Sydney skipper Adam Reynolds was playing more like Hollywood actor Burt Reynolds.
In a scathing attack, Schofield, who also played 56 games during stints with Balmain (1985-87) and Wests (1989), said “pretty ordinary” NRL halves “seem worried about taking responsibility” and were leaving fans “being served half measures”.
Reynolds was the main target of Schofield.
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“I chuckle to myself when I watch Souths captain Adam Reynolds, who has played Origin for New South Wales,’’ Schofield said.
“I think of him as Burt Reynolds, because for much of the time he looks like he’s on a film set, standing around, waiting to get the directors’ call to do something.”
The comments drew an immediate rebuke from Reynolds’ manager, Steve Gillis, and Souths chief executive, Blake Solly.
A tongue-in-cheek Gillis said: “Adam has told me he’s interested in going into movies once his career concludes but in the meantime he is happy holding up his gloves in the world’s premier rugby league competition on a weekly basis.
“He is highly regarded and is a premiership-winning player and captain of a foundation club. He is a prolific point-scorer and has been brave enough to step into the Origin arena and handle himself with aplomb.”
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Solly also fired back at Schofield, declaring: “Garry loves to make controversial statements about current players. This looks like another one of those.
“Adam’s achievements with the Rabbitohs speak for themselves — close to 200 first grade games, over 1500 points, an NRL premiership and the captaincy.”
Ironically, Burt Reynolds became a Souths fan through knowing Rabbitohs co-owner and Academy Award winner Russell Crowe. The pair starred together in a 1999 movie, Mystery, Alaska.
Crowe’s only statement on the Reynolds subject was: “It’s a pointless opinion not worth commenting on.”
It wasn’t just Reynolds that Schofield admonished, it was most NRL halfbacks and five-eighths, including stars Nathan Cleary, Mitchell Pearce, Jack Wighton and Luke Keary.
Schofield spoke glowingly about former halves Bob Fulton, Wally Lewis, Terry Lamb, Peter Sterling, Tommy Raudonikis, Brad Fittler, Brett Kenny, Ricky Stuart, Allan Langer, Cliff Lyons, Steve Mortimer, Des Hasler, Greg Alexander, Andrew and Matthew Johns, Darren Lockyer, Brett Kimmorley, Johnathan Thurston and Cooper Cronk.
“I watch as many matches as I possibly can and I don’t think many of the current crop are up there with the sixes and sevens coming off the production line between the 1960s and 1990s,” Schofield told England’s League Express magazine.
“These days, Canberra’s Jack Wighton, the Roosters’ Luke Keary, Manly’s Daly Cherry-Evans and Melbourne’s Cameron Munster have all played for Australia.
“You also hear rave reviews for the likes of Kyle Flanagan at the Roosters, Nathan Cleary at Penrith and Mitchell Pearce at Newcastle. But to me, none of them are a patch on the players I’ve mentioned previously.
“I’m not alone in thinking that because there are plenty of Aussie pundits, and quite a few of them are former halfbacks, who are saying similar things. I reckon rugby league fans are being served half measures when it comes to stands-offs and scrum halves these days.”
Originally published as NRL halves, Adam Reynolds target of scathing attack from English legend