The day Craig Bellamy threatened to sack Cameron Munster
Cameron Smith has great affection and respect for Cam Munster but his patience was pushed to the limit at times and he feared the playmaker could become a wasted talent.
NRL
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Queensland playmaker Cameron Munster was threatened with the sack by the Melbourne Storm after his life drifted off the rails.
The stark revelation was made by Munster’s Storm captain Cameron Smith in his new autobiography The Storm Within, which was released on Monday.
Smith describes Munster as a “loveable ratbag” but said his career reached crisis point during the 2017 World Cup when he had an “altercation’’ with Ben Hunt on the drink in Darwin.
“I wasn’t there when it happened,’’ Smith wrote. “I was just told that some of the Emus — the players who trained all week but were not in the starting team — went for beers and had a disagreement.
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“It was a bit of push and shove, nothing more, but the incident got out to the papers and turned into an unwelcome story.”
Smith chastised Munster with the line “there are standards you need to adhere to”.
“But Bellyache (Craig Bellamy) was a little more forceful,” Smith wrote.
“When he returned to Melbourne after the World Cup, he explained that if those misdemeanours continued, his contract could be torn up. Put simply, we didn’t want people like that involved with our organisation. No sugar coating.’’
Munster has claimed he has learnt from that episode and become a more disciplined man.
It is clear in the book that Smith has great respect for Munster’s ability and a soft spot for his larrikin instincts but was concerned he could become a wasted talent.
“Cameron’s a ratbag and we loved him for it,” Smith wrote. “He enjoyed a good time away from footy but at times he went down the wrong path. The thing that was really good about him was that it never affected his footy.
“If he made a poor decision he was upfront and honest with everyone. If he wasn’t aware of his actions you would be concerned. He always genuinely cared for the club and his teammates.
“Whenever he was around training he was always doing something to help the team — it was never for his own benefit. But that didn’t mean he never needed to be pulled into line. A few times it was me who did that.’’
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