Fox in the henhouse: Addo-Carr’s Canterbury sales pitch to Storm mates
By Christian Nicolussi
May 7, 2021 — 12.42pmMelbourne’s six-try hero Josh Addo-Carr has started his Canterbury recruitment drive after Storm teammates revealed the winger had been selling the merits of a move to Belmore.
And Storm hooker Brandon Smith said he had spoken with Bulldogs coach Trent Barrett during a chance meeting last week.
Addo-Carr was brilliant during the Storm’s 50-0 demolition of South Sydney on Thursday night, claiming the first six-try haul in rugby league since Newtown’s Jack Troy in achieved the feat in 1951.
The player known as the “Fox” will play for the Bulldogs next year, and after catching up over breakfast with Barrett last week, he hopes a few more Storm players will follow him.
Smith, who is considering a change of club next year, said he had bumped into Barrett and Addo-Carr at a cafe. The Storm utility said the chance to continue playing with the winger was appealing.
“It’s tempting when he scores six tries like that,” Smith said. “We haven’t sorted anything out like that [moving to Belmore]. The Storm are pretty stubborn with keeping me. I don’t mind."
“I was going to brekkie at a place we usually go to brekkie in Richmond. Josh was there with him [Barrett]. I introduced myself to him, we spoke and he offered me ‘$4m for three months’, so I thought, ‘I’ll take it’,” Smith joked.
“We’d spoken before. He gave me a call a while ago, but that was during the off-season when the Storm had allowed me to talk to other clubs."
“This was nothing along the lines of what my future is. It was an innocent meeting. We didn’t go into any details. He seems like a really good guy."
“But Joshy has been in everyone’s ear, he wants a lot of these players [here] to follow him and knows what they’re building at the club. There must be something special going on. That Matt Burton will attract a lot of players, and they’ve signed Brent Naden."
“The thing Josh offers is not just good value on the field - he can turn nothing into a try - but it’s his energy when you’re going to training, when you start the pre-season. It’s infectious, and it makes everyone happy around the club. He’s a guy you want to be around all the time.”
Smith is contracted to the Storm until the end of next year, but has been given the chance to find another club for 2022 as Harry Grant is viewed as the long-term No.9.
Melbourne have made it clear they will only cut Smith loose if they are able to sign a player of similar quality and experience, which will prove difficult given the Kiwi’s impact for the Storm.
Addo-Carr has no regrets about his big-money move to Canterbury despite near-constant success at Melbourne.
The international winger was meant to be in Sydney this year for family reasons, but the summer negotiations descended into a “shitfight” and he returned to Melbourne.
“I know what it takes to win premierships and I know what it takes to be a consistent football player. I love helping people, and if I can do that next year [at Canterbury], then happy days,” he said.
“They’re building and they definitely try hard.
“That’s what you need in rugby league games, players competing in everything. They need to fix a few things up but I’m sure they’ll keep improving every week.
“I’m excited to go there next year and I’m excited for the challenge. I moved to Melbourne to step out of my comfort zone, but why can’t I go to Canterbury and build something special?”
Addo-Carr knows it will be sad farewelling Melbourne, the club that helped turn him into a top player.
“If you get an opportunity to go to Melbourne take it, because they’ll turn you into the footy player you’ve always dreamt of being,” he said.
