3 minute read
Sam Burgess will be remembered as one of the best Englishmen to play in the NRL, but he endured a tough run in the year before his retirement.
SAM BURGESS'S HORRIBLE 15 MONTHS
* September 2018 - Burgess is embroiled in a lewd photo scandal, amid reports two South Sydney players had exposed themselves to a woman on an away trip via his social media account. The Englishman insisted he'd not sexted anyone and all players were cleared of any wrongdoing by the Rabbitohs.
* January 2019 - Report emerges that Burgess has split with wife Phoebe, just weeks after the birth of their second child.
* April - Burgess is named South Sydney's new captain after Greg Inglis is forced to retire by ongoing injury issues.
* June - Requires a clean out of his shoulder. It initially only rules him out for two matches but his recovery lingers and he ends up missing almost two months.
* July - Hospitalised with complications after shoulder surgery and a drip is inserted into his heart to fight infection.
* August - Hit with a grade-two high tackle charge for a shot on Matt Moylan in his return match. Controversially has it downgraded at the NRL judiciary, allowing him to escape with a fine. He ultimately spends more time on the sideline with a quad injury.
* September - Charged over a hair pull on Sydney Roosters' Billy Smith. Would have escaped with a fine, but misses a finals match due to two prior offences in 2019. Subsequently labels the NRL's judiciary a kangaroo court, earning him a suspended $10,000 fine from the league. Is injured in the dying stages of South Sydney's preliminary final loss to Canberra.
* October 9 - Forced to pull out of England's end-of-season matches with a shoulder injury, as concerns grow over his future.
* October 20 - His father-in-law applies for an AVO against the South Sydney star, as the fall out from his split with his wife continues. The application will be heard in November.
* October 30 - Burgess announces his immediate retirement from rugby league, owing to a career-ending shoulder injury.
