![For how much longer will Ben Hunt don the red v? Picture by Anna Warr For how much longer will Ben Hunt don the red v? Picture by Anna Warr](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/181794477/399f2b33-a169-4628-ada8-359b8420791c.jpg/r0_0_5184_2926_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Welcome to The Debate, where the Mercury sport team discusses the big issues in Illawarra, national and international sport.
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With all the drama surrounding Ben Hunt at St George Illawarra Dragons this week, sports writers JORDAN WARRREN and BILLIE ELLIOTT discuss how this is becoming a more common issue in a number of codes across the globe.
Whilst fans watch their sporting teams as a passion, for the players and staff off the pitch, sport is a business and a number of factors come into play when deciding to sign and break contracts.
Dragons CEO Ryan Webb said that he wanted further clarification from Hunt and that he and 2024 coach Shane Flanagan needed to sit down with the disgruntled skipper and convince him to stay until the end of his contract in 2025.
![Shane Flanagan's first job is to keep Ben Hunt. Picture by John Veage Shane Flanagan's first job is to keep Ben Hunt. Picture by John Veage](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/181794477/4ec170d2-2ffc-45f5-9a2f-ace67f7461d8.jpg/r0_230_4134_2554_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
But is there any chance Hunt will actually stay? In the football world, we've seen the two best players in the world for the better part of two decades in Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo move on from their clubs that they achieved so much at for bigger coin elsewhere.
Not suggesting Hunt wants bigger coin - that does not seem to be the reason in that case. But at the end of the day, if you are not happy at work, you will not be able to put your best foot forward.
Messi could not be afforded by his former club Barcelona, and Ronaldo was wanted out by coach Erik ten Hag at Manchester United due to the Dutch coach wishing to play his own style that Ronaldo did not fit in to.
At the end of the day, sport is a business. Players will always search for greener grass (like Hunt) and backroom staff will always want to profit.
Do you expect to see Hunt see out the remainder of the season or be there in 2024 under new coach Flanagan Billie?
ELLIOTT: I can see Hunt staying until the end of the season but will quickly leave at the end of 2023.
He re-signed his contract under former coach Anthony Griffin and you can tell he wanted to stay under him.
Read more: McGregor is excited about halves pairing
Hunt wants to make the most of the last couple years of his career and at this point he doesn't care about how much he is getting paid. He wants to finish on a high and Flanagan doesn't seem to be providing what the 33-year-old wants at the latter stages of his career.
He made it quite clear that during Griffin's tenure he would not be keen on a rebuild should the Dragons replace the former coach and this is exactly what happened. So from that point of view you can't really be surprised.
I see Hunt going to a Queensland team. That's where he and his family are from and he would want to finish his season up there.
Do you think Hunt will stay in New South Wales or make the switch to Queensland Jordan?
WARREN: I can't see him staying at the Dragons for the remainder of his contract.
It makes sense that the Queensland Origin star would want to move back to his home state. The Titans are the rumoured club to want his signature but you would imagine that it would have to be a fairly lucrative offer to get him to the Sunshine State.
The Hunt saga reminds me of Milos Ninkovic in the A-League. The Serbian Sydney FC legend at the time did not want to relocate his family from Sydney and the offer on the table from the Sky Blues was not good enough according to the former World Cup star. So in order to continue to play at the highest level, he accepted an offer from cross-town rivals Western Sydney to the distain of FC fans.
![Family came first for former SFC star Milos Ninkovic. It's a crucial factor in player contracts. Picture by Marina Neil Family came first for former SFC star Milos Ninkovic. It's a crucial factor in player contracts. Picture by Marina Neil](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/181794477/4b17a5ff-80f7-48de-be39-376432c0aca4.jpg/r0_135_5081_3003_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Ninkovic - like Hunt - is just another example of how many factors like family come first in decisions like the one we've seen from the red v captain this week.
With all this in mind, should players be held more accountable for their contracts Billie?
ELLIOTT: Players definitely need to be held more accountable for their contracts, but you should be granted permission to leave the club if the coach suddenly changes.
If you have signed a contract with a coach, it is expected that you will be coached by them for the next few years. In the situation that a coach is sacked, you should be able to leave the contract and find somewhere else.
If you sign under a certain coach expecting to play under them and you want out of it, I believe the club should let you look for another club. There's no point staying at a club you aren't happy with.
When you sign a contract you need to consider every possible aspect. If it's not going to benefit you and your family why sign at that club in the first place or sign a long-term deal. In this case you should have to stick with the club you're at and make do with past choices.
WARREN: It's a great point you raise. Should there be a dramatic coaching change - like we have seen at the Dragons - it creates a different dynamic for the player.
Hunt may have been told by the Dragons board that Griffin was going to be backed for a longer period. But at the same time, a coach should not be protected from sacking should the performance and results of the team not be headed in the right direction.
At the Dragons, that was clearly the case. Griffin catered to Hunt's preferred position in the halves but at some point you would think that he would move to his Origin position in hooker under interim coach Ryan Carr or new coach Flanagan.
The player should play in any position for their team and the team should not be held hostage by any player.
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