In the wake of one of Sam Thaiday's finest performances in years Broncos halfback Ben Hunt has called on club officials to re-sign the bullocking forward and allow him to finish his career in Brisbane.
Teammates lauded Thaiday's ongoing battle with Jared Waerea-Hargreaves last Friday night as the inspiration behind their 22-18 golden point win but after 13 seasons at the Broncos he remains unsigned beyond 2015.
The 29-year-old recently denied speculation that he had already penned a new deal to remain at the club but in his column for Big League this week Hunt insists Thaiday's retention is a necessity.
"He has been a great player for a long period of time and even though he had a setback, he is back to his best form and it’s wonderful to see," Hunt tells Big League. "It’s that sort of attitude that we want at the club.
"The Broncos had a fabulous culture when we won all those premierships and had a great bunch of players and played a great brand of football.
"Sammy really displayed that brand of football that we really want to play and that passion for the game and really wanting to win for the team.
"It’s why everyone wants to see Sam finish his career at the Broncos.
"It would be massive to have him stay, because he has been a great player here for a long time. Everyone loves him and he is a great bloke and footballer, so I really want him to hang around."
Although Hunt was the man who clinched the two competition points for the Broncos last week with his try in the dying seconds of the first period of golden point, the crafty half said that it was the grunt work up front by Thaiday and the aggressive way he attacked the Roosters forwards that set Brisbane on course for victory.
"He really set the tone for the crowd early in the game with a couple of big hits and got the crowd involved," Hunt says.
"The way Sammy took on the Roosters’ forward pack was inspiring for everyone in our team and I firmly believe the way he played got us over the line.
"It was also unbelievable to be on the field and watch his rivalry with Jared Waerea-Hargreaves. Waerea-Hargreaves is a great player and he likes to play with a lot of passion and aggression, so it was awesome to see Sammy go out there and get stuck into him.
"That’s something that everyone loves to see in their team-mates."
The Round 7 issue of Big League is on sale now at newsagents and at the ground. Digital version is also available via Zinio.
