Former Broncos skipper Corey Parker has defended Ben Hunt's decision to leave Brisbane to link up with the St George Illawarra Dragons on a lucrative five-year deal starting in 2018.
Some have questioned the motives surrounding the halfback's move, but Parker moved quickly to support his ex-teammate.
In an ever-changing world, the 347-game veteran said modern-day sport had become a business and big deals such as this were only going to become more frequent.
"There's a good opportunity for Ben Hunt to follow his dream. He's got a young family now so he's got to start looking out for himself and his family," Parker said.
"One thing I have learnt over a period of time is the game is a big wheel and it'll keep going with or without you. Ben has got a year left at Brisbane as we all know and hopefully it's a good one.
"One thing for sure we'll know this year is that there'll be some coaches leave, there will be some players leave clubs either mid-year or at the end of the year – it's all part of what we do. It's a professional business.
"Yes, we've heard about the Ben Hunt story, but it won't be the last of the year. I think as a fan, at least they know now moving forward what's going on. It's not a mid-year thing; the fans can get on with their business as can the players."
Speaking at Rugby League Central after being named an NRL Ambassador for 2017, Parker also weighed into the debate surrounding who should replace him as Broncos skipper this season.
The former lock forward said there was no shortage of candidates and would back whatever decision Broncos coach Wayne Bennett made.
"You've got Darius Boyd who has obviously been spoken about a fair bit and Adam Blair is a really good leader. I think Andrew McCullough would do a good job, but take your pick really," he said.
"One thing I do know is that over a long period of time, Brisbane has had a really good senior playing group. Any one of those guys would fit the mould quite well.
"For the Broncos, it'll be who Wayne thinks will do the best job, so we'll have to wait and see who that is."
