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Final game in NRL for Roosters legend Craig Fitzgibbon
By Andrew Webster September 05, 2009 12:00AM
WHEN he starts the slow walk tomorrow afternoon, the shadows lengthening across the Sydney Football Stadium turf as the sun sets on his final day as a Rooster, there is every chance the tears will come for Craig Fitzgibbon.
He went into the match against the Knights in May knowing he had agreed to join Hull from next year, but had only told coach Brad Fittler.
Afterwards in the sheds, with his ankle and collarbone screaming like banshees after a heavy defeat, Fittler prompted him to tell the boys.
"All I said was, 'I'm going to England'," Fitzgibbon recalls. "That's all I could get out. I knew if I kept going, I'd rattle up. I had to leave it at that because I was getting too emotional. Afterwards, the boys were asking, 'Well, where are you going?' "
The word "retirement" has been linked to the 32-year-old Fitzgibbon for so long now, it's almost surreal that his final match has arrived.
He has graciously accepted one-year deals for the past three seasons as the Roosters wrung every single cent out from their salary cap. England was never considered an option. But this season, when Hull presented themselves, he took it.
"It was wishful thinking, but I thought the end would be a golden fairytale," Fitzgibbon says. "I'd play as long as I wanted with the Roosters until I decided it wasn't to be. It's hard to be a priority for a club when you're 32. The Roosters were always respectful with me and honest. But this time around, I made the decision. I wasn't told to leave. I just didn't feel comfortable sitting around and waiting (to re-sign) again. The harsh reality is I would've waited and it would have been a tough deal. I had to be fair on myself. I'm not dirty."
What Fitzgibbon is slightly concerned about is perception. He is leaving the club he's served for a decade and the joint has hit rock-bottom. Bottom of the ladder after a season littered with too many off-field misdemeanours to mention. Indeed, Setaimata Sa's alleged drunken rampage at the Coogee Bay Hotel last Sunday night was merely the exclamation mark on the season from hell.
"From the outside looking in, it looks like there's a clean-up going on - and I'm part of the clean-up," he says. Which, of course, doesn't ring true. Fitzgibbon is one of the game's true cleanskins, although he laughs when you mention this. "Because I haven't got caught!" he roars.
That said, you can understand if Fitzgibbon is slightly livid at the behaviour of some of his teammates. While he's continued to be the consummate clubman and professional, others alongside him have not.
"All of us have to put our hands up and take responsibility for what's happened," he says. "It irks me when people sit back and take pot shots at the senior players and our leadership of the club. It's a collective issue, and people who aren't in the organisation don't understand. you can make an assumption, but until you've been involved ... but it's been hard.
"Someone asked me do we have a boozy culture. The initial response is, 'No'. But when you sit back and digest what's happened this year, we've obviously got some issues with our culture because we keep slipping up. Including what happened with Setaimata Sa the other day, there's no doubt that the club has a lot of work to do. Things have to change. Things are going to change."
While Fitzgibbon won't be around to witness it, he believed the tough times the tri-colours have endured of late will harden them up in the future.
"I tell you, some of the young guys who have walked into this storm, when everything gets sorted out, they're going to be super footy players," he insists. "It's twisted logic, but I think it will (help them). When someone stuffs up with an alcohol-related incident, they automatically get tagged as a bad person. They might be a bad drunk, but they're not necessarily a bad person."
Fitzgibbon says he will fondly look on from afar as his club pulls itself out of the abyss, but when the lengthening shadows turn into night, the reality is the problem will no longer be his.
while it's easy at these times to crank up the projector and look over his sparkling career - from Dapto junior to Origin and Test star - Fitzgibbon is not racking the cue yet.
"I'm not quite ready to look at the scrapbook yet," he says. "If I start reminiscing, I'll start winding down. I'm going over to England to be competitive. The hardest thing in making the decision knowing in my head I can stay here and play footy and be competitive. I want to make an impact."
Final game in NRL for Roosters legend Craig Fitzgibbon
By Andrew Webster September 05, 2009 12:00AM
WHEN he starts the slow walk tomorrow afternoon, the shadows lengthening across the Sydney Football Stadium turf as the sun sets on his final day as a Rooster, there is every chance the tears will come for Craig Fitzgibbon.
He went into the match against the Knights in May knowing he had agreed to join Hull from next year, but had only told coach Brad Fittler.
Afterwards in the sheds, with his ankle and collarbone screaming like banshees after a heavy defeat, Fittler prompted him to tell the boys.
"All I said was, 'I'm going to England'," Fitzgibbon recalls. "That's all I could get out. I knew if I kept going, I'd rattle up. I had to leave it at that because I was getting too emotional. Afterwards, the boys were asking, 'Well, where are you going?' "
The word "retirement" has been linked to the 32-year-old Fitzgibbon for so long now, it's almost surreal that his final match has arrived.
He has graciously accepted one-year deals for the past three seasons as the Roosters wrung every single cent out from their salary cap. England was never considered an option. But this season, when Hull presented themselves, he took it.
"It was wishful thinking, but I thought the end would be a golden fairytale," Fitzgibbon says. "I'd play as long as I wanted with the Roosters until I decided it wasn't to be. It's hard to be a priority for a club when you're 32. The Roosters were always respectful with me and honest. But this time around, I made the decision. I wasn't told to leave. I just didn't feel comfortable sitting around and waiting (to re-sign) again. The harsh reality is I would've waited and it would have been a tough deal. I had to be fair on myself. I'm not dirty."
What Fitzgibbon is slightly concerned about is perception. He is leaving the club he's served for a decade and the joint has hit rock-bottom. Bottom of the ladder after a season littered with too many off-field misdemeanours to mention. Indeed, Setaimata Sa's alleged drunken rampage at the Coogee Bay Hotel last Sunday night was merely the exclamation mark on the season from hell.
"From the outside looking in, it looks like there's a clean-up going on - and I'm part of the clean-up," he says. Which, of course, doesn't ring true. Fitzgibbon is one of the game's true cleanskins, although he laughs when you mention this. "Because I haven't got caught!" he roars.
That said, you can understand if Fitzgibbon is slightly livid at the behaviour of some of his teammates. While he's continued to be the consummate clubman and professional, others alongside him have not.
"All of us have to put our hands up and take responsibility for what's happened," he says. "It irks me when people sit back and take pot shots at the senior players and our leadership of the club. It's a collective issue, and people who aren't in the organisation don't understand. you can make an assumption, but until you've been involved ... but it's been hard.
"Someone asked me do we have a boozy culture. The initial response is, 'No'. But when you sit back and digest what's happened this year, we've obviously got some issues with our culture because we keep slipping up. Including what happened with Setaimata Sa the other day, there's no doubt that the club has a lot of work to do. Things have to change. Things are going to change."
While Fitzgibbon won't be around to witness it, he believed the tough times the tri-colours have endured of late will harden them up in the future.
"I tell you, some of the young guys who have walked into this storm, when everything gets sorted out, they're going to be super footy players," he insists. "It's twisted logic, but I think it will (help them). When someone stuffs up with an alcohol-related incident, they automatically get tagged as a bad person. They might be a bad drunk, but they're not necessarily a bad person."
Fitzgibbon says he will fondly look on from afar as his club pulls itself out of the abyss, but when the lengthening shadows turn into night, the reality is the problem will no longer be his.
while it's easy at these times to crank up the projector and look over his sparkling career - from Dapto junior to Origin and Test star - Fitzgibbon is not racking the cue yet.
"I'm not quite ready to look at the scrapbook yet," he says. "If I start reminiscing, I'll start winding down. I'm going over to England to be competitive. The hardest thing in making the decision knowing in my head I can stay here and play footy and be competitive. I want to make an impact."
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