Karmichael Hunt is back in the NRL for one reason. The winner of The Frownlow Medal in 2018 has his sights set on the 2016 medallist, Corey Norman. Norman is the only other winner of the prestigious medal to be playing first-grade football in Australia and Hunt is determined to take him out.
The Frownlow Medal is awarded to the player whose off-field demeanour epitomises the values of the modern-day footballer and draws attention to the status of footballers as role models to young Australians. It covers Australia’s four major football codes; the National Rugby League (NRL), Australian Football League (AFL), the A-League (Football) and Rugby Union’s Super Rugby competition. NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015, while AFL player Elijah Taylor is the most recent recipient.
“This medal ain’t big enough for the two of us,” Hunt threatened.
“I’m going after Corey. The Frownlow Medal is too prestigious and too important to have two former winners running around in first grade. I’m the Aplha Male, and I’m here to mark my territory.”
Hunt recently answered the call of the Brisbane Broncos to add experience to their halves after the club won the wooden spoon in 2020. Hunt will return to the top grade soon and is preparing himself for the showdown with Norman and his St George-Illawarra Dragons.
Hunt won the famous medal in 2018 after he and other former NRL players, and fellow Frownlow nominees, were investigated by police for their roles in a massive drug trafficking and selling operation. In 2017, he pleaded guilty to possession of illicit drugs and his NRL, AFL and Super Rugby careers stopped. He returned to the field and was playing lower-grade rugby league in Queensland when Broncos coach Kevin Walters made the call.
Norman stands in the way of Hunt’s dominance, and won the medal in 2016 after being photographed with known criminals on social media, starring in a leaked sex tape and taking part in the Eels salary cap scandal. He was also reported for intoxication at a Sydney nightspot and appeared in a leaked video in which another man was taking drugs. In addition, he was caught with illicit drugs, which may or may not have been sold by Karmichael.
Just a few weeks ago, he and his partner in crime, James Segeyaro, were caught on camera fighting a group of men in a street brawl outside Northies nightclub in Cronulla. this proved his determination to win The Frownlow Medal in 2021, or to at least remind fellow contenders that he is still a force to be reckoned with.
The Broncos play the Dragons in round 13, and for Hunt and Norman, this game will be bigger than the grand final.
Image: NuNa
The Frownlow Medal 