Could've, Would've, Should've

The current theme around this forum seems to be nostalgia with all the threads reminiscing about past greats, so I thought I'd continue the trend ...

Players who will be remembered for their unfulfilled potential, whether through injury, laziness or something else. Doesn't even have to be past players, as I'm sure Dave Taylor is worthy of a mention somewhere in here.

 

On his day he was a world-class centre. He had the ball skills to allow him to fit into the halves (to a passable level) and out in the three-quarter line he was a brilliant exponent of the draw-and-pass. Playing on the wing outside of Martin Gleeson was a cushy job in the same way as playing outside of Matt Gidley or Jamie Lyon was. With ball in hand he ran strong lines and had a killer right-foot step that continually baffled defenders. It caused havoc in SL and at Test level.

Unfortunately he was fucking erratic and he lacked the dedication to reach his peak: his weight ballooned whenever he wasn’t in a really strict club culture; he had a well-known issue with alcohol; he bet against his own team in a game he was playing in; and eventually got banned for 18 months for taking PEDs.

The common refrain about English rugby league is that there is a serious dearth in outside backs and for the last decade Gleeson was the chance to fix that. He had more potential than any British centre since Ellery Hanley and Garry Schofield and yet he somehow managed to piss it away. Instead of being remembered as one of the best players in SL history, his career is defined by a litany of off-field incidents and the occasional bursts of brilliance on the pitch.

 

[Insert first name here] Tsoulos? I only remember his last stint at the Dogs. Pretty unlucky to have to retire so young.