Andrew Johns has urged Melbourne superstar Cameron Munster to think carefully before making a decision on his future at the Storm.
The 27-year-old is contracted to the Victorian club for 2023 and set to pocket $1.2 million on his current deal next season.
But it’s been revealed Melbourne has offered him an extension worth only $750,000 a season after that.
ULTIMATE GUIDE: Everything you need to know about the 2022 Masters
Nine’s Ben Dobbin reported this week Munster is being offered $1 million a year to join the NRL’s new kid on the block, Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins in southern Queensland.
It’s a switch that would earn Munster $750,000 more in three years, but Johns warned not to make the decision all about money.
“He’s got to decide what he wants to do – whether he wants to have more money and be at a club starting off, which without a doubt will struggle, or does he want to compete in semi-finals and a chance of winning premierships?” Johns said on Wide World of Sports’ Immortal Behaviour.
“There’s so many players who have chosen the money… the big one for me was when I watched Kevin Proctor, when he went from the Storm to Gold Coast, never played semi-finals and there were times when he looked so frustrated.
Stream the NRL premiership 2022 live and free on 9Now.
“Also, in Melbourne he’s anonymous. In Queensland he is not.”
Johns played all of his 249 NRL games with Newcastle, and won two premierships with the Knights.
He says he only considered leaving once, when the Broncos offered him about $200,000 extra in 2000. He was also offered double his salary to leave rugby league and join rugby union.
“I got offered a lot more to go to other clubs. I wasn’t driven by money, and I mean how much do you need?” Johns said.
“If you’re earning $800,00 a year, it’s huge money.
“But over three of four years… it adds up. You lose some happiness, you’ll lose some (money) in tax.
“It’s a big decision for him. He will be happy at the Dolphins, but not a chance of winning a premiership.
“There were times when we struggled at Newcastle – one year we lost 13 in a row – and it was a chore going to training, because you knew you weren’t going to win.
“Turning up to training knowing you’re a chance of winning a premiership, or knowing you’re going to win, pushing yourself… it has an effect.”
Johns is confident the Dolphins will not be contending for an NRL premiership within their first five years, which is likely when Munster’s career will be winding down.
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!