Wests Tigers playmaker Luke Brooks emphatically denies he ever requested a release from the club over the off-season.
It was widely reported Brooks had asked the Concord club at least twice to let him cut his contract short so he could take up an offer from Newcastle, after the Knights let Mitchell Pearce go.
Those requests were denied, according to the numerous reports, and the 27-year-old remained at Concord.
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Brooks has since been switched from halfback to five-eighth by coach Michael Maguire.
He was asked directly by 9News reporter Danny Weidler whether he had asked to leave the club.
“Did you ask twice to get out of the club in the off-season?” Weidler asked.
“No,” Brooks replied.
Weidler asked if anyone representing Brooks asked the club for a release, to which he again replied only, “no”.
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Brooks is one of the most maligned players in the NRL, having so far failed to live up to the considerable hype that was built around him as a teenager.
But he is now used to being criticised by club outsiders, and says he doesn’t let himself get effected by the negativity.
“Not really to be honest. There’s plenty of stuff that has been written about me,” he said.
“I don’t really care.
“That’s something I learned pretty early coming into first grade, everyone is going to have an opinion on you,” he said.
“I learned to deal with that pretty early, it’s all part of the game.”
The Tigers next take on the Cowboys on Sunday for Magic Round.
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