The surgery on Adam Reynolds’ ruptured bicep is set to leave hideous scarring, and not just on his sleeve tatt of the Virgin Mary.
It’s a nightmare that will also indelibly disfigure the Broncos’ psyche and puncture their 2024 premiership dreams like an index finger through a wet sandwich.
But worse?
Reynolds’ long-term injury not only leaves the Broncos with more questions than answers, it snaps South Sydney’s record streak of terrible decisions.
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Yep, it only took 12 months, two halfbacks, one coach and an impending wooden spoon, but finally a strategic move by the Rabbitohs has been justified.
Whichever way you spin it, a major injury to Reynolds at age 33 is the exact scenario the Sydney club feared when they refused his request for a three-year deal.
And after years of being mocked for their decision, it’s now the Broncos feeling the burden of the halfback’s wage and date of birth.
The Rabbitohs have worn plenty of flak for cutting adrift Reynolds, with a carousel of reminders presenting almost weekly of how moronic the decision was.
There’s been the regression of Lachlan Ilias, the debilitating leadership vacuum that left the inmates running the asylum, plus the ignominy of Reynolds shepherding Brisbane to the 2023 decider.
Add the ongoing anguish of the rot-resistant halfback defying old age, and there’s been one clear winner from his move north, and one massive loser.
And when Brisbane rewarded Reynolds with an extension until 2025 after his grandstand 2023 — a move inspired by the halfback’s reinforced longevity after playing 43 of his first 51 games in Broncos colours — we wondered if the recruit-shaming of the Rabbits would ever end.
But it’s all backfired after the calamity of Friday night.
Now it’s Souths who are validated and the Broncos who are scouring for a 280-game premiership winner who can kick goals, pin corners and slow Reece Walsh’s brain.
But of course, nobody takes pleasure in seeing a fabulous footballer like Reynolds on the sidelines.
He’s harder than a 1920’s sewing machine and one of the nicest blokes in the game, even after aiding two villain organisations like Brisbane and the Rabbitohs.
In fact, nobody should ever highlight the positives of an injury unless it’s like Ricky Stuart doing the hammy in his chair-kicking leg after celebrating on the sidelines.
It’s as tone-deaf as Donald Trump bragging after 9/11 about owning the tallest tower in Manhattan or Queensland congratulating themselves after defying one of their fake mystery illnesses to win an Origin.
But in this case, it’s inescapable to concede after Friday night:
The Rabbitohs were spot-on.
And while it would never be admitted publicly, internally they would be welcoming anything that endorses their woeful strategising, even if it’s bad.
It also gifts the club the juiciest “I told you so” opportunity after their stubborn stance in negotiations all those years ago.
Despite commencing with dignity, talks between Souths and Reynolds devolved in to a never-ending tussle of passive-aggressive counter-trolling that made Des Hasler and Scott Penn look like the Brady parents.
Talks hit a low point when icky leaks emerged claiming Reynolds was on restricted training duties, a tactic undoubtedly employed by Souths to nobble the halfback’s bargaining position by furthering the rumour he was made of porcelain.
It was skulduggery from the grand old club — especially considering Reynolds had played 20 or more matches in every season except two since debuting in 2012 — and it virtually drove him out of Redfern and direct in to Kevin Walters’ arms.
But now this has been proven and the drought of good decisions is over, Souths can finally rest easy.
Their concerns about Reynolds were as valid as they were inflated for commercial advantage.
Dane Eldridge is a warped cynic yearning for the glory days of rugby league, a time when the sponges were magic and the Mondays were mad. He’s never strapped on a boot in his life, and as such, should be taken with a grain of salt.