3 minute read
Payne Haas says he understands why Brisbane fans booed him when contract negotiations got messy and insists he won't be distracted during the NRL finals.
Booed by his own fans earlier this season, Payne Haas insists an NRL future at Brisbane is still his preference ahead of a career-defining finals campaign.
The three-time Broncos best and fairest, still just 22, copped jeers as he ran onto Suncorp Stadium in May to end a week in which his extraordinary request for an immediate release from the club was denied.
His management were testing the waters after negotiations on a rich, new deal stalled and have since put any decision on ice until the end of the season.
Haas abruptly addressed the incident during the subsequent State of Origin campaign but on Tuesday spoke openly at Red Hill for the first time since that Friday night in May.
"It came with what happened that week, probably I understood why it happened and why the fans were like that," he told reporters, insisting he had no regrets.
"I'm not angry with them, it is what it is and I've moved on."
Haas remains on contract at Brisbane until 2024 and Red Hill supremos are keen to extend that stay.
However his management has agitated for a richer, shorter-term deal in excess of $1 million a season and floated a move elsewhere.
Haas was comfortable enough to laugh off talk of a move to European rugby, or even the NFL, on Tuesday as he attempted to explain his position.
"I'm happy here, will speak about that (contract) stuff at the end of the year but I do love Brisbane, always say that to everyone and I love the club and the boys," he said.
"I wouldn't say (there's an) itch (to leave); I'm happy here and I'm a real family man, I'm mum and dad's boy (who live on the Gold Coast).
"My preference is to stay, I will say that, but at the end of the day things happen in rugby league."
Brisbane all but sealed a return to finals with a win over Newcastle on Saturday and on Friday host Melbourne, who have won every game they've played against the Broncos at Suncorp since 2009.
Haas said a breakthrough win in front of a full house would give the side a necessary confidence boost and set them up for a finals run that could be a deal-maker for the prop.
"I'm not sure to be honest," he said of the Broncos' finals fortunes influencing his decision.
"People think I'm distracted by it, but I'm not thinking about it now. I'm just wanting to play finals."
