SEN’s Scott Sattler has opened up on one of the biggest ‘what ifs’ in NRL history, when the Titans tried to sign Rugby Union legend Jonah Lomu in 2007.
After his two-year stint with the Cardiff Blues, Lomu was off-contract and highly sought after by the Titans as they entered their inaugural season in the NRL.
Despite being in the backend of his prime, the Titans were persistent in their interest of Lomu but were eventually forced to back down due to his extraordinary demands.
With global media coverage trying to get a glimpse of the All Black, Sattler was assigned the task of taking the superstar from the airport to the Titans' headquarters, whilst playing a key role in the contract negotiations.
“I went to pick him up from the Brisbane Airport and I’ve never seen so many media (members), there was media from Asian countries and England… there was media on the back of motorbikes trying to get footage of him,” Sattler on SEN 1170 Sportsday.
“His second wife, she was his manager, and she was the toughest negotiator ever dealt with, he was pretty much finished and he was having problems with his kidneys.
“The option to sign him was going to cost the club more than any player in the history of the game, (if you) take Super League out of it.
“I remember her in the meeting saying you’re not signing Jonah Lomu the player, you’re signing the name, you’re signing the profile.”
Sattler noted that his demands included an upfront sign-on fee of $700,000 along with a percentage of merchandise and ticket sales.
“Unfortunately, it didn’t come to fruition, I drove him back to the airport that night and he flew back to New Zealand,” Sattler said.
“Tremendous guy, he was like a big kid a big child, tremendous guy he was, god rest his soul.”
According to Dean Ritchie of The Daily Telegraph, the Titans formally offered Lomu a one-year deal worth around $100,000, which he rejected and lead him to join French side Marseille Vitrolles two years later.