Rugby league legend Peter Sterling has applauded retiring Broncos great Darius Boyd for "bowing out on his own terms" after shouldering the brunt of criticism for Brisbane's torrid 2019.
The 32-year-old stunned the NRL community on Friday morning after announcing his decision to retire from rugby league at the end of the upcoming season, a year before his current contract elapses.
Despite a stellar career that's spanned 317 NRL games, 28 Origin appearances and 23 Tests, Boyd came under heavy fire last season as the Broncos spluttered to a 58-point finals shellacking.
It led to the Brisbane favourite being stripped of the Broncos captaincy in what could have understandably been a moment to call it quits.
Despite the scrutiny, Boyd pushed on for one last season in a move that Sterling said speaks volumes of his character.
"He copped plenty of criticism last year, and the one thing I didn't want him to do was to bow to that criticism," Sterling told Wide World of Sports.
"When you retire from this game you do it on your own terms. It should never be on the back of what people are saying about you, away from the club.
"I thought some of the criticism was unfair. He didn't play his best football, but I never saw him shirk the task at all. I always thought that he put in each week. So, I'm glad he's going out on his own terms and I think he'll go out on a pretty good fashion."
In his first year in the league, Boyd claimed the 2006 NRL premiership with the Broncos before following supercoach Wayne Bennett to the Dragons and taking out the 2010 title.
He would follow Bennett again in his move to the Knights and ultimately back to the Broncos in a relationship that Sterling believed had seen Boyd develop into a complete player over the course of his career.
"What a relationship he's had with Wayne Bennett over the vast majority of his career," Sterling said. "He was a mentor both on and off the field for Darius, he thrived with that.
"If you have a look at Darius, it's been a wonderful evolution for him over the past couple years. He was a fairly withdrawn individual there for a lot of his career, wasn't comfortable with the press, was a bit standoffish.
"But I think there was some kind of revelation there and he's realised that he didn't need to be that way, and resolved some matters off the field that were obviously a problem for him.
"He's much more forthcoming. Fans now see the real Darius, which maybe they didn't four or five years ago. He's just a more rounded footballer these days. So it's been a real turnaround for him and I hope that it can continue and he can have a real good season to go out on because he deserves considering what he's achieved."
Ahead of a slated shift to the centres, Sterling foresaw a glittering final year for the Bronco away from the pressure of captaincy.
"Darius Boyd deserves to go out on top," he said. "I think it's going to be a very strong season for him. I expect a bit of a resurgence for Brisbane and I think Darius will lead the way."
from WWOS http://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/darius-boyd-retirement-peter-sterling-celebrates-brisbane-broncos-icon/250df4f0-cad9-4407-bac5-3720cc75a7f4
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