NRL news 2024: Todd Carney reflects on rehabilitation experience ...
He was one of the NRL's brightest prospects when he burst on the scene in 2004, but it was all taken away in the blink of an eye.
With over 166 games to his name, Todd Carney's career came to an abrupt end following a string of off-field issues that led to his exile from the Cronulla Sharks.
Now 18 months sober, Carney admits he regrets letting alcohol issues derail his promising career.
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"I wish I could rewind it back," he told Nine's The Sunday Footy Show in a wide-ranging interview.
Todd Carney of the Blues is tackled by Cameron Smith. Getty
Bursting onto the scene for the Canberra Raiders as a 17-year-old fullback, Carney's career began to ignite.
He played 71 games for the Raiders, 44 games for the Sydney Roosters and 51 games for the Sharks between 2004 and 2014, leaving each club in disgrace, with his elite talent saving his career time after time.
Carney's success on the field papered over the cracks of his off-field issues, which first got him sacked by the Raiders in 2009 and deregistered, with a Super League move collapsing and forcing him to play bush footy in north Queensland before another opportunity would arise.
He said that part of the reason for his difficult relationship with rugby league was his prodigious start, which robbed him of much needed education.
"I wish I went through and finished school, played for the Australian schoolboys, just to have that experience," Carney said reflecting on his NRL initiation.
"Looking at school footy now and the development they get, plus the time to grow up … I would have liked to do it, but no way would I have changed it back then.
"I loved footy, but because I was so young, I didn't experience and wasn't going out with the senior boys - I was just going home to be around family.
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"I guess that's where I probably went wrong, I was living like a 17 or 18-year-old, but I didn't understand what the big picture was because I was going home and hanging with school mates.
"I didn't go to parties and stuff, all I had ever done was focus on footy and that was because Dad wanted me to. That's all I knew, so I missed out on those things but I was lucky enough to play and have some fun."
Todd Carney of the Cronulla Sharks. Getty
Carney's talent ensured he got a lifeline from an NRL club every time he made a big mistake, which he said made it difficult to learn from them and make changes.
It wasn't until his personal life was derailed after his footy career was long behind him that he finally had a long, hard look in the mirror.
Carney admitted himself into a rehabilitation centre in early 2023 after coming to the realisation he was not the man he had hoped to be.
The now 38-year-old reflected on his on-and-off relationship with former MAFS star Susie Bradley, whom he credits for prompting him to seek professional help.
"When I finished footy, met my partner, had my son - Susie said to me one day, 'I can't be around you when you drink'," he said.
"I was a 50/50 dad, that's what I called myself... We split up for a bit and that was a big wake-up call for me. That's when I hit rock bottom.
"I couldn't continue my life like that. I had to make the choice to go get help and clean myself up or go down a slippery path.
"In the end looking back on it, I would've lost everything."
Todd Carney looks down as confetti falls after he was presented with the Dally M medal. Getty
Had the 2010 Dally M Medallist not encountered the hardships of his relationship due to alcohol, he says he would not be sober.
"No, probably not," Carney said of his sobriety.
"I always had a club coming to me and chasing me.... so I didn't learn anything. The next day after I got sacked I had a new contract somewhere else.
"When I look back on it now, three months [after his dismissal from Canberra in 2008] my dad passed away and then I ended up going to Atherton. I had the year off, NRL wouldn't let me register for that whole 12 months.
"I lived in a pub and worked in a pub. For that time, it was good because I knew what I had lost.
"I still had some growing up to do with what went on.
Todd Carney of the Sydney Roosters. Getty
"I say to anyone now who is getting into trouble, 'take some time and invest in yourself and realise why you're doing the things you're doing'," he continued.
"I woke up one day and I had had enough. I told [my partner] I needed help and was going to go to rehab. I just knew I needed professional help.
"While I was playing people had told me to do it but I didn't think I needed it because I was a rugby league player. Imagine what it would be like in rehab for a rugby league player.
"When I walked into the doors for rehab I was so nervous and scared.
"The guy that I sat with that day told me 'I know who you are. No one cares who you are. We are all in here fighting the same issues' ... It changed my life."
