It wasn't supposed to end the way it did for Adam Reynolds at South Sydney.
The man who played his junior football in the area, who helped lead the Rabbitohs to their first premiership in 44 years was almost a shoe-in to spend the rest of his playing days in the famous cardinal and myrtle.
Yet after a highly publicised difference of opinion between club and player - South Sydney only offered him a one-year contract extension - Reynolds made the move north to the Broncos, spurning the opportunity to end his career as a one-club player.
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Speaking to Sporting News' Ebbs and Flows podcast, the 34-year-old admits he was initially happy to see his old side undergo a turbulent period after his departure.
"Early on, I was happy [to see Souths struggle], not gonna lie, [I was thinking], 'yeah, they’re struggling, yeah, I’m happy,'" Reynolds said.
"But I’ve got a lot of mates in that side, and obviously I’ve struggled in seasons as well and you know the pain and whatnot that it brings and you don’t want to see your mates go through that.
"I still talk to a lot of them regularly and when they were struggling this year, I had a soft spot there for them and wanted to see them do well. They’re coming good, but I feel for a lot of them."
Some of the strong initial emotions Reynolds felt can be traced back to his departure, where the lack of security afforded by South Sydney in their offer of a one-year deal made Reynolds know his time with the club was coming to an end.
"It was hard at the start, [I] didn’t want to leave in the first place," Reynolds said.
"We obviously talked about trying to get another year there, nothing about money, pretty much just security. [We] couldn’t come to an agreement there, so [I] pretty much knew my time had been up at the club."
It is understandable why Reynolds was reluctant to leave his boyhood club, after all he made 231 appearances in nine seasons, scoring a try in that Grand Final win in 2014 and coming agonisingly close to a second premiership in his final season at the Rabbitohs.
Being a premiership winner who also represented New South Wales, interest in his services has high; whilst he admits he was close to joining another Sydney side, he was eventually persuaded to make the move to Red Hill.
"I just loved the challenge, I knew there was a talented team there, I knew there was talented individuals," Reynolds said.
"You play against them the previous year or the year before and you go, ‘Geez, this is a good side, they’re just not getting the results on paper.’
"There’s certain sides in the NRL now, you play against them and think, ‘They’re gonna be a good side in two or three years time.’ I could see evidence of that when I was at Souths and that probably made my decision easier when they came knocking.
"Kevvie [Walters] did a terrific job, coming down, him and Dave [Donaghy] the CEO, turned up in my living room and pretty much pitched an idea to me and it struck pretty much straight away that I wanted to be a Brisbane Bronco.
"I was close to going to the Sharks, had a meeting with Fitzy [coach Craig Fitzgibbon] and the board and liked the direction they were going in, but for me as a family, getting away from Sydney was a big part of the move as well.
"It worked out well. I’m happy where I am now."
He has since come up against his former side on multiple occasions, and they are games he continues to relish as he has personal battles with his former teammates.
"We always have a running battle with each other," he said.
"I enjoy those games, they’re fun. I like playing against my mates, I pretty much know what they’re going to do but the strength of them is everyone knows what they’re going to do and they still do it. They’re always going to break you down or beat you in some areas of the game.
"Fortunately enough for me, I pretty much knew the black book there. When you know your mates, you go harder, it’s like that personal battle. It’s always fun."
He remembers trying to lineup some of his former teammates with big shots in his first match against Souths, as well as coming up against former halves partner Cody Walker.
"I got Cam Murray, but I hit Jai [Arrow] on one of them [and said] ‘Get up, you p***y,’" Reynolds remembers.
"I remember running down Cody; it was an inside joke that I was the slowest half in the comp. I ran him down so it’s officially Cody now."
It hasn't been all smooth sailing in his three seasons with the Broncos; his first season with the side saw Brisbane miss the finals after a horror run to end the year, whilst he has missed much of the current campaign due to injury as the Broncos face yet another fight to finish in the top eight.
Yet it all came together for the exciting Brisbane side last year; with Reynolds steering the ship alongside exciting youngsters Reece Walsh, Selwyn Cobbo and Ezra Mam, as the Broncos finished second and qualified for their first grand final since 2015.
It was all going so well after 56 minutes as Reynolds and his side led the Panthers 24-8, but a remarkable performance from Nathan Cleary led Penrith back from the dead in the greatest grand final comeback, as the Broncos fell to a heartbreaking two-point defeat and extended their premiership drought to 17 years.
It is clear to Reynolds there is more than enough talent at the club with time on their side to eventually lead the Broncos back to the promised land, whether he will be a part of that journey is another question he cannot quite answer with clarity yet.
"I’ve got a contract for next year, I don’t know if that’ll be it, it’s 50-50 at the moment whether that’ll be the last year or not.
"Mentally, I’m probably in the best place I’ve been loving where I’m at, love the club, love the city, just whether this time next year I’m in the same head space.
"Everything gets a little bit harder the older you get and the younger kids get a little bit better, and it’s just about whether I’m delivering for the team and I still have that same impact I do today.
"I can’t see any reason why not, time will tell, I suppose."
