The Burgess era at South Sydney will end after a remarkable 14 years when Tom departs for the Rabbitohs in what will be an emotional farewell for him and his great friend Damien Cook, who will both finish their careers elsewhere.
It was in 2010 that Sam Burgess arrived in Australia and blazed a trail for the family, with Tom, George and Luke all donning the famous cardinal and myrtle jersey over the years.
Sam had the most decorated career and is now in the NRL Hall of Fame, while George scored one of the great tries in the 2014 Grand Final, but it is Tom who will go down in history as the club’s second most-capped player before heading to the English Super League next year.
The 32-year-old will fall one game short of the magical 250-game milestone, but it’s a career he never thought would last more than a couple of seasons after he made the big decision to head south.
“I don’t think many people know that I signed a 12-month contract at the beginning. It was minimum wage, I was paid per game. I wasn’t guaranteed anything, I had to fight for it,” he revealed.
‘I had some really good advice, I lived with Sam when I moved here. He always had faith in me, that if I worked hard and did the right things in training then good things would come, and they did.
‘I focused on the team, I didn’t expect too much, I just wanted to work hard first and hope that good things would come later. That’s what happened. I signed for another two years, then three, then another three, and then it went on from there.
“I never thought I’d be here 12 years later and with 248 games. I’m happy with what’s happened in my career and I also hope to be able to give something back to the Super League, where it all started.”
The Burgess era at South Sydney will end after a remarkable 14 years when Tom (pictured) runs for the Rabbitohs for the final time on Friday against the Roosters.
Burgess made his NRL debut for the Rabbitohs in 2013 and will finish with 249 appearances to his name (pictured, with wife Tahlia Giumelli)
Sam’s impact on the twins was profound; Tom and George looked up to their elder brother, who set the tone for what the family achieved, having been encouraged by their father to travel to Australia before he died.
“He played a huge role, he was our coach and our mentor, as well as being a brother and a housemate to me when I first moved here,” Tom said of Sam.
“He was huge, he always had the ability to get the best out of his players, but it also helped that he’s also my brother and I lived with him. He was a big part of my development coming here.
“He was a unique player and being able to learn from him was an important part of my development.”
While there were many highlights for the family (none more significant than the 2014 championship), they will never forget the night in 2013 when all four brothers were on the field at the same time in the Round 25 win over the Wests Tigers.
Sam was sent off early before he and Luke scored tries in a comeback win that saw four brothers play for the same team for the first time in 103 years.
“It was like a dream for us,” Tom said.
‘The first year happened. The coaching staff at the time was very good, they knew how much it meant to us, but they weren’t going to just give it to us. We knew we had to work hard, so when it happened it was amazing.
In 2013, all four Burgess brothers played together in a win over the Wests Tigers.
“We had a very busy week, and then during the game Sam got sent off. I don’t know if we played more than 10 times together because of injuries and all that.
‘Looking back, those years were fantastic and something you only appreciate when you have to look back.’
Burgess will end his career with Huddersfield after signing a three-year deal earlier this season but plans to return to Australia and South Sydney when it ends, and the Englishman is now looking to join the coaching staff.
“I’ve made it clear I’ll be back in England, but I’ll definitely be back here,” he said ahead of his final game against the Roosters.
“I’m not going to close my business in Australia. I have my house in Cronulla and I’m pretty settled there. We’ll rent it out and then we’ll definitely come back here and maybe we can take up a position here at the club again in a couple of years.”