While the likes of Sam Burgess, Adrian Morley, and James Graham have etched themselves into the folklore of their respective clubs through their toughness and consistently high level of performances, the men listed below are on the other end of that scale with their dream move to the NRL having crumbled.
After an extremely impressive return of 52 tries from 55 games for the Wigan Warriors between 2013-2015, it was announced that Joe Burgess would be headed to the NRL after signing a three-year deal with the Sydney Roosters starting in season 2015.
After a two-try effort on debut in the Roosters embarrassing 42-10 loss against the Rabbitohs in round 1, it was all downhill from there for the Wigan academy graduate.
He would go on to feature for the Roosters on a measly three more occasions in the 2015 season, registering zero tries in that time. While his pace was evident from the get-go, his finishing ability, ball handling skills, and physicality left a lot to be desired, and it was clear that he was not going to cut it at the Roosters.
The remainder of his days as a Rooster was spent predominantly with their NSW Cup feeder side the Wyong Roos, and in mid-2016 it was announced that the Roosters had loaned out Burgess to their arch-rivals the Rabbitohs for the remainder of the season, an extremely uncommon piece of business in the NRL.
Burgess would go on to score a respectable 5 tries in 9 appearances during his short stay at South Sydney, and would later return to Wigan at the conclusion of the 2016 season on a three-year deal.
Billed as an exciting and explosive playmaker capable of scoring and creating tries, Chris Thorman was a little-known prospect when Parramatta signed him from the London Broncos in 2004.
Having just been selected in the Great Britain squad, Thorman's star was beginning to rise in England following a successful loan season at Huddersfield under Tony Smith.
Having been deployed originally off the bench and being sparingly used as another halfback option by coach Brian Smith, Thorman struggled to adjust to the NRL in the time he was afforded on the field.
After some dodgy kicking and suspect defensive displays Thorman would eventually be released by Parramatta from the final year of his contract to sign with Huddersfield after only eleven appearances in the blue and gold.
After the success that fellow Englishmen Adrian Morley experienced for the tri-colors in the early 2000s, the Roosters were hoping that former St Helens prop Mark Edmondson could have a similar effect in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs.
Having just been selected in his first England squad in 2005 and winning challenge cups and Super Leagues in the motherland, the Roosters had high expectations for Edmondson who had been brought across to the NRL by then-coach Ricky Stuart.
However, what ensued can be described as at best a forgettable stint for the St Helens junior. After returning from off-season shoulder surgery, Edmondson made his debut against the Broncos at home but struggled noticeably with the increased pace and physicality of the NRL.
Edmondson would go on to play for the Roosters on one more occasion before re-injuring his shoulder, he was eventually released from the final year of his contract and would return home with the Salford City Reds.
Unfortunately for former Wigan Warrior Lee Mossop, this piece of business almost typifies the mediocrity that has become synonymous with Parramatta in the past few seasons.
Having shown plenty of promise in his 95 games for Wigan, Parramatta thought adding the 25-year old Mossop to their docile forward pack could help them climb off the bottom of the ladder.
Having also obtained the services of fellow Englishmen Gareth Hock from Wigan in the same deal, the BBC reported that Parramatta paid "significant six-figure transfer fees" for both the players.
Mossop signed a two-year deal with Parramatta, which according to the Sydney Morning Herald was worth $400,000 per season.
With Hock requesting a release from his deal prior to arriving in Australia, with the benefit of hindsight, Parramatta would have wished that Mossop would have done the same. As the twice-capped English international would miss the first half of the season due to a shoulder reconstruction, and would then go on to make a measly three appearances in 2014 before succumbing to another season-ending shoulder injury
He ended up playing just three games for the Eels prior to his second shoulder injury. The former English Test prop was granted a release from his Eels contract and returned to England the following year to resume his career with Wigan.
Just to rub salt into Parramatta’s wounds, the Mossop deal was later cited as a major factor in the salary cap breaches that saw Parramatta fined $1 million, suspended of 12 competition points, and having their Auckland Nines title stripped of them. Mossop reportedly received $50,000 in illegal payments from the Eels.
Touted as the English Billy Slater during his time with the Wigan Warriors, Sam Tomkins wanted to prove himself in the NRL after dominating the Super League and claiming the esteemed Man of Steel award for the competition’s best player in 2012.
With the Gold Coast Titans and New Zealand Warriors both interested in gaining the English international's services, Tomkins would eventually choose to sign for the Auckland based Warriors on a three-year deal commencing in 2014.
The fullback switched clubs for a scarcely believable transfer fee of $1.5 million, but sadly he would never live up to the hype that came with his reputation and substantial transfer fee.
Tomkins would go onto play 37 games for the Warriors across two seasons, and while he showed flashes of brilliance, he could never find the consistency required of an NRL player and struggled to deal with the physicality of the NRL with his more slight frame.
The Warriors promptly released Tomkins from the final year of his contract, citing homesickness as a factor in his departure.