John Bateman has signed a four-year deal with the Wests Tigers, sealing the Englishman's NRL return - but not all are happy about the back-rower's decision.
Bateman put pen to paper on a three-year contract with Canberra midway through 2018, securing the superstar edge forward through to the end of 2021, or so they thought.
Fans of the green machine fell in love with back-rower as soon as he took the field at GIO Stadium, snaring a Dally M Second-Rower of the Year award in the same season he helped Canberra to their first Grand Final appearance in decades.
However, his decision to return to the Wigan Warriors and cut his NRL deal a year short enraged the Raiders faithful, but is the move really as criminal as Canberra fans make it out to be?
The choice to cut his deal with Canberra short was made in late June 2020 - a month after the season booted itself back up after the initial COVID hiatus that spanned nearly three months.
Bateman's daughter, Millie, was born in late 2009 when the English international was just 16 years old. While she remained in England during his NRL stint, Bateman was able to fly his daughter out in 2019 to visit him, and watch him play.
The following season was a different story though, the sudden introduction of COVID to our vocabularies and our everyday lives bringing the world to a screeching halt, imposing lockdowns, social distancing, mandatory masks and most importantly to Bateman - a stop to international travel.
Remaining in the NRL suddenly wasn't an option for Bateman if he wanted to see his daughter in person, instead requesting an early release from his contract with the Raiders to return to his former Super League club, Wigan.
He's since had a second child, with his Australian partner whom he met during his Canberra stint, the Wests Tigers deal allowing her to return home to raise the child around her family.
Maybe Canberra fans are mad he decided to return to the NRL with a different club, however, where would he fit into the Raiders' side today?
The club already has the likes of Elliott Whitehead, Hudson Young and Corey Harawira-Naera to play on the edges, while Joseph Tapine is at home at lock as he is in the front-row.
Sure, it's always hard to watch a star that flourished at your club succeed elsewhere, but you can't blame him for wanting to be with his daughter amidst the dawn of COVID.
So instead of booing the 29-year-old when he makes an eventual away trip to GIO Stadium, cheer for the good he delivered to the club, and enjoy getting to watch one of the world's best edge forwards ply his trade in the NRL each and every week.