IT'S almost as if no-one believed he was serious about it.

"Yeah, yeah, Israel Folau's going to Australian Football. And Harry Kewell's doing synchronised swimming."

And so when it finally happened on Tuesday - a $6 million deal with Team GWS, supposedly - there was outrage from Brendan Fevola to Andrew Johns and everyone in between.

Folau had already been left out of the Australian league team, many believe because he was about to sign with rugby union. But league players going to union is old hat and there is actually a five percent chance they are not doing it for the money.

Going from league to the AFL? It's either money or you want to jump the queue at Melbourne nightclubs. And Izzy doesn't drink.

Which brings us to an interesting sidelight. Folau's return to Brisbane from the Storm was partly a result of pressure - real or imagined - to return to the cocoon of his strictly religious family, who at one stage ordered him to get a haircut. In this respect I congratulate Israel on his latest decision to get the hell out of Dodge (sorry for cussing, Izzy) and I expect him to have a nice healthy afro by the time the Western Sydney Westies play their first game.

You know Iz, organised religion may actually be more insidious than rugby union and when you're living away from home again I hope you realise that eventually....

Actually, it's amusing to remember that we once wrote stories about Israel giving up his peak years as a professional sportsman to go on a Mormon mission! As it turns out, he's not even willing to waste his peak years on a job that earns him $400,000 or more a year!

And I again hark back to February 8 this year, when Folau, at a coaching clinic in Blacktown with the NRL All Stars, was asked about GWS and shocked David Gallop with his answer.

"I hope the AFL get a bit of a run here around this area and hopefully it grows for the future," he said.

Yes, the Six Million Dollar Soundbite.

When I wrote about Folau a couple of months ago, this website put a headline on the yarn "Folau: More Than Just An AFL Pawn".

I've really got to make myself better understood. Folau is nothing more than an AFL pawn. If you're an Australian Football fan reading this column to find out what a passionate rugby league person thinks of the news, the answer is simple: not much.

Israel Folau has been signed as an ambassador but knows no diplomacy (as the quote above illustrates!). He's been signed as a kicker but can only catch.

And he's been signed to aggrieve an enemy that will forget him in five minutes flat.