Few players will approach the 2012 NRL season under more pressure than serial off-field offenders Todd Carney and Robert Lui, Souths and Kiwis cheap-shot merchant Isaac Luke, and star utility-back Tim Moltzen, who reneged on a contract with St George Illawarra to remain at the Tigers.  But rugby league loves a redemption story, and 2012 represents a massive opportunity for this quartet of make-or-break playmakers. 

Todd Carney

The brilliant half lays claim to having arguably the greatest season of redemption in the game's history.  The Canberra prodigy's career was on the scrapheap at the end of 2008 following a string of outrageous alcohol-related indiscretions.  Denied a visa to join Super League club Huddersfield after being dumped by the Raiders, Carney spent 2009 pulling beers at a pub in Atherton, North Queensland, and playing local bush footy.  But the Roosters threw Carney an NRL lifeline in 2010 and he responded with a spectacular Dally M Medal-winning season and a Kangaroos debut.  Carney was a certainty for NSW honours this season, but repeated (albeit relatively minor) off-field slip-ups and injury woes made 2011 a season to forget, and he was eventually punted by the Roosters for yet another breach of trust.  The long-suffering Sharks have put their neck out for the troubled star - skipper Paul Gallen has publicly voiced his support - and he is potentially one of the club's best-ever buys.  Despite his shortcomings, Carney remains one of the NRL's elite match-winners, a player capable of spearheading Cronulla's bid for a finals return.  If the 25-year-old finds trouble again, however, his NRL career may be over and there will be plenty of disgruntled benefactors in the Shire.

Robert Lui

The promising No.7 has proved an excellent foil to the unpredictable brilliance of pivot Benji Marshall, steering Wests Tigers' return to NRL heavyweight status in 2010-11 after four seasons in finals exile.  But the 21-year-old forced the club's hand after being charged with assaulting his girlfriend for the second ‘Mad Monday' in succession.  The Townsville-born general has been offered 2012 salvation by hometown club North Queensland - pending the outcome of his court date.  Lui is extremely lucky to be handed this gilt-edged chance by the resurgent Cowboys, who reached the finals in 2011 after three seasons in the doldrums.  Johnathan Thurston, the world's best playmaker, is set to shift to five-eighth at all levels next season, and Lui will slot inside him at halfback for the Cowboys.  It is a rare opportunity for Lui to hone his craft while playing alongside one of the greats in the position, but he needs to get his act together off the field first.  Being accused of domestic violence won't have won Lui any friends amongst his playing rivals or in the stands, and he can expect further backlash if his behaviour off the field and form on it is anything less than exemplary.   

Isaac Luke

The livewire hooker's aggression and tenacity were once his strongest on-field traits, but a string of incidents at the back end of 2011 have rendered the Rabbitohs No.9 the most unpopular player in the NRL.  Lambasted in the print, television and digital media, Luke has become a cyberspace pariah, with hundreds of rugby league fans venting their fury and disdain at Luke's recent rap sheet.  The trouble began when Luke stayed down to milk a penalty in golden point against the Cowboys, earning Souths a controversial victory.  ‘Missile' tackles in consecutive Tests against Australia provoked further outrage, but the clincher was his leg twist on cousin and England halfback Rangi Chase, and the firebrand's sensational admission afterwards that he was trying to break Chase's leg.  Luke is an unusual and unique character, certainly too frank for his own good - Steve Mascord's two-page spread on Luke in Rugby League Week consisted solely of his interview responses because they were so earnest and bizarre - but he is running out of people willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.  When his mind is on the job, there is no doubt Luke is one of the NRL's best dummy-halves and game-breakers.  A superb season for Souths - free of unsavoury incidents - is the only way for Luke to answer his army of critics, because he definitely shouldn't be answering them into a journo's tape recorder.

Tim Moltzen

Reneging on a contract is nothing new in the NRL's farcical current climate of player movement - Steve Turner, Luke Lewis and Greg Inglis immediately spring to mind - but few instances have provoked the hostile response that versatile Tiger Tim Moltzen has encountered in the off-season.  Granted a conditional release by the Tigers to test himself on the open market as the club attempted to free up space in the salary cap, Moltzen signed a three-year deal with St George Illawarra.  Moltzen shaped as an ideal replacement for the Dragons' departing Test fullback Darius Boyd, but when the Tigers jettisoned troubled halfback Robert Lui (see above), the club dug in its heels to retain Moltzen as they had not officially signed off on a release.  The rebuilding Dragons feel justifiably aggrieved and are exploring their options, while the Tigers and Moltzen have been roasted for their handling of the debacle.  It is unclear whether Moltzen will wear the Tigers' No.1 or No.7 in 2012, but he can expect to cop incessant bagging from opposition fans - particularly in the Round 3 showdown with Saints.  Moltzen's best - and only - recourse is to produce the goods on the paddock, delivering on the potential that saw him debut for Country Origin in 2011.