Brad Arthur keeps tight-lipped about any new deal for halfback Chris Sandow
Christian Nicolussi
The Daily Telegraph
January 28, 2015 12:00AM
FOR PARRAMATTA coach Brad Arthur, handing the captaincy to Chris Sandow for the Auckland Nines was a no-brainer.
But whether the livewire No. 7 is offered a fresh contract beyond this season doesn’t appear as clear cut.
“I’ve made a habit of not commenting on recruitment or retention, and I won’t start now,’’ Arthur told The Daily Telegraph.
“I had a real deep and meaningful with Chris at the start of my tenure as coach, I told him where he stood, how he had a lot of work ahead of him, and made him aware of what I needed from him.
“His ability was never in question, it was just his conditioning levels and his whole physical appearance to be able to (play well) repeatedly.
“He worked hard at it, and he played some good football for us last year.
“We had another chat at the end of last season, we were both happy with what he did in 2014, but we knew we could get more out of him.
“This pre-season he’s come back even more determined. I think his best footy is still ahead of him.’’
Arthur is clearly impressed with Sandow who can continue to justify his whopping price tag.
The coach said the captaincy was reward for Sandow’s smart summer, not to mention ‘’the (Nines) format suits him’’.
Arthur was still to settle on a leader — or leaders — for the season proper.
Time will tell if Sandow’s improvement lands him a new deal. Talk of Parramatta pursuing Manly ace Kieran Foran continues to persist.
Sandow clearly isn’t bothered, with the cheeky halfback returning from the Christmas break weighing 82kg, the lightest he’s been in years. He’s cut bread out of his diet, and made a point of running during the break.
The urge to come back leaner had nothing to do with the fact he’s off-contract, said Sandow, but more to do with Arthur’s challenges.
“I’ve trained really well in the off-season, and the boys were spinning out how I came back from that two-week break over Christmas,’’ Sandow said.
“I’ve come back the lightest I’ve been. That goes back to how badly I want it.
“Brad trains every day, he goes for early jogs before he comes to training. Brad being an older guy and the coach, he sets a good example, and I’ve taken that on board.’’
Sandow wants to stay with the Eels, but rather than plead his case to Arthur, preferred to ‘’let my training and footy do the talking’’.
“I’d love to stay here, we’re building well here, there are a lot of young kids I see as future stars of this game, and I want to be a big part of that,’’ Sandow said.
The Eels are clearly keen on winning the Auckland Nines based on the strength of their squad, led by Sandow, along with Will Hopoate, new recruits Reece Robinson and Brad Takairangi.
Parramatta signed Dragons fullback Adam Quinlan yesterday, just hours before Nathan Peats hobbled off the park during training with a tight Achille’s. However, Peats remains on track to play in the club’s final trial on February 21 against Penrith.
