Below is extract from The Australian, very good read, and there is a stack at play with this....read on.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/spo...-benji-marshall/story-fnca0von-1226903911919#
THIS is about more than Benji Marshall. So much more. It’s about Steve Price’s future as a coach. It’s about Peter Doust’s tenure as chief executive. It’s about finding a way to put some pride back in the red V.
Marshall may ultimately decide everyone’s fate, not just his own.
Once the game’s most prized asset, his imminent return has taken on added significance in southern Sydney, given it has pitted two clubs against each other.
The Dragons have formally tabled an offer to Marshall. So has Cronulla, the two neighbouring clubs at war over the signature of a player once regarded as one of the best in the game.
Marshall’s lustre has dimmed — his stint in rugby union continuing a difficult 12-month period in which his form dipped considerably — but he remains a prized asset in the eyes of some clubs.
The lure isn’t so much what he has produced in recent years, more the performances that form part of our fading memories. The step and the flick pass are indelibly etched in our minds.
Marshall will continue to draw people through the gates. He remains a corporate wunderkind. Clearly, those qualities continue to resonate at the Dragons, to the point where the club is willing to outlay a slab of cash to add him to their roster.
Price is willing to take a punt on Marshall and his career is likely to hang on the outcome. The Dragons coach is off contract at the end of the season and the club is yet to announce whether he will earn an extension.
He has seemingly been balancing on a precipice since being appointed to replace Wayne Bennett in 2012. Had the club convinced Craig Bellamy to move to Wollongong, Price would already be out of a job.
Instead, he remains at the helm, for this season at least. After starting the year with three straight wins, results have been mixed since.
The only certainty is that uncertainty will continue while results are unconvincing.
Chances are, Price will rely on results in coming weeks to determine whether he is still in charge next season. Marshall therefore stands to be a pivotal figure. If he can rediscover his former glory, the Dragons will win their fair share of games and Price will earn himself an extension.
If the move backfires, the ramifications may well extend beyond the coach. Chief executive Peter Doust spent yesterday at a lunch organised by NSW Rugby League chief executive David Trodden to mark the departure of Shane Mattiske from the NRL.
He sat next to, of all people, Cronulla chief executive Steve Noyce. Their fellow chief executives had fun at their expense.
Yet it will be no laughing matter if the Marshall move backfires.
Doust has enjoyed a tumultuous time with Dragons fans — “Oust Doust” signs have been commonplace on the hills at Kogarah and WIN Stadium.
Should Marshall fail to ignite the Dragons backline, and the club struggles as a result, Doust will no doubt be in the crosshairs. Change may be in the wind.
There is much to win — and lose — over the next 48 hours. Not just for Marshall.
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