Jamil Hopoate to Manly - 1 year deal
http://manly-daily.whereilive.com.au/sport/story/rookie-offered-second-chance/
NRL Sea Eagles: Manly throw lifeline to star rookie Jamil Hopoate
RUGBY LEAGUE
15 JAN 13 @ 04:02PM BY JON GEDDES
THE Sea Eagles have handed Jamil Hopoate the opportunity to resurrect his promising football career by signing the local junior for this season after he was sacked by Parramatta.
The son of former Sea Eagle John Hopoate and brother of rising star Will returns home to the northern beaches after the Eels cut him adrift in December when he went AWOL from an NRL rookie camp. A month earlier young Hopoate had his driver's licence suspended for six months for mid-range drink-driving.
He signed a modest one-year deal with the Sea Eagles after a meeting with head coach Geoff Toovey, recruitment manager Dave Warwick and his manager Tyran Smith. "Jamil understands he is starting over again and is not coming here as a superstar," Sea Eagles football manager Steve Gigg said. "We are giving him a chance to prove himself and we will reassess him in June."
Hopoate, who turns 19 this year, will play for the club's Toyota Cup under-20 side and trained with his new teammates for the first time on Monday. Jamil signed with Parramatta in 2011 along with older brother Will, who is due to link up with the Eels for the 2014 season once he completes his two-year Mormon mission.
"Jamil was a local junior and we didn't want him to leave in the first place," Gigg said. "But Parramatta offered him a reasonable amount of money and maybe the fact that Will was going there and ... he wanted a fresh start were factors. We thought we would give the kid an opportunity, it's a natural fit for us. Gigg said the club had not gone overboard in laying down any strict conditions in Hopoate's new deal. "In terms of his attitude to training and with us we never had any issue with him," he said.
At the time Parramatta let him go, Eels CEO Ken Edwards said: "While the club regrets losing such a talented player, the club has made it very clear that we expect high standards of behaviour across all grades. "Unfortunately Jamil has failed to respond to ongoing support, tutoring and mentoring from our dedicated coaching staff as well as our welfare and education department."
After leaving Parramatta Hopoate threw himself into training hoping that he may get another chance - now that chance has arrived.
