Lyon on offer to Saints (and Raiders)

[jed]

Given the NRL has told the clubs they have to spend $3m and we have already signed a number of players, I seriously doubt we have that much room.

You've hit the nail on the head there hrundi - if we thought that we'd signed the last player for this year, we would have already budgeted on spending over $3,000,000 next season. I agree that there can be no way we've spent the full $3.25M cap, but I'd say we've only got $200K or so left.

 

[legend]

Tuffnell needs to enter the deabte here. His info has been spot of for quite some time.

Would anyone ever consider moving Mogg into lock? For mine, he has a similar build to that of Ben Kennedy and would give us great mobility. He could still run wide like a good lock does but it means we could have Frawley and Lyon in the centres with Gafa, Smith or Graham on the wing. Picture if you will:

Schif
Graham
Lyon
Frawley
Gafa
McLinden
Smith
Mogg
Hindmarsh
Hodgson
O'Hara
Woolford
Weyman

Adamson
Martin
Rothery
Carney

IMO, that side offers speed, size, versatility and mobility. The bench could change to who ever is in form and with guys like Kahler, T Smith, Thompson, Miller, Howell x 2, Ale etc coming into their own as the season progresses.

 

[I Bleed Green]

Mogg to lock is an AWESOME idea. I really like the reasons behind it, and he has all the ball skills and the build to take on that position really well. Sadly, it'll never happen though.

Also legend I'm not sure if you forgot him or not, but Croker must be there somewhere, especially on recent form.

 

[legend]

Yeah, sorry mate, I realised after I posted I forgot the almighty Toots. Move Croker to the second row and either Hindmarsh or Hodgson to the bench.

 

[GreenGuy]

legend, what about Croker? :shock:

 

[GreenGuy]

Yep, just realised #-o

 

[Davester]

magpiemax says he's going to england. if you go into the tigers forum and read his thread...

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/viewtopic.php?t=35278

Tigers were the team in the run for him. Had a full media article on fox sports new, was in the RLW magazine and in the paper twice. Matthew Elliot said that they couldn't fit him under the salary cap, and Lyon's management haven't given a word back to the Raiders for 2 weeks apparently. People say this magpiemax is usually spot on his sources...but I find that hard to believe if he's going to the ESL. It's gotta be bullsh*t! :?

 

[SOULS 04]

yeh caus he hates the city

hehehe maybe he'll like the english country lifestyle hehehe

 

[Davester]

Here is the story

Lucrative England move on cards for Lyon
By Greg Prichard
August 15, 2004
The Sun-Herald

Jamie Lyon is considering a mammoth offer to join English glamour club St Helens, whose chairman Eamonn McManus confirmed that the former Parramatta, NSW and Australian centre was at the top of their hit list.

St Helens have emerged as favourites to get Lyon's signature purely because of financial reasons. The English giant can afford to pay a fortune up front, while NRL clubs either don't have much money left under the salary cap or are only prepared to talk incentive deals.

The Sun-Herald understands that St Helens are prepared to pay $500,000 a year for Lyon, who is playing with home-town team Wee Waa in the Group 4 country competition in north-western NSW.

Lyon, who was on $250,000 a season with Parramatta and remains contracted to them until the end of 2006, walked out on the Eels after the first round of this season, citing a dislike of living in Sydney.

He eventually reached an agreement with Parramatta that allowed him to play for Wee Waa and recently it emerged that the Eels were prepared to release him to a non-Sydney club, citing the reason Lyon left Parramatta as justification for those terms.

That ruled out Manly, probably the only NRL club that would splash out to get the chunky star.

Wests Tigers were among the NRL clubs that were interested, but they were not in a position under the salary cap to pay Lyon a great deal for next year and would have had to scale the initial payment down and increase it in subsequent years.

Lyon's uncle and manager, Mick Smith,

is shopping Lyon around to NRL clubs at about $300,000 a season, but any club that signed him would have to pay an additional release fee of $150,000 to Parramatta.

Apart from salary cap concerns, there is a wariness among NRL clubs about Lyon because of the way he left Parramatta and his recent management merry-go-round, which saw Lyon dump Allan Gainey for Smith.

Parramatta are no longer having to pay him and Lyon is understood to be finding it tough to meet mortgage requirements.

St Helens are looking for a centre to replace Martin Gleeson, who was suspended by the English Rugby League for four months for his part in a betting scandal and released by the club.

So much for that...

 

[thickos]

I doubt he will be coming. Its just not gonna happen with our budget I'm afraid.

 

[greeneyed]

I have a plan. Tyran Smith and Bulgarelli both volunteer to retire, a la Scott Sattler. They put their hand up and admit they are simply eating up salary cap without delivering any results for the club. Presumably, the dollars are not much, and if the dollars involved are there should be a Royal Commission. But use this freed up cap along with the unused cap to sign Lyon.

 

[Davester]

I doubt he will be coming. Its just not gonna happen with our budget I'm afraid.

I mentioned that before. No one bothered to listen...oh well at least you help state it out again...

 

[Angel Of Death]

anyone here saying we SHOULDNT sign Lyon has rocks in their head.
We are going absoultely NOWHERE right now. You think Jason Smith and Craig Frawley are going to lead us to a premiership? We need alot more. Look at the top sides and the attacking power they have. This year when we get in the opponents half we look lost, a player like Lyon can make or create a break and he demands opponents respect when they are defending. I for one am not content at being a bottom placed team, which we are at the moment. We cant keep praying for the next Laurie Daley or Brad Clyde to come through the ranks, let alone a team of them

 

[brenno]

i agree. If a player of the quality of Lyon is available then you can't pass him up. Even if it means you have to consider letting go some fringe 1st grade players down the track due to the salary cap. I'd like to see Lyon come but, i just don't think it will happen. The raiders management are just too stupid to sign a player of the quality of Lyon.

 

[hrundi99]

How many times does it have to be said?

Eveyone would like to sign Lyon, but the odds of us having a spare $450k at this point are limited at best.

 

[thickos]

I think they are scared of what is going to happen at the end of 05 and especially 06. Next year we have

Woolford
Hindmarsh
Mogg
Schifcofske
O'Hara
Bulgarelli

off contract. At the end of 06 we have basically the rest of the squad (besides Frawley, Ale and Carney) off contract. There is gonna be a money shortfall and while I'd love to see Lyon here, management probably think that there isnt enough in the coffers to pull it off.

 

[Angel Of Death]

Even though I hate to say this as a fellow Central Coastie but unless Ryan O'Hara starts to show some balls next year particularly with Davico + Wiki gone let him go to the Roosters or Manly. It will cost a fortune to retain him and I for one am sick of waiting for him to become a genuine leader of the pack.

 

[Brimmer]

Me too.... time for him to pull his finger out...

 

[brenno]

Yeah the quality of his performances have declined rapidly since the origin series.

 

[lukethejedi]

just saw how jaime lyon has signed with ST HELENS

St Helens coach Ian Millward on Tuesday declared Jamie Lyon the biggest signing at the English Super League club since Mal Meninga became a cult figure at Knowsley Road 20 years ago.

Lyon, who walked out on Parramatta earlier this year, confirmed he would head to the north of England next season on a lucrative two-year deal.

"I am raring to play for the Saints, particularly as I will be linking up with Darren Albert, the quickest winger in the British game," Lyon said on the St Helens website.

"St Helens impressed me with their clear ambition to remain a leading world rugby force and they stood out from all the clubs which showed interest in me, even in Australia."

Lyon was in the sights of several NRL clubs including the Wests Tigers and Manly.

However, Parramatta refused the Sea Eagles permission to talk to the former NSW and Australian centre while the Tigers couldn't match St Helens' offer.

"This is the biggest signing for St Helens since Mal Meninga," Milward said.

"Jamie is already a world class strike centre and can only improve. This is a huge boost for the club and a clear sign of its intentions to remain the most successful rugby league club in Britain."

Meninga scored 28 tries in 31 games for St Helens and is still regarded as a legend at the club.

And the Saints are relying on Lyon having a similar affect next season.

The 22-year-old, who has played five games for the Blues and five Tests for the Kangaroos, turned his back on the Eels earlier this year citing his desire to return to his hometown of Wee Waa, where he has spent the past few months playing for his local club.

Bearing that in mind his decision to head overseas came as somewhat of a surprise - you can't get much further from country NSW than the north of England.

But Lyon's manager Mick Smith says he's confident the former Parramatta and Australian rugby league centre will see out his contract with St Helens.

"He's expressed a desire to try a different culture," Smith said on Tuesday.

"He wouldn't have gone unless he wanted to go through with it."

It's understood the English club outlayed $150,000 to clear Lyon - who has spent the past two days pig shooting - of his existing contract as well as $600,000 for the next two years.

Asked whether Lyon would return to the NRL at the end of the contract, Smith said: "It all depends on how much he likes it.

"If he goes over and likes it he might want to stay. He's pretty easy-going. He'll get to know blokes pretty quick.

"But I reckon he might want to come back in two years."