gong_eagle
First Grade
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Zorba's view
http://manlydaily.com.au/article/2007/05/19/4599_sports.html
19May07
MICHAEL Monaghan came straight from a meeting with the then Parramatta coach Brian Smith to a meeting with a then rookie Manly coach Des Hasler in August 2003.
The Canberra Raiders utility player was looking for a change and Hasler was looking for a half to guide the side he was beginning to build for the upcoming season.
It was August, 2003 and alarm bells were still ringing in the ears of players coming to Brookvale after the financial demise of the ill-fated Northern Eagles.
Players were sidestepping the club like the plague, but Monaghan and his father Stuart liked something about the quietly-spoken Hasler in the meeting I attended in the board room at Manly Leagues Club.
The players and the managers had the upper hand in those days as we struggled to get players to cross the Spit Bridge.
But Monaghan oozed confidence and wasn't afraid of the challenge.
I checked my notes as I left the first meeting and noted that Monaghan said he wanted to eventually leave as a better player.
He will certainly do that at the end of the season.
Hopefully, with a premiership to go with his lucrative four-year deal with English Super League club Warrington.
It is fair to say Monaghan has been good for Manly and vice-versa.
And it should be made clear that had he wanted to, Monaghan could have been playing with Manly in 2008.
Last season, Monners played every game of the season and so far he hasn't missed a game in 2007. His form is the best of his career and he is proving a very versatile and clever player.
But he believes that he is best suited at halfback and wants to play rugby league with number seven on his back.
He knows that won't happen at Manly and is willing to go to England to get his wish, with English pounds in the bank as the icing on the cake.
It was his decision to test the market and ultimately his decision to leave at the end of the season.
He will set himself up for life as a result of the deal he has negotiated.
Footballers have a short space to earn their maximum amount and Monners has been given that opportunity with Warrington.
But there is more to MM than you see on the field.
I was reminded of that again last Thursday when I went to my favourite school in the district - the Arranounbai School for children with special needs at Frenchs Forest.
It was Monaghan who made me aware of the school and the outstanding work it does for children with myriad illnesses and disabilities.
They are beautiful children who'd been dealt cards from the bottom of the pack.
And they all love Monners. On his days off from training he is often at the school urging a youngster to eat the right food or helping with their rehabilitation. He helps them with their homework and attends birthday parties.
It was through Michael that his teammates have adopted the school and with the help of some generous supporters, sponsors and friends, raised enough money for a new school bus, which will be on the road in July.
I watched kids crying on Thursday because they thought their mate was leaving for England straight away.
Players come and go in football clubs and though the good player that he is the Sea Eagles will cover his exit.
But in the field of community service and caring about children in a gifted way he is irreplaceable.
In his four years with the club I have never known him to be unavailable for something involving disabled or disadvantaged children.
It is a part of his life that he wants to continue long after his football days are over.
Sometimes our footy heroes aren't what you want them to be off the field. But Michael Monaghan is that and more.
http://manlydaily.com.au/article/2007/05/19/4599_sports.html
19May07
MICHAEL Monaghan came straight from a meeting with the then Parramatta coach Brian Smith to a meeting with a then rookie Manly coach Des Hasler in August 2003.
The Canberra Raiders utility player was looking for a change and Hasler was looking for a half to guide the side he was beginning to build for the upcoming season.
It was August, 2003 and alarm bells were still ringing in the ears of players coming to Brookvale after the financial demise of the ill-fated Northern Eagles.
Players were sidestepping the club like the plague, but Monaghan and his father Stuart liked something about the quietly-spoken Hasler in the meeting I attended in the board room at Manly Leagues Club.
The players and the managers had the upper hand in those days as we struggled to get players to cross the Spit Bridge.
But Monaghan oozed confidence and wasn't afraid of the challenge.
I checked my notes as I left the first meeting and noted that Monaghan said he wanted to eventually leave as a better player.
He will certainly do that at the end of the season.
Hopefully, with a premiership to go with his lucrative four-year deal with English Super League club Warrington.
It is fair to say Monaghan has been good for Manly and vice-versa.
And it should be made clear that had he wanted to, Monaghan could have been playing with Manly in 2008.
Last season, Monners played every game of the season and so far he hasn't missed a game in 2007. His form is the best of his career and he is proving a very versatile and clever player.
But he believes that he is best suited at halfback and wants to play rugby league with number seven on his back.
He knows that won't happen at Manly and is willing to go to England to get his wish, with English pounds in the bank as the icing on the cake.
It was his decision to test the market and ultimately his decision to leave at the end of the season.
He will set himself up for life as a result of the deal he has negotiated.
Footballers have a short space to earn their maximum amount and Monners has been given that opportunity with Warrington.
But there is more to MM than you see on the field.
I was reminded of that again last Thursday when I went to my favourite school in the district - the Arranounbai School for children with special needs at Frenchs Forest.
It was Monaghan who made me aware of the school and the outstanding work it does for children with myriad illnesses and disabilities.
They are beautiful children who'd been dealt cards from the bottom of the pack.
And they all love Monners. On his days off from training he is often at the school urging a youngster to eat the right food or helping with their rehabilitation. He helps them with their homework and attends birthday parties.
It was through Michael that his teammates have adopted the school and with the help of some generous supporters, sponsors and friends, raised enough money for a new school bus, which will be on the road in July.
I watched kids crying on Thursday because they thought their mate was leaving for England straight away.
Players come and go in football clubs and though the good player that he is the Sea Eagles will cover his exit.
But in the field of community service and caring about children in a gifted way he is irreplaceable.
In his four years with the club I have never known him to be unavailable for something involving disabled or disadvantaged children.
It is a part of his life that he wants to continue long after his football days are over.
Sometimes our footy heroes aren't what you want them to be off the field. But Michael Monaghan is that and more.
