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No place like home
18 August 2004
Some will say Adam Dykes should never have left the Sharks in the first place but, after three unsuccessful years, he’s making an amicable split from the Eels to return to the Shire.
Adam Dykes was ready to leave, Parramatta were ready to say goodbye and Cronulla were waiting to welcome him back with open arms.
It’s a scenario that begs the question: ‘What happened?’
Three years ago, Dykes arrived at Parramatta in the aftermath of their record-breaking 2001 season ready to lead the club into a new era of titles and trophies, but somewhere along the line it all went a little haywire.
Next season the Cronulla junior will return home having been granted an early release from his four-year contract with the Eels in a deal that will appease all parties.
But despite the setbacks, namely three injury-plagued years that have restricted him to just 39 games from a possible 70, Dykes insists there was no animosity in his decision to move on before his tenure was complete.
“I was looking forward to something different [at Parramatta] but it didn’t work out the way I thought,” he said this week.
“I have no regrets and there are no dramas between myself and Parramatta. I’ve had a pretty disrupted run with injury and the club has struggled the past two or three years.
“There were a lot of factors involved but like I said it just hasn’t worked out for me.”
Read into it what you will, but the future offers much more promise for Dykes than he’s enjoyed in recent times.
Often maligned by the fickle Eels fans as a ‘waste of money’, he says he’s grown tired of the taunts and ongoing speculation regarding his role in the side.
Instead, he’ll reunite with his former President’s Cup coach Stuart Raper next season in a role he hopes will better suit his talents.
“I think [Parramatta] is a little bit structured,” Dykes explained.
“That’s [Brian Smith’s] style and that’s fine. I’ve got no dramas with that.
“It was up to me to adapt to that and maybe in hindsight I haven’t adapted as well as I should have. That’s what Brian believes in – obviously it’s worked in the past because he’s had a lot of success.
“I don’t know . . . I haven’t played my best footy, especially in 2002-03 I didn’t play that great, so maybe in hindsight the style didn’t suit me. But it’s hard to say.”
Dykes is less withdrawn in regards to the criticisms he’s received.
“I’ve been out injured but that’s not something I deliberately wanted to happen,” he fired.
“I’d missed one game in three years before I came here so I’d had a good run.
“As for the money situation – it’s been blown way out of proportion the amount of money people think I earn. It’s absolutely ridiculous some of the things that people toss up.
“Fans toss up how much they think I earn and then people believe that, the media jump on it, so as far as I’m concerned it’s a load of rubbish.
“But I can’t control what people say. It’s just unfortunate that I’ve been injured.
“I never meant to be and it’s been just as disappointing for me as it has for everyone else.”
The first inkling of a return home in 2005 came earlier this season when Dykes, who still lives in the Sutherland Shire, had a chance meeting with Cronulla coach Stuart Raper.
Soon afterwards, following some subtle inquiries from the Sharks, Dykes’ manager George Mimis contacted Eels management to see if they’d be interested in cutting him loose 12 months early.
Apparently both clubs saw merit in the idea, although Dykes is quick to refute speculation it had anything to do with coach Brian Smith – a common target of criticism in Sydney’s west these days.
“A lot of people think, especially when I was dropped during the year (along with John Morris in round 12), that our relationship was strained but that’s more speculation than anything,” said Dykes.
“Parra haven’t said why [they agreed to the release] and I’m not angry.
“Brian’s happy, I mean it was a business decision. He’s happy for me to go and I’m happy to leave so it’s worked out well.”
At Cronulla, where Raper is trying to instil some of the local identity that was a feature of their regular finals sides under John Lang’s eight-year reign (1994-2001), Dykes promises to add another dimension to a club on the rise.
“I think Adam is the type of player we’ve missed this year,” said Raper, who coached Dykes to a President’s Cup premiership in 1994.
“Having Brett [Kimmorley] out long-term and Greg Bird out for a long time we just haven’t had that first grade quality back-up and I think Adam will complement ‘Noddy’ in what he wants to do attacking wise.
“If you look at someone like Greg Bird who I’ll more than likely play a little bit more at lock, the four guys – Dykes, Kimmorley, Bird and Peachey – could give us a fairly devastating scrum base combination. It’s a lot of attacking flair.”
Dykes first left Cronulla three years ago following the arrival of coach Chris Anderson, who made no secret that he wanted to change the culture of the club and Dykes’ style would not be part of the change.
It didn’t work, nor did Dykes’ trip to Parramatta, so for both parties season 2005 is all about rebuilding the jigsaw puzzle they came so close to finishing last time around when they played in six finals series in seven years (1995-2001).
“If he’s going to play his best football it will be with Cronulla,” said chief executive Steve Rogers, who called Dykes early in the negotiation process “to make sure he was coming back for the right reasons”.
Rogers has also lured back former Sharks centre Paul Mellor from a two-year stint with English minnows Castleford.
“I’m just stoked to be going back there,” added Dykes.
“When I left there were 10 or 11 teammates, that had been there for years, leaving the club so there was a lot of uncertainty at the time. But I’ve always loved the club and the area, I still live there now, and I think next year should be a positive one.”
Brought to you by Big League
18 August 2004
Some will say Adam Dykes should never have left the Sharks in the first place but, after three unsuccessful years, he’s making an amicable split from the Eels to return to the Shire.
Adam Dykes was ready to leave, Parramatta were ready to say goodbye and Cronulla were waiting to welcome him back with open arms.
It’s a scenario that begs the question: ‘What happened?’
Three years ago, Dykes arrived at Parramatta in the aftermath of their record-breaking 2001 season ready to lead the club into a new era of titles and trophies, but somewhere along the line it all went a little haywire.
Next season the Cronulla junior will return home having been granted an early release from his four-year contract with the Eels in a deal that will appease all parties.
But despite the setbacks, namely three injury-plagued years that have restricted him to just 39 games from a possible 70, Dykes insists there was no animosity in his decision to move on before his tenure was complete.
“I was looking forward to something different [at Parramatta] but it didn’t work out the way I thought,” he said this week.
“I have no regrets and there are no dramas between myself and Parramatta. I’ve had a pretty disrupted run with injury and the club has struggled the past two or three years.
“There were a lot of factors involved but like I said it just hasn’t worked out for me.”
Read into it what you will, but the future offers much more promise for Dykes than he’s enjoyed in recent times.
Often maligned by the fickle Eels fans as a ‘waste of money’, he says he’s grown tired of the taunts and ongoing speculation regarding his role in the side.
Instead, he’ll reunite with his former President’s Cup coach Stuart Raper next season in a role he hopes will better suit his talents.
“I think [Parramatta] is a little bit structured,” Dykes explained.
“That’s [Brian Smith’s] style and that’s fine. I’ve got no dramas with that.
“It was up to me to adapt to that and maybe in hindsight I haven’t adapted as well as I should have. That’s what Brian believes in – obviously it’s worked in the past because he’s had a lot of success.
“I don’t know . . . I haven’t played my best footy, especially in 2002-03 I didn’t play that great, so maybe in hindsight the style didn’t suit me. But it’s hard to say.”
Dykes is less withdrawn in regards to the criticisms he’s received.
“I’ve been out injured but that’s not something I deliberately wanted to happen,” he fired.
“I’d missed one game in three years before I came here so I’d had a good run.
“As for the money situation – it’s been blown way out of proportion the amount of money people think I earn. It’s absolutely ridiculous some of the things that people toss up.
“Fans toss up how much they think I earn and then people believe that, the media jump on it, so as far as I’m concerned it’s a load of rubbish.
“But I can’t control what people say. It’s just unfortunate that I’ve been injured.
“I never meant to be and it’s been just as disappointing for me as it has for everyone else.”
The first inkling of a return home in 2005 came earlier this season when Dykes, who still lives in the Sutherland Shire, had a chance meeting with Cronulla coach Stuart Raper.
Soon afterwards, following some subtle inquiries from the Sharks, Dykes’ manager George Mimis contacted Eels management to see if they’d be interested in cutting him loose 12 months early.
Apparently both clubs saw merit in the idea, although Dykes is quick to refute speculation it had anything to do with coach Brian Smith – a common target of criticism in Sydney’s west these days.
“A lot of people think, especially when I was dropped during the year (along with John Morris in round 12), that our relationship was strained but that’s more speculation than anything,” said Dykes.
“Parra haven’t said why [they agreed to the release] and I’m not angry.
“Brian’s happy, I mean it was a business decision. He’s happy for me to go and I’m happy to leave so it’s worked out well.”
At Cronulla, where Raper is trying to instil some of the local identity that was a feature of their regular finals sides under John Lang’s eight-year reign (1994-2001), Dykes promises to add another dimension to a club on the rise.
“I think Adam is the type of player we’ve missed this year,” said Raper, who coached Dykes to a President’s Cup premiership in 1994.
“Having Brett [Kimmorley] out long-term and Greg Bird out for a long time we just haven’t had that first grade quality back-up and I think Adam will complement ‘Noddy’ in what he wants to do attacking wise.
“If you look at someone like Greg Bird who I’ll more than likely play a little bit more at lock, the four guys – Dykes, Kimmorley, Bird and Peachey – could give us a fairly devastating scrum base combination. It’s a lot of attacking flair.”
Dykes first left Cronulla three years ago following the arrival of coach Chris Anderson, who made no secret that he wanted to change the culture of the club and Dykes’ style would not be part of the change.
It didn’t work, nor did Dykes’ trip to Parramatta, so for both parties season 2005 is all about rebuilding the jigsaw puzzle they came so close to finishing last time around when they played in six finals series in seven years (1995-2001).
“If he’s going to play his best football it will be with Cronulla,” said chief executive Steve Rogers, who called Dykes early in the negotiation process “to make sure he was coming back for the right reasons”.
Rogers has also lured back former Sharks centre Paul Mellor from a two-year stint with English minnows Castleford.
“I’m just stoked to be going back there,” added Dykes.
“When I left there were 10 or 11 teammates, that had been there for years, leaving the club so there was a lot of uncertainty at the time. But I’ve always loved the club and the area, I still live there now, and I think next year should be a positive one.”
Brought to you by Big League
