Roosters sounding out O'Meley for '08 season

[bulldog]

Heard it on the radio this morning, couldn't be true could it?

I know it's open slather, but who would of expected the Roosters to be the first team to try and sign a player more than 1 season out from contract expiration?

 

[Tommy Smith]

Well if you heard this rumour on the radio then id say its pretty much a stone cold certainty.

 

[innsaneink]

Shrek set for Roosters - in 2008
By Dean Ritchie
July 21, 2006

SYDNEY Roosters are close to signing Bulldogs prop Mark O'Meley for 2008 - a move that highlights the farcical nature of yesterday's decision to scrap the anti-tampering deadline.

NRL club chief executives voted to abolish the contentious June 30 rule, allowing any player to sign with any club at any time.
O'Meley is today permitted to join a new club despite not coming off contract at Belmore until the end of 2007.
The Daily Telegraph understands he is already close to joining the Roosters, although no deal has been finalised.
O'Meley's possible switch was predictably denied yesterday, but his manager, Wayne Beavis, admitted he had rung the Bulldogs to ask whether the club had "given up the ghost" on the Test prop.
O'Meley could attract more money elsewhere given the Bulldogs have layed out huge cash to retain Sonny Bill Williams and Willie Mason.
O'Meley's impending move 18 months before his contract expires - the type of signing that is now sanctioned - will cause anger and confusion among fans.
Beavis read a report in The Daily Telegraph last week in which it was suggested the Bulldogs were poised to lose international props O'Meley and Roy Asotasi.
The story prompted Beavis to ring Bulldogs officials.



"I rang them and asked had they given up the ghost on Mark. They said 'certainly not'," Beavis said. "But everyone will be interested in Mark. I'm sure at the appropriate time he will be well sought after.
"I've spoken to Mark but not to any other NRL clubs."
Roosters chief executive Brian Canavan denied his club had approached O'Meley while Bulldogs chief executive Malcolm Noad said his club hoped to retain the representative forward.
"There hasn't been any discussion at all," Canavan said.
"(New buy) Nate Myles can play front row. We have David Shillington, Shane Shackleton and a heap of good young juniors."
Noad added: "We're confident of keeping him - we'll be doing our best."
O'Meley said recently about his chances of staying at the Bulldogs: "It all depends, you've got to look at who they are keeping and who they are losing."
At yesterday's meeting, the CEOs supported a new system that will give a player's existing club the final right to negotiate with the player before he signs with a rival team.
"The clear fact is that June 30 was not working and in practice I think the market in some ways has been operating without that rule for some time," said NRL chief executive David Gallop.

http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0,8659,19858434-23214,00.html

Well well well looks like either Ritchie, Canavan or Noad is bullsh*tting here...I wonder which it is? :whistle

 

[Pierced Soul]

well if you wanted o'meley, now is the time to strike before everyone else gets wind of it and starts a bidding war.

I wonder if the roosters will have a clause in the contarct regarding injury, cos the prob with signing someone so far out is that injury and loss of form could happen before hand. The other thing which could happen is come the end of 2007 o'meley's changed his mind and doesnt want to go (ala Adam Muir leaving the knights)

these signings will really piss off the fans

 

[Kingytek]

As a Bulldogs fan I will be PISSED off if this happens. Not only because it's another quality forward going but because it's bloody ages away!

 

[innsaneink]

As a Bulldogs fan I will be PISSED off if this happens. Not only because it's another quality forward going but because it's bloody ages away!

Wont you be cheering for some other mob by then anyway?

 

[mxlegend99]

This is a disgrace. Stealing players so early... the anti-tmpering rule should have been kept. If i were a Doggies fan... i'd be pissed off. Trust it to be Roosters. They need to get some talent of their own. Being a Panthers fan, i've seen them steal too many of our fellas.

 

[bulldog]

This could easily turn into another Rooster bashing thread, that might be fun but the issue isn't who does it first, but that it is going to happen a lot. The Roosters aren't backwards in coming forwards, never have been, but don't anyone expect their club wouldn't do the same if they saw some benefit in it.

 

[Kingytek]

Wont you be cheering for some other mob by then anyway?

Yeah, your right!
....but I'll always have a soft spot for the Bulldogs!

 

[Ice777]

What an absolute farce these new rules are. It's just yet another reason for everyone to sit back and laugh at rugby league. It's the Bulldogs copping it now, but it won't be long until it affects everyone's team who they barrack for.

 

[Big Mick]

The easier way to do this is to have in place two Transfer periods.

A period 2 months beginning two weeks prior to origin. With the split round being introduced and having just Origin for the week of the game. This will give players the opportunity to negotiate. After 2 months, the transfer period closes and all negotiations must be held off until after the grand final, which introduces open negotiations until 1 January the next year.

 

[Razor]

Why shouldn't he be allowed to sign if he wants?

The anti-tampering deadline only came in around 10 years ago. Before then it was open-slather, and in 1994 Rugby League was at it's peak. So it didn't affect the fans at all. It was disgraceful and one of the most hindering agreements of any sports league in the world.

Even though it was allowed players rarely signed a long time in advance - Rodney Howe (signed in 1993 for 1995) and Adam Muir(signed in 1996 for 1998) are the only 2 Knights players who did that I can remember (Apart from SL where Darren Albert signed in 1995 for 1998)

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

What an absolute farce these new rules are. It's just yet another reason for everyone to sit back and laugh at rugby league. It's the Bulldogs copping it now, but it won't be long until it affects everyone's team who they barrack for.

We'll get over it.

These things are caused by competition for players.

AFL has none.

No other League chases AFL players and no other sport chases AFL players.

Laugh at that.

 

[sretsoor]

It's a blatant attempt by the Telegraph to cause some hysteria over the rules changes. As usual, every player to have evered played the game has been linked to the roosters by the papers.

Also, the article still mentions Asotasi is poised to leave the Dogs? What the..... talk about a piece of jounalistic crap.

No team would risk signing a player so far in advance as there are to many risks invovled.

 

[colonel_123]

As a Bulldogs fan I will be PISSED off if this happens. Not only because it's another quality forward going but because it's bloody ages away!

I cheered for Laffranchi through half of last season and all of this year despite knowing that he'd be at the Titans in 2007...

I knew Laffranchi was going to be a Titan for a longer period of time then Bulldogs fans will have known O'Meley was going to be a Rooster. Ditto Saints fans with Bailey and Panthers fans with Campbell.

How is this any different?

 

[[furrycat]]

Where did he say he wasn't going to cheer for him...?

 

[Raider_69]

i think the restriction should be January 1 not June 30

So then in this situation Mark O'Meley wouldnt be able to negotiate untill his final year of contract. That would be the best solution IMO

 

[roosters06]

As has been already stated - in League's prime in the early 90's we didnt have the Anti-tampering deadline - and league still prospered.

Just adds a little more flavour to the game if you ask me.

 

[851]

Whilst the Roosters use to flout the rules,,they are doing nothing wrong on this occasion.
I think it sucks,but the powers that be must think it is the way to go.

 

[marshall stalin]

it's a made up story from the king of made up stories - dean "dont let the truth get in the way of a good story" ritchie. He's always trying to stir up issues between the Roosters and the Dogs and their supporters.

remember after the 2002 how he ran that fantasy grandfinal -" the grandfinal we weren't allowed to have" and how that caused lots of problems.

he would be better suited to one of those gossip papers