Manly Sea Eagles ownership change unlikely to stop Anthony Watmough leaving
October 23, 2014
By Adrian Proszenko
A change of ownership at Manly is unlikely to prevent Anthony Watmough departing for Parramatta, with the Sea Eagles' contingency plans well advanced with their pursuit of replacement Feleti Mateo.
The bitter battle for control of the Manly club has been won after the Penn faction bought out Quantum for about $5 million. The Penns' stake has increased from 49 to 87 per cent, giving them a 5-2 power bloc in the boardroom.
The Manly-Warringah Rugby League Football Club Limited, also known as the district club, retains a 13 per cent stake in the Sea Eagles. Ironically, Quantum had been aiming to buy out the Penns since 2012 in the hope of bringing the issue to a conclusion, but has instead opted to invest in other business interests.
Scott Penn will remain as chairman, while the future of general manager David Perry is under a cloud. Perry is contracted until the end of next year but it remains to be seen whether he will see out his tenure. The club will face a hefty payout should the Penns opt to move him on.
Perry has done a commendable job under difficult circumstances, effectively the man caught in the middle of the warring factions.
He is likely to come under consideration for the newly created group CEO role at Cronulla if forced out or there may even be a straight swap with Grant Mayer should Manly powerbrokers opt to bring him back into the fold.
Mayer is highly regarded by the Penns and was part of the club during premiership successes. There could be other staffing changes, with St Helens mentor Nathan Brown tipped to replace Steve Georgallis as an assistant to coach Geoff Toovey.
The Penns have strong ties to key members of Manly's senior playing group including Watmough, Steve Matai and Stewart brothers Glenn and Brett.
The decision not to offer South Sydney-bound Glenn a contract extension has inflamed tensions and sparked speculation of a mass exodus.
While Brett Stewart and Matai could be more inclined to stay, it's unlikely the development will stop Watmough joining Parramatta, most probably from next year.
As revealed by Fairfax Media, Watmough has agreed to terms to join the Eels and his management is working through the details of a release from the final year of his Sea Eagles contract.
The last sticking point is how much of the $975,000 deal Manly will have to pay in 2015, with Watmough believing he is $350,000 in arrears. The Sea Eagles are willing to kick in $300,000 but it's expected the impasse will soon be resolved.
Manly is resigned to losing the NSW and Australian back-rower and is in talks with Mateo.
The former Parramatta playmaker is contracted to the Warriors until the end of 2016 but is keen for a return to Sydney. He has struggled to nail a starting spot in Auckland and the Warriors are likely to grant an early release to free up salary cap space.
Unwanted Knight Willie Mason is also poised to join Manly as part of an overhaul of the forward pack.
Mason won't be the only forward shifting from Newcastle, with Zane Tetevano also signing on, pending an NRL clearance following off-field indiscretions. Cronulla's Siosaia Vave will also help to fill the void left by the retirement of Jason King and the loss of Glenn Stewart and Daniel Harrison.
One of the biggest challenges for the new owners is the retention of superstars Kieran Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans. The international halves pairing is off contract after 2015, with the Roosters and Parramatta keen on Foran.
There will also be no shortage of suitors for Queensland and Australian playmaker Cherry-Evans in coming months.
After years of squabbling and internal politics, it's hoped the buyout will finally bring peace to Brookvale.
"We want to thank the Quantum Group for their contribution to the Sea Eagles over the past three years and their major sponsorship prior to that," Scott Penn said.
"We acknowledge that the past couple of years off the field have been difficult, however we are committed to ensuring the Sea Eagles are a world-class organisation under consolidated ownership.
"There are a number of exciting initiatives which we will be announcing over the coming weeks to ensure our members are as excited as we are about 2015."
A statement from the district club said: "Whilst the football club does not support a single private ownership model, the board of the Manly-Warringah Rugby League Football Club commits to working cooperatively and constructively with Penn Sport to ensure the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles maintain their strong culture and continued on-field success and looks forward to hearing Chairman Scott Penn's vision and plan for the future of the Club.
"The football club will continue to uphold the rights of football club members through the preference share which enshrines our name, logo, colours and where we play. The preference share was the condition upon which football club members originally agreed to the privatisation of the club.
Finally, the football club places on record its thanks to Quantum for the substantial investment they have made in the Sea Eagles over many years, firstly as a sponsor and later, a co-owner. They have been a big part of the Sea Eagles' success over several years."
What it means ...
The Penn faction will now have control of the boardroom courtesy of a 5-2 majority.
Manly general manager David Perry will be under pressure to hold his position despite being contracted until the end of next year.
Anthony Watmough's transfer to Parramatta is expected to go ahead, as the Sea Eagles are close to finalising finalising deals with replacements Willie Mason and Feleti Mateo.
Steve Matai and Brett Stewart are more likely to stay put under the new arrangement due to their strong ties with the Penns.
