Rumours and Stuff

[oldmancraigy]

We can’t remove his option. He will either activate it, sign a new contract, or leave.

Do you honestly think a contract can't be modified by agreement of both parties with proper representation?

 

[oldmancraigy]

WTF are you on about? We could only start planning in November if we didn’t want to keep them. If we did want to keep them we were stuck waiting until they signed (whether with us or a rival).

And if we had decided to let them go (in the hypothetical case where they didn’t have a PO) then we were stuck waiting for our recruitment targets to sign (with us or with a rival).

It’s like you think that without a PO there’s this magical world where you can instantly sign every player you need like in those bullshit fantasy leagues.

It might be helpfulto think harder about how it works. Read what he is saying and think through the possibilities again.
It isn't simply linear.


I used figurines and tiny pieces of paper to represent their contracts to help me understand it. But it makes sense now.

 

[Eelementary]

NRL 2025: Former Eels skipper Clint Gutherson on the rookie set to succeed him in at Parramatta​

Former Parramatta skipper Clint Gutherson has opened up about the untried NRL rookie set to replace him in the no. 1 jumper at the Eels.

Former Parramatta skipper Clint Gutherson believes new Eels coach Jason Ryles has found the club’s long-term succession plan at fullback in rookie Isaiah Iongi.
Iongi joined the Eels on a three-year deal while Gutherson was still signed to Parramatta, setting the rumour mill into overdrive about his future at the time.
Ryles could not guarantee Gutherson a contract extension, and the coach had designs for Iongi to usurp the club great from the No. 1 jumper he wore for 168 games during his time at Parramatta.
Gutherson, who was appointed co-captain of St George Illawarra, told this masthead that he harboured no ill-feeling towards the Eels or Ryles after being granted a release from the final year of his deal to join the Dragons until the end of 2027.

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He also backed Iongi to not only succeed him at fullback but to own the No. 1 jumper long term despite star recruit Zac Lomax also being an option at the back.
“There are going to be a lot of people watching him and the Eels at the start of the season to see how they are going about their game,” Gutherson said.
“He’s a great young player. He showed everyone how talented he is when he debuted for Penrith last year. He’s been playing for a long time and obviously just didn’t get the opportunities at Penrith.
“But I can see him getting the job done at Parra.
“He can take the number one jumper and make it his own for a very long time.”
While Iongi, who was stuck behind Dylan Edwards at Penrith, is the frontrunner to start at fullback in Parramatta’s season opener against Melbourne on March 9, newly appointed Eels skipper Mitch Moses suggested the race to replace Gutherson is far from settled.
As well as Iongi and Lomax, Ryles has other fullback options in rookie Joash Papali’i and Bailey Simonsson, who is closing in on a return from an ACL injury in Round 1.

“There has been a fair bit of competition around that position at training,” Moses said.
“It’s exciting to see who Rylesy goes with in round one.
“But Isaiah will write his own headlines, that’s up to him. We’ve got full confidence in him that if it’s him that he’s ready to go.”
Iongi will get the chance to create those headlines this weekend when makes his Eels debut in Friday night’s trial against Newcastle, where he was named at fullback.
Gutherson will also make his club debut against the Sydney Roosters on Sunday night but Tyrell Sloan, who will make way for the new skipper at fullback in Round 1, has been ruled out with a foot injury.
Sloan has gone from Flanagan’s first choice fullback to biding his time on the wing as Gutherson’s understudy. But Gutherson revealed the coach’s plans to unleash Sloan in a roaming role in 2025.
“It doesn’t matter where you are on the field, you can roam around,” Gutherson said.
“That’s something we have worked on to make sure we get him in the game to play his style.
“He’s not just going to be out there like a big winger that takes tough carries, he’ll do it all.
“It’s going to be a massive X-factor for us to have on the field, roaming around doing what he likes.”
Flanagan is expected to name Sloan in next weekend’s Charity Shield clash against South Sydney.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-2025-former-eels-skipper-clint-gutherson-on-the-rookie-set-to-succeed-him-in-at-parramatta/news-story/850ac426060a632573e0f5c28faa91c0?amp&nk=9c6b1186cfd0d9e35a96351844816fd5-1739447266

A class act, as always.

He may be wearing Red and White this season, but he's Blue and Gold forever.

 

[Eelementary]

I think it’s time to move on from Mahoney. He has no running game, no craftiness and is a liability in defence. Is any team winning anything big with him as one of their primary decision makers?

I may be wrong, but I don't think Penrith's hooker, is especially crafty...

I think "craftiness" and "speed of dummy half" are what fans like to see, but a good hooker needs to provide good service from dummy half, lead the defensive line, and be a good defender.

I reckon Mahoney ticks all three boxes.

He's certainly better than any First Grade standard hooker at our club.

 

[lucablight]

I may be wrong, but I don't think Penrith's hooker, is especially crafty...

I think "craftiness" and "speed of dummy half" are what fans like to see, but a good hooker needs to provide good service from dummy half, lead the defensive line, and be a good defender.

I reckon Mahoney ticks all three boxes.

He's certainly better than any First Grade standard hooker at our club.

Disagree. His run games average but he is crafty and has decent long kicking game.

I’d say his service is pretty good but I don’t see the craftiness and I think he attempts a high volume of tackles but he’s a liability in the defensive line. I just don’t think it’s worth spending big money on him considering his limitations. We had our time with him and didn’t get anywhere so I think it’s time for someone else to have a go.

 

[Incorrect]

Rheeds biggest issue is overplaying his hand. He's capable of the odd scoot against retreating defensive lines, the odd 40/20 and his service from dummy half is as good as there is in the game. It's when he gets carried away and starts kicking willy-nilly and running trying to play like an extra half that he comes unstuck IMO. In his first year at the Dogs he basically had to play like a half because they had nobody who could, and he just tried too hard. If he picks his moment's, and also stops trying to bait the opposition all the time, he's a pretty good player IMO. But I doubt he gets another shot at Parra if indeed the rumours are true and the Dogs want to get rid of him.....

 

[hindy111]

WTF are you on about? We could only start planning in November if we didn’t want to keep them. If we did want to keep them we were stuck waiting until they signed (whether with us or a rival).

And if we had decided to let them go (in the hypothetical case where they didn’t have a PO) then we were stuck waiting for our recruitment targets to sign (with us or with a rival).

It’s like you think that without a PO there’s this magical world where you can instantly sign every player you need like in those bullshit fantasy leagues.

If his contract ended at the end of 2025 and no PO we would of had the option in June to say to Dylan do you want to extend. If he said I want to test the market then we could of said no worries. We then could of focussed on Talagi if we wanted and a selling point could of been the 5/8th position is yours in 2026. Dylan can't commit so we are putting our faith in you and not Dylan and moving on from him.
Does this make sense?

Alternatively we could of chased anything available at Nov 1. Most the good players are snapped up fast. Currently we have to sit and wait.

 

[hindy111]

I’d say his service is pretty good but I don’t see the craftiness and I think he attempts a high volume of tackles but he’s a liability in the defensive line. I just don’t think it’s worth spending big money on him considering his limitations. We had our time with him and didn’t get anywhere so I think it’s time for someone else to have a go.

We got to a grand final. He isn't Harry Grant.
What he does have better then any hooker in game but is mongrel and likes to niggle. He gets under players skin.

 

[hindy111]

I may be wrong, but I don't think Penrith's hooker, is especially crafty...

I think "craftiness" and "speed of dummy half" are what fans like to see, but a good hooker needs to provide good service from dummy half, lead the defensive line, and be a good defender.

I reckon Mahoney ticks all three boxes.

He's certainly better than any First Grade standard hooker at our club.

Mitch Kenny is like a lock forward who can pass pretty well. Mahoney is a better hooker in my eyes.
Kennys defense is the only thing that keeps him in the NRL. He is an animal in defense. Maybe the best defensive hooker in comp. I dont think he has kuch else to his game.

 

[Soren Lorenson]

It’s like you think that without a PO there’s this magical world where you can instantly sign every player you need like in those bullshit fantasy leagues.

That reminds me - where's @TheRam

 

[Hindmarshisgod2]

That reminds me - where's @TheRam

Probably still writing up one of his comprehensive posts that he started 6 weeks ago replying to pou....

 

[84 Baby]

Rheeds biggest issue is overplaying his hand. He's capable of the odd scoot against retreating defensive lines, the odd 40/20 and his service from dummy half is as good as there is in the game. It's when he gets carried away and starts kicking willy-nilly and running trying to play like an extra half that he comes unstuck IMO. In his first year at the Dogs he basically had to play like a half because they had nobody who could, and he just tried too hard. If he picks his moment's, and also stops trying to bait the opposition all the time, he's a pretty good player IMO. But I doubt he gets another shot at Parra if indeed the rumours are true and the Dogs want to get rid of him.....

Question for you specifically here and please try to treat it seriously - given your assessment of Reed overplaying his hand, do you think the constant crashballs we’d see regularly when Reed was here was a BA idea or Reed’s?

 

[RustedonEel]

That reminds me - where's @TheRam

Don't poke the bear

 

[hindy111]

Don't poke the bear

Ram loves to be poked. Hehe

 

[Happy MEel]

Suppose Drown had just signed, at the end of 2022, a nine year contract with no options. We would still be stuck with him.

For a player like Drown, that would almost be as stupid as the current contract.

 

[hineyrulz]

Probably still writing up one of his comprehensive posts that he started 6 weeks ago replying to pou....

It would be a quality manifesto.

 

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

Do you honestly think a contract can't be modified by agreement of both parties with proper representation?

In the case of a contract registered with the NRL, that would become a new contract.

 

[Happy MEel]

In the same way offering to extend Guymer now would ‘remove’ him being off contract and free to negotiate in November. At the moment he has the OPTION to negotiate and upgrade his deal (here or elsewhere) for 2027. We also have the OPTION to refuse to offer an extension. If the player had a formal PO for 2027, he would have exactly the same OPTION to leave or seek an upgrade from us. There would be zero difference. What would be different is that, with a PO, the Eels would no longer have the OPTION of letting Guymer leave after 2027. That’s it. Is that an option we are likely to want to retain? That’s a decision for the club to make during contract negotiations, and informs whether they offer a PO or not. Is it a no brainer that we would want to keep him, and can we anticipate a value that we are likely to be happy with if the PO is activated? If so the risk is minimal, and almost certainly worth the benefit of whatever salary the player is willing to concede in exchange for the PO.

I’m not. I don’t know how I can spell it out any more simply than I have. I suspect merkins are taking the piss when they refuse to see the benefits of a PO, or overstate the risk. They are conflating the PO with being off contract. The risk isn’t that the player might leave, or that the club doesn’t know if the player will stay. These risks exist independent of the PO. The risk is that the player will stay despite the club not wanting him to. We have one example of this with Haze Dunster. A freak occurrence and a realised risk. If this happens to all our players with options it will be terribly unfortunate. If it doesn’t then we’ve taken the benefit of the POs while avoiding the risk. A win for the club.

You’re completely dismissing the possibility of a change in direction (or coaching staff) across 9 years of nrl where the player with a PO is no longer wanted. It’s an absurd contract. Just like DCE’s and Taumolo’s long term contracts. For someone that’s meant to analyse risk for a living I’m surprised you’ve either dismissed or not even considered this eventuality.

 

[Happy MEel]

We got to a grand final. He isn't Harry Grant.
What he does have better then any hooker in game but is mongrel and likes to niggle. He gets under players skin.

Yep but he’s just as susceptible to merkins getting under his. I’d offer him 600k and not a penny more. I’m comfortable with hands and either a Smith, Joash or even Volman 14

 

[Happy MEel]

If his contract ended at the end of 2025 and no PO we would of had the option in June to say to Dylan do you want to extend. If he said I want to test the market then we could of said no worries. We then could of focussed on Talagi if we wanted and a selling point could of been the 5/8th position is yours in 2026. Dylan can't commit so we are putting our faith in you and not Dylan and moving on from him.
Does this make sense?

Alternatively we could have chased anything available at Nov 1. Most the good players are snapped up fast. Currently we have to sit and wait.

IMO, in that instance we were lucky. I’m glad we passed on Talagi as I just don’t see a quality half for at least 3 years. I thought he could have been useful as a centre or full back until I saw his defensive reads and technique.

Here’s a Ronald McDonald special prediction…Talagi will be the next Luke Brooks. We don’t want that anywhere near Parra.