CAP CLEANOUT
The Canterbury Bulldogs continue to offload players to free up salary cap space. Last week it was Kurtis Morrin, who left to join the Gold Coast Titans. This week it’s former Warriors young gun Zyon Maiu’u, who is being offered to rival clubs – just four months after arriving at Belmore. It was only in February that the Dogs announced his arrival in a press release: “The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are excited to announce the signing of boom youngster Zyon Maiu’u on a two-year deal, effective immediately.”
SPOTTED
Parramatta coach Jason Ryles has raised $30,000 via an auction at an Eels old boys fundraiser by offering an opportunity for two lucky fans to watch a game from his coaching box.
AXE HANGS OVER HYNES
The Cronulla Sharks are facing a major decision around million-dollar playmaker Nicho Hynes.
A loss to the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium should be enough to convince coach Craig Fitzgibbon that changes have to be made in the halves.
Cronulla has played its best football in the last couple of years with Braydon Trindall and Daniel Atkinson in the halves.
The Sharks have the Storm, Dolphins and Roosters over the next three weeks, three games that will determine their premiership hopes.
In the last month they had three losses – 42-16 to the Roosters (without five Origin players), 40-10 to the Warriors and 34-28 to the Broncos, blowing a 16-point lead.
It is unfair to pick out individuals because the entire team has struggled.
However, Nicho is the million-dollar man.
He’s on the big dollars as a game manager.
With the pay packet comes a responsibility to perform in the big games.
Cronulla had a chance to peg the Broncos back in the dying stages but Hynes put in a poor final-tackle kick that was easily retrieved by the Broncos for a seven-tackle restart.
A couple of minutes later he knocked on under little pressure.
So what does Fitzgibbon do?
It’s no secret that fullback Will Kennedy has also been struggling for the Sharks.
Hynes has played fullback before at Melbourne Storm.
Playing him in the number one jersey next week might be a gamble worth taking
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