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NRL 2019 | Wests Tigers young gun Ryan Matterson highlights NRL contract debacle
The contract debacle around Wests Tigers young gun Ryan Matterson has exposed a huge, long-running issue in the game.
Wests Tigers star Ryan Matterson has been handed leave for the remainder of the season after reportedly trying to chase more money at a different club.
The Tigers have been set to train up until the NRL grand final as coach Michael Maguire aims to return the side to the finals after missing the cut for the past eight seasons.
In an age of waning loyalty in sport, Matterson is the latest player to highlight the lack of contract stability.
Last week, NRL.com reported the breakout backrower was looking to move on despite having two years left on his deal.
The Tigers hadn’t granted the leave but on
The Late Show with Matty Johns, Fox Sports reporter James Hooper said “he will keep asking every day” with reports the Eels would potentially double his contract.
The 24-year-old moved to the Tigers from the Roosters after winning the premiership in 2018 and is reportedly on a $350,000 contract.
But a huge season saw Matterson establish himself as arguably the club’s best performer as they fell just shy of a finals berth and was even brought into NSW Origin camp as coach Brad Fittler’s 18th man.
The Tigers on Thursday confirmed the NSW State of Origin prospect had requested leave from training for the rest of the year due to “personal reasons”.
It will only intensify suggestions that the 24-year-old will be playing elsewhere next year amid reports he has unhappy at Concord.
But speaking on NRL360, host Paul Kent said it was another example of “the cancer that’s affecting the game”.
“Ryan Matterson was a young kid coming through at the Roosters, the Tigers recognised his potential, offered him a significant deal, the Roosters couldn’t match it, he signed at the Tigers, he had a very good debut season, so his manager gets in his ear and says ‘we can get you more money than we thought you were worth at the beginning of the season so kick stones at training,” he said.
It fired up
The Daily Telegraph’s Paul Crawley who slammed the NRL for letting this get out of hand.
“Instead of Todd Greenberg making a fuss about Sam Burgess for coming out and speaking his mind and telling the truth, why doesn’t he do something about this?” he said. “And the Wests Tigers fans who had to deal with their coach walking out with two years left on his contract? We’re about to get to Jack Bird being pushed out the door up there (Brisbane).
“A contract these days in rugby league, just forget about it. They do nothing year after year to fix this in the game. There’s no loyalty anymore and the fans can’t trust any contract they talk about.”
Phil Rothfield wondered how the other players would have felt about the Matterson news.
But host Ben Ikin said a player wanting to leave wouldn’t have the club’s new direction at heart.
“On the extra training, we don’t want to finish ninth next year,” Ikin said. “If Ryan Matterson, doesn’t want to be here and his management is coming in here to seek the opportunity to negotiate with other clubs, he’s not going to help us not finish ninth next year.
“I struggle because at the better clubs, this doesn’t tend to happen and I’m not laying the blame at Michael Maguire but the Wests Tigers have been a basket case for a long time.”
Rothfield asked why the club aren’t fining Matterson, whereas Kent said he’d like to see Maguire “call his bluff” and drop him to the feeder club.
Gorden Tallis on
The Late Show with Matty Johns agreed and said he sat out a season as a youngster and said it would be good to see it back.
Crawley added it was an important issue the game had to fix.
“The Tigers fans have copped it but across the game, it’s such a problem that we don’t recognise or do anything to fix,” he said. “You were discussing last night options for the Broncos halves with guys who are on contract, because that’s all there is.”
