NRL make their move too early on ‘Yenji’ Marshall
Roar Guru By Steve Kaless, 20 Feb 2009 Steve Kaless is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- Benji Marshall, David Gallop, Rugby League, West Tigers, Wests Tigers
Am I the only person in the world that senses that perhaps Australian rugby league officials are being taught a lesson in negotiation by some saki soaked rugby officials in Japan?
Like my Roaring colleague Spiro Zavos, I can’t see the sense in the NRL’s supremo David Gallop making any sort of bold declaration about Benji Marshall without there being a concrete offer coming from Japan.
Of course, I’m only going by what is in the media and we all know there is sometimes much more and sometimes much less actually happening in reality. But so far the only people who have really played their hand are the NRL.
Also, they played a hand which doesn’t really leave them much room to move.
If they in any way change their mind now, it will look like they are either panicking or had no idea in the first place.
Cooler heads should have prevailed.
Reports suggest that David Gallop was touring the various clubs in preparation for the new season, so rather than talking about that new season, we get dragged into yet another hypothetical debate about code jumping players.
The Tigers clearly haven’t made their mind up about what to do, and like every club these days are bending over backwards to keep their star player happy.
There doesn’t seem to be much in the way of a real deal coming out of Japan yet, so they are obviously holding their fire.
So why the rush from the NRL?
What would have been so wrong with saying. “We’ll have to see what deal is presented to us before we make any comment.”
I don’t know anyone from either code that actually thinks the plan of playing a full season for the Tigers, followed by a stint in Japan, followed by another season with the Tigers is actually going to work out like it sounds for Benji.
It strikes me like one of those really complex pub crawls. It all sounds like a real hoot with scorecards and leg chains, until a third of the way into the night most the group are watching the footy, another group has fallen asleep, and another has splintered off into a hen’s party.
I can just see the Tigers playmaker getting caught in traffic from Sydney Airport trying to make the 3pm kickoff after his flight from Tokyo was delayed.
So why didn’t Dave make a play on everyone’s doubts rather than playing the role of an iron fisted parent who demanded their child stay home and do their homework rather than going and playing Pokemon with the rest of the kids from the kumon maths class.
All that has been achieved by David Gallop’s comments is that he has ensured the matter will remain a circus until it is finally resolved.
It is already full of clowns and it hasn’t even hit the Sunday papers yet, which will have exclusives from sushi bars around Sydney that Benji was spotted there getting ready for his new diet.
You heard it here first.
The Roar’s rugby league guru, Steve Kaless, has given us his second Rugby League Dream Team for season 2009: 1. B Slater (Melbourne) 2. A. Uate (Newcastle) 3. S. Michael (Brisbane) 4. D. Kemp (New Zealand) 5. M. Jennings (Penrith) 6. F. Mateo (Parramatta) 7. J. Thurston (Bulldogs) 13. N. Costigan (St George-Illawarra) 12. C. Parker (Brisbane) 11. C. Fitzgibbon (Easts) 10. S. Thaiday (Brisbane) 9. C. Smith (Melbourne) 8. L. Bailey (Gold Coast) 14. D. Taylor (Brisbane) 15. D. Lawrie (Wests Tigers) 16. J. Kite (Canterbury) 17. S. Manu (Melbourne) 18. K. Filiga (Cronulla) 19. D. Harrison (Canterbury) 20. B. Hunt (Brisbane) 21. W. Zillman (Gold Coast) 22. E. Grothe (Parramatta) 23. J. Idris (Canterbury) 24. S. Walker (Gold Coast) 25. D. Milne (Canberra)
You can pick your NRL Dream Team, too. Have a go now and give Steve a hiding!
View Steve’s first dream team selection
Recommend this story.
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- Explore:
- Benji Marshall, David Gallop, Rugby League, West Tigers, Wests Tigers
February 21st 2009 @ 10:54am
Andystath said | February 21st 2009 @ 10:54am | Report comment
Steffy you’ve gotten it so wrong yet again,Rugby League is League and Rugby Union is Rugby.I would be super confused if I hadn’t read your ramblings before and yet again you’ve ignored your fellow roarers advice.Gallop is a complex man with man hats,but realisticly no body can ignore his role in the Super League debacle and the hypocracy shown during the SBW affair.My suggestion is this year Gallop gets voted Rugby(thats Union Steffy)Marketing Person of the Year.
February 21st 2009 @ 11:00am
Andystath said | February 21st 2009 @ 11:00am | Report comment
Steffy,one lasts thing before you start arguing,look at the tabs up the top for the different sports or on the Hot debate/headlines side bar and see how each sport is labelled.
February 23rd 2009 @ 9:06pm
Steffy said | February 23rd 2009 @ 9:06pm | Report comment
Andystath, you are wrong and the tabs are also labelled incorectly. Union has no right to be the sole claimant to the word “rugby”
February 25th 2009 @ 1:38am
Andystath said | February 25th 2009 @ 1:38am | Report comment
Yeah it does Steffy,it is the original game from the Rugby School in the town of Rugby and the sport they still play is Rugby,not League.I respect your right to post comments but the fact that you sound like a rambling fool everytime you posts something would suggest that your the one thats wrong.
February 25th 2009 @ 7:16am
Crosscoder said | February 25th 2009 @ 7:16am | Report comment
If Gallop was so paranoid by losing a star player to union,he would say to West Tigers it is OK for Benji to have a stint in Japanese union.He would have pushed for Gasnier to earn money outside the cap,with private backing. He as head of the code,stated there are 3rd party limits in place.These rules apply to all clubs.No player is bigger than the game.
Gallop also would have said OK ,to stop losing players,it is open slather from now on, no salary cap,go for it.
The idea is to have 16 commercially viable clubs (and that “ain’t “easy) under current conditions.
That smacks of strong not weak leadership,whether you agree with the decisons or not.
Again if Gallop was so afraid of union and AFL(insert respect more likely),why would he be knowing there are more people participating in the game of rl ,than any time in its history.Last tally was 445,000 playing in some form or another including girls Australia wide.The game is now played in more countries than at any time in its history.
Despite the debatable value of TV contracts,Gallop for all his faults has it locked away until the end of 2012.Whereas the ARU has only a year or so to go,in a very uncertain climate.Oh and the NRL is on FTA the S14 is on pay.The AFL is on FTA and has ordinary ratings in Sydney and Brisbane.
Gallop apparently is so insecure, that the under 20 comp,is now fully funded by their latest fox TV contract.
Yes sirreee i would like to feel that insecure or afraid.
And another point the NRL trials by the Warriors in NZ got 12,000 speccies at Hamilton in very ordinary conditions and 16,700 at Nth Harbour Stadium.Yet the Hurricanes v the Tahs could only muster 14,000 odd at the caketin in a union city.
On the matter of league poaching union juniors talk about irony,I give you exhibit A :Kurtley Beale a rugby league junior,who got a Joey’s sponsorship to play the other code.Giteau played league before he went to a union school,as did Ryan Cross.
AFL AND UNION express no guilt in having scouts attending rl schoolboy matches,with a view to wait for it: poach players.
Andystath
When rugby split in England there was the professional aligned Northern Union .Both codes have changed dramatically since that time,unless the ELVS are half time entertainment.
I suggest that the AR UUUUUU remove the latter letter from its title and remove the advert “forged in union” so as to be known as Australian Rugby.
Likewise the ARRRRRRRRRRL should remove the name rugby from its title, as it according to those in the “know” has no right to call itself rugby.
Someone hand me a stiff drink and dictionary please RUGBY :A TEAM GAME PLAYED WITH AN OVAL BALL THAT MAY BE KICKED ,CARRIED,AND PASSED BY HAND.
LEAGUE: IS A GROUP ON OF SPORTING CLUBS THAT PLAY EACH OTHER OVER A PERIOD FOR A CHAMPIONSHIP.
QED:There is no such code as league on that basis.
Sorry to announce ,but it would appear both codes are entitled to use the name rugby,and both have rugby in their titles.
As far as looking up tabs,look at the SMH site,and I have seen the games referred to as union and league.In both cases it is lazy journalism.Either they are rugby union and rugby league or union and league.
It is a no brainer or are we living in a totalitarian state, where we must conform to a presumptious title that somone else prefers.
As the Yanks would say “you say tomaaato I say tomato”.Get on with life.
February 25th 2009 @ 7:38am
True Tah said | February 25th 2009 @ 7:38am | Report comment
Crosscoder
you’re wrong about Beale being offered a scholarship at Joeys just to play rugby – every year Joeys offers scholarships to several young Aboriginal men to give them a chance of getting an education – Beale was one of these, and it just so happened that he was an excellent rugby player.
February 25th 2009 @ 9:57am
Westy said | February 25th 2009 @ 9:57am | Report comment
True Tah this is my area. Beale was spotted playing rugby league by Mark Ella and some Joeys old boys. It was his rugby /league ability that brought him to the attention of Joeys and not his aboriginality.
Joeys have a an excellent programme of scholarships for aboriginals from rural and isolated communities. The boys from MT Druitt/Doonside and Redfern do not normally qualify.
March 4th 2009 @ 7:38am
Andystath said | March 4th 2009 @ 7:38am | Report comment
Thanks Crosscoder,Rugby union is most often referred to as simply rugby. It may also be known by the slang or colloquial term rugger, a corruption of the word rugby, although this term has declined in use.