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Yes, it’s a punch to the stomach. James Tedesco has left the Wests Tigers for the Canberra Raiders.
James Tedesco showed the kind of brilliance earlier in the season to suggest that, injuries notwithstanding, he was ready to become the one of the game’s next great fullbacks.
He seemed like the kind of player to build a championship team around. When Tigers fans pondered a future of Luke Brooks and James Tedesco combining for try after try, it must have created a warmth in the solar plexus.
Now that solar plexus is caved in, and the club’s leader, Grant Mayer, is saying some strange things as he writhes around on the canvas, gasping for air.
He said that his club would ‘stop developing juniors’ if the NRL didn’t step in and do something.
Really, Grant? Just so I’m clear, you’re saying you can’t compete with bigger bids for your players, therefore you’re going to stop doing the very thing, outside of buying players, that allows your team to have a chance of winning?
How does Grant Mayer expect to compete if he’s happy to admit the club can’t match bids from other teams for his elite players? Just stop developing talent like Luke Brooks, Tim Simona, Curtis Sironen, Robbie Farah and Aaron Woods and then… what?
Trot out a bunch of park footballers?
Grant, if you thought your club couldn’t compete financially now, imagine what it will look like when your team is a perennial wooden spooner, devoid of talented youngsters, playing in front of 34 people at Campbelltown.
Dave Smith wouldn’t stand for that for too long. The Tigers would quickly become the darlings of the NSW cup.
But let’s not take Grant’s mini-tantrum as the final word on this topic. Mayer said he couldn’t match Canberra’s offer for Tedesco. Okay, that must mean that the club’s cap is filled due to payments to other stars. The roster must be literally chock-a-block with them, 1 through 25.
Googling right now, hang with me.
Okay… Robbie Farah. Yes. Absolutely. Truly one of the game’s elite dummy halves and worth every penny of whatever he’s on.
Aaron Woods? Still young, probably not on a giant contract but will be worth good money when renewal time comes around.
Hang on. There must be more elite players clogging up the Tigers payroll, making it impossible for them to have shelled out the extra seasonal hundred grand it would have taken to match the Raiders’ offer.
Of course, how could I forget: Benji Mar-
Forgive me. He’s being overpaid by a different team.
I hope the point’s becoming clear. Before Grant Mayer begins to throw proverbial stones at the current system (which clearly isn’t perfect), he might want to look at how his club is prioritising its spending.
Mayer has locked up most of his young talent, which is commendable, but with the exception of Luke Brooks, none of that talent has made the impact at the elite level that Tedesco managed in the first few rounds of the season.
Spending on young players with potential is important. Spending significantly more for young players who are already performing at an elite level? More important.
Somewhere, somehow, Grant Mayer made some mistakes in how he apportioned his club’s player finances. Before we begin to look at possible changes to the current free agency system, he might want to reflect on how this whole shemozzle could have had a better ending for his club.
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