Cheaper by the Gallen: Why Cronulla might have paid too much

Today, One Week speculates on Cronulla’s return on their Paul Gallen investment, Kieran Foran’s state of mind following Parramatta’s boardroom shenanigans and Trent Robinson’s snub of the coaching fraternity.

Cheaper by the Gallen?
My question to Cronulla fans – is Paul Gallen worth it?

The sight of Sharks skipper Paul Gallen rising gingerly to his feet after a ferocious clash of bodies, sticking his right arm in the air to signal a trainer, and then being slowly helped from the field is unfortunately not a new one for long-suffering Cronulla fans. So when Gallen seemed to tweak a knee on a routine hit-up during the second half of the Sharks Round 1 clash against the Cowboys, the sense of déjà vu was difficult to ignore.

The early reports were miserable, with Cronulla fearing a busted ACL, signally curtains on their skipper’s season. It was later revealed to be less serious, and Gallen reacquainted himself with the surgeon’s table in a bid to be back in action in a few weeks.

For most fans, the sight of their club captain being assisted from the field would trigger a cold sweat. Cronulla fans opted for the Nick Kyrios approach, taking to social media to sledge their inspirational leader for his lack of commitment to the Shire. Gallen returned fire on talkback radio, blasting fans for a lack of respect, and almost daring them to say it to his face. You could almost hear Gallen’s knuckles cracking as fantasised about his next amateur boxing bout.

Despite Gallen’s indignant posturing, the facts are hard to ignore. Over the past five seasons, the Cronulla and NSW captain featured in a total of 79 out of 126 (63%) club fixtures. During this same period, Gallen represented NSW in 13 out of 15 (87%) State of Origin fixtures.

In no way do these statistics provide a shred of insight into the level of commitment Gallen has for the Cronulla Sharks. As a man who has represented the club on over 250 occasions, Gallen has donated his share of blood, sweat and tears to the sodden turf at Shark Park. But was he worth the money?

Cronulla signed Gallen to a lucrative four year deal in 2011, resulting in the skipper accounting for a healthy chunk of the Sharks’ salary cap. At the time, Gallen was quoted as saying “that’s one thing, though, I don’t want to happen in three or four years – playing every second game”. Yet that is exactly what transpired.

Gallen’s passion and commitment when on the field are unquestioned. He just hasn’t spent enough time there. Despite his vaulted standing in the Shire, Gallen simply has not yielded a healthy return on investment.

Trapped in Foran land
Parramatta halfback Kieran Foran will tell anyone who listens that he bleeds Blue and Gold. But in light of recent events, does anyone believe him?

The Parramatta Eels are based only 30km west of the Sydney CBD, yet seem to live in an alternate reality. The commands issued from within the boardroom are better suited to the chaotic streets of King’s Landing than the corridors of a rugby league club. CEOs come and go with ruthless regularity, their reputations ripped to shreds and publicly displayed on social media for the hungry hordes to devour.

Boards are ushered into power after political warfare, yet are barely given the time to redecorate their office before a rival ticket is plotting their demise. Welcome to Sydney’s Westeros.

The latest poor soul to occupy the cold, iron throne as Parramatta CEO is John Boulous, as his predecessor Scott Seward lost his head following a plethora of bungled contract negotiations.

After yet another off-season stuck in a salary cap quagmire, and having poindexters from accounting giant PWC rifle through their cupboards in an effort to appease those at NRL HQ, fans were praying the worst was over. Yet it had only just begun.

Early reports indicate that Parramatta have not only breached the salary cap once again, but have done so with obscene arrogance. Minuting boardroom musings on how to cheat the salary cap is shocking.

Running afoul of the clear regulations governing third party player agreements in such a cavalier fashion is just plain foolish. No final word yet on potential punishments from the NRL, but the deduction of points would seem a good place to start.

The implications of these deceitful dealings extend beyond the Eels. Rival teams competing against a Parramatta team which may contain players funded outside of the scope of the salary cap would rightfully feel aggrieved in defeat.

What if your team loses to a Parramatta squad found guilty of a breach, and then goes on to miss the finals by two points? The Eels may have fines levied and points deducted, but where is the justice for your team?

Throughout this horror process, one has to wonder at the internal machinations of star recruit Kieran Foran. Publically, Foran says all the right things. He stresses how happy he is to be an Eel, and that the corporate combat happening behind the scenes is not a distraction to his team or to his performance on the field.

Yet you have to wonder, when the bright lights of the television cameras are switched off, when his teammates have left the sheds after another long day at training, when he is finally left alone with his thoughts, does he sometimes scream – ‘I’m a footballer, get me out of here!’

The Peter Sterling curse on the Parramatta number seven jersey has claimed more victims than swine flu since the great man hung up his boots. Will Foran be the man to finally lead the Blue and Gold back to glory? Knocking off the defending champs in his first game is a good place to start.

Roosters backpedal on cockamamie scheme
No one likes to admit they were wrong, and rugby league coaches are no different. When faced with their shortcomings, some deny it, others ignore it, and a few take the Wayne Bennett approach of bristling with hostility at the very suggestion that a problem exists.

So it was refreshing to see Roosters coach Trent Robinson readily concede his efforts to transform Blake Ferguson into a quality fullback had been futile. Despite training in this position all off-season, Ferguson was limited in attack, tentative in defence and a heart attack under the high ball.

You can understand why Robinson initiated this experiment. Ferguson is a big lump of a thing with a powerful running game and the ability to be a punishing defender. Yet the role of a fullback requires more than being one of God’s masterpieces, as a certain degree of cerebral understanding is needed to fully grasp the nuances of the position.

So Robinson shuffled Ferguson back into the centres, where he has excelled throughout his career, and handed rookie superstar Latrell Mitchell the number one jersey.

The move strengthened two positions, and resulted in the Roosters looking more potent in attack and more organised in defence. While the Roosters were unable to overcome the resurgent Raiders, their performance was much improved on the egg they laid in Round 1.

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