Newcastle want Idris as the new Joey
By Nathan Ryan
1 March 2011 05:26PM EST
NEWCASTLE are planning for Jamal Idris to become the new face of the Knights - with officials hopeful an Aboriginal ambassador role will secure his services.
Sportsnewsfirst.com.au understands the Knights have enlisted the help of a former Newcastle indigenous player to broker an aboriginal representative role for the 20-year-old, similar to the deal South Sydney negotiated for Test centre Greg Inglis.
This funding proposal has been in the works since Friday, with the former Dally M rookie-of-the-year set to earn over $1 million should he leave the kennel.
The role would make a perfect fit the son of an African father and Aboriginal mother who has publicly said he is already planning to work with the indigenous community as a welfare officer when he retires.
Idris’ Canterbury club, who he debuted for in 2008, are refusing to give up without a fight having brought him up through the ranks of the Toyota Cup all the way to his Origin debut with NSW last year.
Bulldogs CEO Todd Greenberg met with Idris’ manager Sam Ayoub yesterday, and is looking to catch up again later in the week.
“There’s no doubt he has a significant off field presence,” said Greenberg.
“He’s got a great following... there’s a brand of Jamal that needs to be managed going forward.
“Being based in Sydney based particularly through his media profile is an important part of this discussion in his decision.”
The three-year deal - understood to be worth over $350,000 a season did not come from mining magnate Nathan Tinkler - but directly from the Knights.
Sportsnewsfirst.com.au can now reveal that Knights officials have grand plans for the superstar with one inside revealing the Idris brand “will be bigger than Andrew Johns.”
Despite the Knights plans, the Bulldogs CEO has gone on the record in saying they are not chasing off-contract centres Shaun Kenny-Dowall and Chris Lawrence.
“I can tell you no we’re not (chasing Kenny-Dowall or Lawrence) and our priority at this stage is to retain Jamal,” Greenberg said.
“Were very hopeful Jamal will stay.
“We need to sit down with Sam (Ayoub) to discuss what the deal will look like and the terms but he’s certainly the priority for us."
Greenberg has warned the young star that financial gain is not the only factor needed to be considered in what will be the biggest decision in his career to date.
“There are a number of key issues for Jamal to consider, we’ve developed and worked hard with him,” Greenberg said.
“The type of roster we’ve got... there all the parts of how we retain him.
“We’ll be very commercial with our offer but we certainly won’t get into a bidding war.”
The Aboriginal Nigerian’s move to the Knights would make for a shorter drive to his close family and friends in Forster, with the Canterbury CEO telling Sportsnewsfirst.com.au that there would be no hard feelings should he decide to leave the club.
“Players need to maximise their commercial value, I completely understand that but they also need to have a longer term picture," Greenburg said.
“Players like Jamal potentially have ten years in the game so they need to keep in mind what they want to achieve long term as part of their discussion.”
