Unfortunately this is a club error, DSaf was never worth what we are paying him, close but likely a bit less and the length of contract as a player matures has to come into consideration, Taumalolo for Cowboys is prime example, how they play is irrelevant as the money goes into the bank account and they can cruise, but get the money while other play strong strive to get better while paid around half, you can hire but you can’t fire
He was an elite front rower playing origin to be fair. The top five front rowers in the game are on a million plus
He was playing better than he is now.
The club didn't agree to pay him $850k because we like him as a person. The contract offering infers a value proposition on the part of the player. The benefit of a contract being that the player isn't contractually obliged to live up to the perceived value but the benefit doesn't extend to how that player should be treated should they fall horribly short of that agreement.
We drew him up as a 8.5-9/10 prop, when in reality he was only ever a 7.5-8/10.
Another key factor that people are missing is that the current salary cap rules require clubs to spend a minimum of 95% of their cap every year. So even if you can't attract decent talent, you have to spend it somewhere. It means clubs fall in the trap of paying overs for players that don't deserve it, making it harder to sign quality players later on. It's the worst salary cap rule and really favours the teams already on top.
I think this was because the last year of the Dragons deal was an option, rather than guaranteed. Could be wrong.
He sat in the shop window all of last season until the Knights gave him a bargain bin 1 year deal after other plans fell through. Now he’s in the same position again and it seems his strongest lead is some vague interest from the Dolphins that he’s not even sure of. Evidently you believe in him a lot more than recruitment managers across the NRL do.
I never saw Chief, Butts or even Josh Perry hang around behind the play set after set like I saw DSaf last Sunday. There were many supporters around me calling for him to have a go.
But there is no denying that Brodie is a much bigger, faster and stronger player this year than last. Last weekend he looked like a good first grader.
I’m sure if Brodie went to a club with a good coach and system, he would be a good consistent first grade player.
There were also a couple years where his form peaked just before origin time. This season, there was a clear change in form when tapped on the shoulder. I'm sorry but i don't want a player hanging around on 850K if they prioritise self gain over sustained team success. I know it wouldn't rub some of the players right when he said if he were leave it would be to go to a better team. Bud, you've been performing at about half your contract's worth for years now.
Whilst I really hope we keep Brodie as part of our top 30 mix based on where he has lifted his game to this year, I think he would absolutely thrive in a system like the Storm and would likely be equivalent, if not potentially better than what Josh King delivers for them now. He is just the sort of player that Bellamy gives a clearly defined role to and then gets maximum value out of them as a selfless team contributor.
I agree, a rule put in place by the rlpa to make sure the money set aside for players actually flows to the players, but does make it very hard for the have nots to climb out of that.
That's great in theory, but juggling a salary cap can be tricky, look at the situation we are in with Leo this year, don't have a lot of room for next year, there must be some temptation to back load a contact there right? It's a slippery slope.
Will be interesting because Tom Flegder is a good chance of being forced into retirement that means the fish may turn to D saf or RCG
I think Leo is a great example. Can we not offer him enough in the first year to keep him? Or does O'Sullivan think he is asking too much?