The Roosters are fast approaching their Adam Reynolds moment

“There’s just not enough space for those two. It’s not personal when it comes to either player, but it’s obvious one has to go and it’s a tough decision for the Roosters. Souths had their big decisions to make when it came to Adam Reynolds, and you saw how much media that generated.

“I’ve made it clear how good I think Joseph is and you’re taking a huge risk by allowing a player like him to be on the open market. I would lock him up if I were the Roosters and that’s no disregard for Tedesco or even Joey Manu who is also a brilliant player and belongs right alongside the other two. I’m just saying I predicted that, and I can’t believe how I got bagged in game by people you think would know better.

No question, Tedesco is still the superior player, but Suaalii will close the gap in the years to come.

Politis rarely loses a player he wants to keep and he’s a big Suaalii fan, but it will take all his negotiating skills to navigate this one – especially as Suaalii is now managed by Isaac Moses, formerly at the Hut was faced with a messy argument, according to Tedesco. Tedesco now has Joe Wehbe to help him with his affairs. Wehbe also fell out with Moses.

“It can be a lonely place”: Joey turns to Crichton

On the whole, the league community shows a great deal of respect for Angus Crichton and his family, but what is less well known is the tremendous private support he receives.

This column was made aware that Andrew Johns has been spending time with Crichton as he deals with his mental health battle. Johns has been of great help to many battling bipolar disorder, either through a personal connection or through his openness to the disease. Johns was diagnosed with bipolar in the early 2000s after battling depression.

“I’m not going to discuss anything with Angus, I would never do that,” Johns said. “All I’m willing to say is that I’ve had my own experiences and they’ve been fairly public. If I can help someone who is going through any kind of hardship when it comes to dealing with anything mental health related, I will certainly do so. It can be a lonely place and talking to someone who’s been through something can help.”

Other NRL players, including all of his Roosters teammates, gather around Crichton. League players get a lot of criticism – and often deserve it – but at times like these the good people in the game stand up and get counted.

inaction Jackson

Josh Jackson hasn’t said a word since his surprise retirement last year, but today we can give a glimpse into why he suddenly quit the game in October.

Jackson works with the Bulldogs’ high-performance unit, and we’ve revealed the NRL is increasing the club’s salary cap by about $200,000 a year for Jackson. It seems like an odd move by the game’s bosses.

Jackson graduated while playing to pursue a post-football career, but the NRL clearly doesn’t believe he quit the game of his own accord. Why else would his salary as a non-gamer fall below the salary cap?

Jackson’s manager, Adam Purcell, raised the issue to try to put an end to suggestions that his client was being forced into retirement to take some pressure off the club’s salary cap.

“I want to end this once and for all,” Purcell said. “I don’t think Josh has done anything in his entire career that anyone could question his authenticity and credibility, so to say he was forced to retire is completely wrong and unfair to him and the Bulldogs.

“The truth is, he never wanted to be the guy who couldn’t keep up and be a burden on his team in any way. He knew he couldn’t reach the standards and level he had set for himself…the level of excellence physically.

“When the Bulldogs heard he wanted to retire, they asked him to stay and continue training if he changed his mind. Josh could have raked in another $120,000 if he’d practiced during the offseason. Instead, he just walked away, wanting to pursue his new career.

“He’s a no-nonsense guy and it was obvious the Dogs wanted him to stay around because they really lack the experience at the club. He’s also a great player for them and they need that kind of player at the club but he knew he couldn’t go on and he’s a selfless guy and he never wanted to do anything that would have a negative impact on the club. ”

By George, he’s back

George Burgess re-enters local league competition. In his words he ‘helps’ the Helensburgh Tigers in the Illawarra Rugby League because he lives in the area. As for appearing in the team kit in this picture, the former Dragon and Rabbitoh says he doesn’t play, just help.

“I just did some drills for them and showed them some defensive structures and they gave me some equipment to practice with,” he said. “I’ll help them out occasionally, but nothing official as I’m pursuing acting opportunities this year and haven’t been able to commit to a full-time coaching position.”

Free Pints ​​Park

In recent months, the Sea Eagles have placed great value on networking with each other and with the community. They showed how badly they wanted to do that when the eftpos machine stopped working on the famous Brookvale hill at 4 Pines Park last Saturday and thirsty patrons were treated to free beer.

Journo was kicked out

NRL.com reporters have been largely absent from games and media opportunities for the first two rounds as the dispute over a new collective bargaining agreement drags on.

On the eve of the opening match between the Eels and Storm, clubs were told by the players’ union, the Rugby League Players’ Association, that the players would not conduct general media interviews when reporters from NRL.com were present.

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The NRL.com reporter at Thursday night’s game was asked by his media manager to walk out of the Souths’ press conference or threatened that it wouldn’t happen. There was no problem with the Panthers. The press conferences are streamed live anyway.

Kind Gus

Phil Gould, the Bulldogs’ general manager of football, may be a controversial figure, but he’s recently endeared himself to the good people of Picton. Gould was speaking at a Picton Magpies Old Boys luncheon. When he was offered money to play, he rebuffed it, saying the club should spend it on juniors instead.

boom profits

Is the AFL doing as well as they tell us, or is it just spinning?

The AFL released its annual report in February, a few weeks after the NRL released its findings. If you look at the cold hard facts, either the NRL is doing exceptionally well or the AFL isn’t doing as well as expected.

The AFL had an operating loss of $46.1 million in 2021 and a profit of $20.7 million in 2022. So that’s an operating loss of $25.4 million over the past two years. In contrast, the NRL had operating income of $42.8 million in 2021 and $62.9 million in 2022. So over the past two years, that’s an operating income of $105.7 million, compared to the AFL’s $25.4 million loss.

The AFL has $76.7 million in credit while the NRL is debt-free. However, the AFL has a net worth of $314 million compared to NRL’s net worth of $202 million. So, like I said in the beginning, what’s going better?

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