NRL 2020: Teen hot-shot Joseph Suaalii could be out of the NRL sooner than he thinks
He may be one of the hottest commodities in the game but, with more outrageous demands forthcoming, it’s no wonder Souths are souring on the chase of Joseph Suaalii. And the end be nigh for Cameron Smith.
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Light-hearted gag or did Harry Grant drop a bombshell at the Wests Tigers end of year awards on Wednesday night?
As he accepted his rookie of the year prize, Grant told the crowd he would not return to Melbourne if Cameron Smith plays on with the Storm. People weren’t sure if Grant was merely playing up to the “home crowd” or was seriously considering remaining a Tiger.
He does have a get-out clause enabling him out of the final two years of his Storm contract should Smith play on.
Regardless, the Tigers are desperate to retain the 22-year-old even if that means borrowing him for another year if Smith plays on.
The Tigers added premiership winners Daniel Fitzhenry and Todd Payten as life members.
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STORM LEGEND DROPS HUGE HINT OVER FUTURE
Melbourne Storm legend Cameron Smith has splashed out on a Gold Coast property in the biggest sign yet that he is on the verge of retiring.
Sport Confidential understands Smith and wife Barbara have invested in a Gold Coast house and picked up a new car following their move to Queensland.
While the Storm are hunkered down in a Sunshine Coast hub, Smith’s family is living on the Gold Coast with his kids enrolled in local schools.
Most other Storm families are living with the players and staff at Twin Waters, with kids in Sunshine Coast schools or homeschooling.
Smith, 37, is yet to make public his plans beyond 2020 and conducted a number of interviews this week in which he said he was undecided about his future.
Smith said he is open to returning to Melbourne for the 2021 season, however that remains unlikely with many believing he will announce his retirement if the Storm can win the 2020 NRL premiership.
Powerful Gold Coast Titans figures told Sport Confidential the club has not held any discussions with Smith about a possible cameo, but they would be open to signing him if the opportunity arises.
He could throw a curveball and push on towards 450-plus NRL games in a 2021 farewell season at the Storm alongside departing coach Craig Bellamy.
THIS IS GETTING RIDICULOUS
Teen hot-shot Joseph Suaalii is about to be lost to the NRL with more outrageous demands souring the Rabbitohs interest in him.
After attracting warranted criticism for demands such as a release clause at the end of every season, we already knew Suaalii wanted a clause inserted.
Now he has hit the Rabbitohs up with an “Olympic” clause that would allow him to leave the Rabbitohs if he wanted to, say, follow his track and field dream and run at the Paris Olympics in 2024.
At this rate, the release might come sooner than Suaalii thinks.
ALL EYES ON
Has there been any two bigger enigmatic teams this season than South Syd ney and the Knights? At their best they look like premiership challengers but both have shown glimpses of playing like a sub-par team. It will be all on the line for them on Sunday though.
FLASHBACK
St George Illawarra and the Roosters were preparing to square off on this day 10 years ago. It was the first all-Sydney grand final since 2004 and put old foes Brian Smith and Wayne Bennett against each other. Dragons centres Matt Cooper and Mark Gasnier and the Roosters’ halves Todd Carney and Mitchell Pearce graced the backpage.
BROTHERLY LOVE
The Trbojevic brothers are inching closer to becoming the first three brothers to play for Manly in the one team with youngster Ben extending his deal with the Sea Eagles.
Sport Confidential has learnt Ben has signed a new two year deal with Manly which will see him promoted to the top 30 squad next year. His new contract will take him until the end of 2022 and is an upgrade from the contract which had him as part of the club’s development list this year. The upgrade and extension occurred despite having one year left on his deal and gives the clearest indication that the Sea Eagles are readying the centre/back-rower to join brothers Tom and Jake in the NRL. He was named as part of the Sea Eagles extended squad late in the season but was restricted to ball-boy duties. Tom and Jake are signed at the club until the end of 2026.
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NRL REVIVAL
Incoming St George Illawarra assistant coach Matt Elliott says he owes the Dragons “everything” as he prepares to make a homecoming to the club.
Elliott was announced this week alongside another ex-St George player in Peter Gentle as part of a revamped St George Illawarra coaching staff under Anthony Griffin. Elliott hasn’t coached since leaving the Warriors in 2014 but has had a desire to return to the NRL in recent times. It wasn’t until Griffin called and asked Elliott’s opinion on a range of matters just last week that planted the seed in Elliott’s mind about joining Griffin’s staff.
“I owe the club everything,” Elliott said.
“I played my first grade games there and got a free set of torpedoes. I began my coaching career there. To have the opportunity to go back and make a difference, I’m not going to leave any stone unturned in getting the team heading in the right direction under Anthony.
“Returning to coaching has been itching at me.”
Elliott has been running a successful business – The Change Room – working with the likes of Anthony Minichiello to help people overcome poor health, illness and injury. He has also been working for ABC Grandstand.
“We have to create an environment for them to play their best footy,” Elliott said. “Then we need to give them systems of preparation to elevate that. My external observation is there are a lot of good players there but they haven’t played well. Players aren’t the common denominator.
“It’s the environment to ensure we can let them focus on what they do best.”
The Dragons are also making a play for North Queensland representative forward Josh McGuire.
SPOTTED
Their dad’s are famous Eels but the children of Will Smith and Marata Niukore enjoyed animals of a different kind this week.
With Smith and Niukore locked in the bubble and unable to join them, their families had a day out at Symbio Wildlife Park. It has been a big week for the Smith family after the Eels utility scored the matchwinner last Saturday to ensure Parramatta a top four finish. He was a late-replacement to start at five-eighth but will come off the interchange bench for their clash against the Storm on Sunday.
“Brad (Arthur) told me early enough that I would be starting for me to get my game ready,” Smith said. “It gives me confidence scoring the try. Whatever position Brad gives me I need to turn up.
“It wasn’t until after the try I realised it was such a big moment.”
It was a whirlwind game for Smith whose tackle ended Benji Marshall’s farewell game.
“I didn’t think it was that bad at the time,” Smith said.
ORIGIN BLUES
Wade Graham is the latest incumbent Blues player battling to keep his spot in the squad. NSW have already overlooked St George Illawarra Paul Vaughan and Tariq Sims from its 27-man squad. Now Graham is the next player who is struggling to retain their place and he may have only 80 minutes to push his case for inclusion. Graham has struggled with his form this year after being picked last year after just 86 minutes of NRL. He is the only Shark in contention. The Blues selectors will add players on Sunday from the two teams who are bundled out of the competition. If Newcastle lose, Daniel Saifiti will be named if he is passed fit despite battling injury in the back half of the season while David Klemmer is also obviously in contention. Rookie Bradman Best has also been mentioned as a centre option despite limited matches in recent weeks. Best and Zac Lomax are in the mix to replace the injured Tom Trbojevic even though Lomax was overlooked last Sunday. Lomax has been told he could still be picked in the extended squad.
TRAGIC LOSS
Glenn Maxwell and Alex Carey combined in a spontaneous and emotional final tribute to a man who helped guide their star-studded careers. Earlier this month in Manchester, when the pair made stunning rear-guarded centuries to pull off one of the great series-winning comebacks over England, the Australian stars made a call from the dressing room to their manager, Tony Connelly.
Just two weeks later on Saturday night, Connelly, tragically lost his battle with cancer, aged just 46, leaving behind his wife Monique and two children. Connelly loved his players, and Australian assistant coach Trent Woodhill – also a client – said the Sydneysider and former Channel 10 journalist got a massive kick out of having Maxwell and Carey on the phone to him just moments after pulling off one of their most famous moments.
It was fitting that the incredible partnership between two of his stars - plus a three-wicket haul from another player, Adam Zampa - would be perhaps the final match of cricket he watched after a long and trying battle which he fought stoically to the very end.
Respected by his fellow agents and successful in delivering some bumper deals for his playing group which included Joe Burns, Jackson Bird and Nathan Coulter-Nile and formerly David Warner and Shane Watson – Connelly will be missed by plenty in the cricketing community.
QUEENSLAND CRISIS
Incoming Queensland coach Wayne Bennett will need to be at his persuasive best when he takes over the Maroons for next month’s series with concerns Kalyn Ponga is a distant chance of making it into camp.
Ponga, tired of life in the bubble, is said to be carrying an injury that makes him an each-way bet as to whether he will be fit for Origin.
It will be a massive loss for Queensland if he fails to take his place in the team with the Maroons already struggling to find outside backs.
Outgoing coach Kevin Walters will continue to work with the Maroons for the rest of the month, helping Bennett.
SOUND OF FINALS FOOTY
Fox League has fired up for finals footy with Australian rock band Hands Like Houses. Hit song Monster will be the sound of the finals in 2020 after they recorded at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle with Fox League’s production team. ‘Monster’ is taken from Hands Like Houses’ 2018 album “Anon” which has been streamed more than 30 million times worldwide. The group from Canberra are massive Raiders fans.
STRONG REBUILD
The Titans are continuing their impressive build off the field as much as they are on it by adding a number of Mal Meninga’s Kangaroos backroom staff to the squad. Gold Coast have signed Wests Tigers strength and conditioning coach Steve Hooper who has worked alongside Meninga in the Kangaroos set-up. Hooper spent the past three years at the Tigers. Joining him on the Gold Coast is Australian physiotherapist Sam Madden who has worked at the Sharks and Brisbane.
Gold Coast have also signed Warriors outside Patrick Herbert to a one year-deal. Herbert, 23, has played 21 games since making his NRL debut last year.
TOUGH QUESTIONS
Parramatta halfback Mitch Moses answered some curveball questions when he took some time out to speak with young cancer survivors. Moses is a Footy Colours Day ambassador, and answered questions from youngsters Luke and Hamza and other cancer survivors, including his most embarrassing moment.
“I was lining up a goal-kick from the sideline and missed the ball pretty much, I ended up on my backside,” Moses said.
SPOTTED
EX-Bulldogs players Hazem El Masri and Jamal Idris at Cocktails and Co in Regents Park. Another Bulldogs legend Steve Mortimer was also on hand watching the South Sydney local A-grade grand final last weekend.
BLAST FROM THE PAST: Todd Lowrie
(202 top grade games: 57 Newcastle, 42 Parramatta, 64 Melbourne, 21 Warriors, 18 Brisbane from 2003-14.)
Two grand final appearances and two very strange build-ups for Todd Lowrie and both coincided with his final outings at the Eels and the Storm respectively.
In the lead-up to his first grand final for Parramatta against the Storm in 2009, Lowrie agreed to join Melbourne that following season during grand final week.
“It was lingering throughout the finals,” Lowrie said. “Come grand final week, I just wanted it done. On the Monday I told my manager to do it so I didn’t have to spend the rest of the week thinking about it.”
The pre-season was a bit strange too. As the Storm celebrated their success they used grand final clippings to keep the fire burning. He had to watch on knowing what it felt like to be on the losing end of the premiership decider. It took an even more unexpected turn when the Storm were stripped of their title for salary cap cheating.
“The club embraced me before the cap stuff came out,” Lowrie said. “I felt part of the Storm family. I didn’t have any negative thoughts. I just felt more worried they were going to think I hated them.”
The Storm’s run into the 2012 grand final almost proved disastrous for Lowrie.
“I tore my calf in the last set of training at captain’s run,” Lowrie said. “I thought I was no chance of playing. I could hardly walk and I couldn’t tell my wife what happened without breaking down. Even during the warm-up I didn’t think I would get through it.”
Lowrie credited the side with warming up indoors for enabling him to be passed fit to play in the premiership winning side before he left to join the Warriors.
He was thrust into the first grade at 19 and with a threat from Newcastle legend Mark Sargent. The expletives have been left out but it went something along the lines of “do you want to play first grade or not”. Sargent was Newcastle’s football manager and told Lowrie to get ready to play hooker – a position the then 19-year-old had yet to play.
“I sort of laughed when he asked me to go on at hooker,” Lowrie said. “I realised he was serious so I jumped up to my feet. I thought I had done everything right before the game by being really hydrated. But I sat on the bench busting to pee. I didn’t want to leave just in case I missed an opportunity to go on.”
Originally published as NRL 2020: Teen hot-shot Joseph Suaalii could be out of the NRL sooner than he thinks