Weekend Read: Brad Arthur’s pre-season shake-up at Eels doesn’t fix their fundamental premiership problems, Roosters needed to extend James Tedesco’s contract
The Roosters can be ruthless when they need to be, but James Tedesco doesn’t deserve to be kicked to the kerb for Joey Manu. Plus, the vibes are high at Parramatta following a positive pre-season, but they’ll need more than that to keep pace with the top teams. WEEKEND READ
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Brad Arthur is about to begin his 11th season in charge of Parramatta and he has decided to do things a little differently.
Arthur, facing arguably the most important year of his coaching career, took his squad to the south coast this week for a camp.
But rather than flog them on the training track, he gave them a long leash.
They played golf, had some beers, and bonded with some of the club’s former greats.
Peter Wynn, a member of the 1980s dynasty, was invited on the journey and came armed with stories from the good, old days.
Wynn even packed a booklet that was given to him by the legendary Jack Gibson, complete with a poem that the players were required to learn on their way to the 1981 premiership.
The poem was by boxer James J. Corbett and Wynn can still recite it on cue.
To him, it sums up what it means to be a rugby league player.
“Fight one more round. When your arms are so tired that you can hardly lift your hands to come on guard, fight one more round.
“When your nose is bleeding and your eyes are black and you are so tired that you wish your opponent would crack you one on the jaw and put you to sleep, fight one more round – remembering that the man who always fights one more round is never whipped.”
Mick Cronin, one of the club’s greatest players, was called on as well by Arthur as he looked to sprinkle the current squad with some premiership-winning gold dust.
The lightning trip away was all the talk as the Eels launched their season at Parramatta Town Hall on Thursday night.
Amid the hubris that filled the room, the whisper was that the Parramatta playing group is as tight as they have ever been.
A few days away, a handful of beers and some lazy swings on the golf course have united the squad that has been written off in some quarters leading into the season.
The sense is that their window is closing at Parramatta rather than opening.
A year removed from playing in the grand final, the Eels missed the finals altogether last season and 2023 will be remembered as a year of bitter disappointment.
The way they fell off the pace has resonated heading into 2024.
It feels like they have been left behind. Listen to the pundits and they’ll need more than a couple of blokes from the Eels’ golden days to make an impact in 2024.
Parramatta might just need a miracle if they are to end a 38-year wait for a fifth premiership.
It’s been far too long for one of the game’s biggest clubs and helps explain why Arthur will be under the microscope when the season begins.
He has taken the Eels to the finals with regularity during his time in charge.
But Parramatta fans and officials crave a premiership and they need everything to go their way this season if they are to end the drought.
They have plenty in their favour. Front rowers are the flavour of the month in the NRL and Parramatta have two of the best in Junior Paulo and Reagan Campbell-Gillard.
For all the talk about the Eels needing some x-factor, fullback Clint Gutherson is still one of the most wholehearted and consistent players in the game.
Mitchell Moses is a matchwinner who is entering his prime and has the potential to win games on his own. If not for Nathan Cleary, he would have a mortgage on a sky blue jersey.
His halves partner Dylan Brown is a class act who acknowledges he needs to find more consistency in his game. If he can find it, the Eels will have one of the best combinations in the game.
There is a lot to like about the tools at Arthur’s disposal but also a nagging feeling that something is missing in comparison to the game’s elite.
It’s easy to drink the Kool-Aid when you spend a few hours in the company of players and officials before the season has begun.
This columnist fell into the trap last year with the Wests Tigers, predicting they would climb the ladder after a day spent at their Centre of Excellence.
We all know how that turned out. The Tigers finished with the spoon and have spent the off-season in turmoil. We won’t be making the same mistake again.
There won’t be any grand predictions from this column about the Eels in 2024. It will take a lot more than a room full of hope, a dusty booklet and some tasty canapes before we jump on the Eels bandwagon.
*****
Someone wise once told me you should never do anything for money. Can’t remember who it was – might have been the old man – but the words have stayed with me.
James Magnussen would do well to heed that advice.
The Olympic medallist has had his head turned by the promise of a $1 million bounty but at what cost, not just to his reputation, but potentially to his health.
The idea of pumping yourself full of steroids and seeing how fast you can swim, with a million dollars as the carrot, may seem like an easy call.
But Magnussen has built a reputation for campaigning against drugs and he has parlayed that into a burgeoning media career.
I don’t know James that well. I bumped into him at Manly Beach recently, shook his hand and had a brief word. My colleagues tell me he is a cracking bloke.
He seems like an impressive dude and he’s fast turning into a savvy media performer as well. He was a hell of a swimmer during his pomp and he now makes a living to a large extent off the reputation he built during a stellar career.
Now he is contemplating putting that at risk in support of a concept that turns sport into a circus. The idea of the Enhanced Games is an embarrassment. A joke. Nothing more than a money grab for promoters and athletes.
Other than cash, what is there to gain? Doping is cheating. Newsflash – it’s also dangerous. So I reckon you should think twice James before needling up and chasing the cash.
Money isn’t everything my friend.
*****
The Sydney Roosters rarely lose players they want to keep but Joey Manu looks like being the exception. I’m not sure what more they could have done.
The easy option would have been to cut James Tedesco loose, save themselves a fortune which they could have sent Manu’s way, and handed him the No.1 jersey as well as the challenge he apparently craves.
Yet that would have been an injustice to Tedesco. He is coming off a difficult season but he is still the NSW and Australian fullback and captain.
In any discussion over the best No.1 in the game, Tedesco deserves to feature prominently. He hasn’t done a whole lot wrong during seven years at the Roosters, a period in which he has consistently been their talisman and best player.
The Roosters can be ruthless when they need to be but Tedesco didn’t deserve to be kicked to kerb. He is only 31 and far from finished.
Thankfully, the Roosters did the right thing in extending him even though it may end up contributing to Manu’s departure.
The sad part, if Manu decides to go, is that rugby league hasn’t seen the best of him. He has been a hell of a player but there is a nagging sense that he has more to give.
Maybe he knows that as well, hence his desire to test the waters in European and Japanese rugby union where he can challenge himself by learning a new code.
He likely walk away with a pay rise as well. Not a bad fallback option.
Originally published as Weekend Read: Brad Arthur’s pre-season shake-up at Eels doesn’t fix their fundamental premiership problems, Roosters needed to extend James Tedesco’s contract
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