Why Nathan Ross holds the key to Jarryd Hayne potentially staying at Parramatta
THE man who holds the key to Jarryd Hayne’s chances of earning a new deal at Parramatta is none other than Newcastle cult hero Nathan Ross.
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THE man who holds the key to Jarryd Hayne playing for the Parramatta Eels next year is none other than Newcastle Knights centre Nathan Ross.
The Knights have offered ‘Ross Dog’ permission to negotiate elsewhere and possibly find an opportunity in the UK Super League.
If this was to happen, the Knights would sign former Origin centre Michael Jennings from Parramatta which in turn would free up the space in the Eels’ salary cap for Hayne.
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The Knights are carefully balancing their roster which is why they can’t sign Jennings while Ross remains at the club. What is left in their cap is earmarked for forwards, not centres.
Whether Hayne is prepared to wait for Ross Dog to determine his future remains to be seen.
SAINT
A LAZY Sunday arvo/evening in front of the TV, feet up, a Reschs pilsener and barbecue while watching the Aussies take on South Africa in the one-dayer on Fox Sports at the magnificent new Optus Stadium.
SINNER
IT might be the most stunning cricket venue in the land but league and soccer fans will need high-powered binoculars at the SCG to watch the footy while Allianz Stadium is being rebuilt. Those at the A-League Sydney derby last weekend said even the players’ numbers were barely visible.
SHOOSH
WHICH board member at an NRL club is so annoyed and frustrated at the lack of communication from the head coach that he has appointed one of his closest mates as high performance chief to get feedback and “mail” on the team?
SHOOSH II
WHICH club has offered an Origin forward an early release that will be of huge interest to the Bulldogs as Dave Klemmer’s replacement? And it’s not Trent Merrin.
SHOOSH III
WHICH rugby league media personality is so hopeless on the tools that he had to pay a Hire A Hubby handyman $180 to assemble his Aldi barbecue?
SPOTTED
SCOTT Prince must be still enjoying the benefits of his 2014 salary cap “extras” at the Gold Coast Titans. We spotted the former halfback catching a chopper from Crown Casino to Moonee Valley for last weekend’s Cox Plate.
SPOTTED II
A MINI-Kangaroos reunion with Aaron Woods, James Tedesco, Jake Trbojevic, Tom Trbojevic, Curtis Scott, Ian Mathie and Damien Notaras enjoying lunch at Notaras Fish markets in Cronulla last week.
SPOTTED III
PREMIER coach Trent Robinson and his Roosters coaching staff in Yamba on the North Coast for a pre-season conference to start planning their NRL defence.
SPOTTED IV
BIG Sports Breakfast host Laurie Daley at the flash Grand Hyatt in Melbourne where he is staying for the Melbourne Cup carnival while working for Sky Sports Radio.
SPOTTED V
COWBOYS coach Paul Green visiting the Boston Celtics’ high performance facility in the US last week looking for ideas to bring home to Townsville.
SORRY TIMMY, IT’S LEBANON ALL THE WAY
JOSH Mansour played for the same junior footy club as the great Tim Cahill, but he’ll have divided loyalties when the Socceroos legend plays his final game in a gold jersey against Lebanon at ANZ Stadium on November 20.
“Sorry Timmy, I’m split on this one,” said the Penrith Panthers flyer, who is also a soccer tragic.
“My dad was born in Lebanon and I love how passionate the Lebanese people are about their football and I’m expecting The Cedars to push them all the way.
“Every Australian will want Timmy Cahill to do well in his final appearance for the Socceroos, but this is the first time Lebanon has ever played in Australia.”
Like Cahill, Mansour played for Lakemba Sports as a youngster, urged on by his father, Fidel, and mother, Angie, who hails from the Portuguese island of Madeira — birthplace of soccer great Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I used to play soccer on Saturdays and rugby league on Sundays but eventually driving me around all over Sydney on weekends became too much for my parents and I chose rugby league, which almost broke my dad’s heart,” Mansour said.
“I was privileged to play rugby league for Lebanon in 2009 when we beat Italy 86-0 at Tripoli Stadium, which basically doubled as the Lebanese Army Barracks.
“The Lebanese are among the most passionate people in the world and football is their No. 1 sport, so the atmosphere should be fantastic at ANZ Stadium.”
VALE KING WAN
IT is with a heavy heart that we today reveal the Cronulla Sharks’ iconic Chinese restaurant the King Wan is closing down. The last chilli king prawns, salt and pepper squid and my personal favourite, King Wan special combination, will be served next Sunday.
This wonderful old restaurant was even tattooed onto your columnist’s lower left calf (#KINGWAN) after the Sharks’ 2016 title.
It has hosted some of the most memorable after-game celebrations — including the night Sharks chairman Peter Gow borrowed scissors from the kitchen and shredded a St George jersey that a fan was wearing. That night he also launched a flurry of punches at former Dragons player Barry Beath. Gow was forced to quit.
Sharkies Leagues club took over the running of the King Wan 12 months ago when the previous owner mysteriously disappeared without warning, owing months of rent.
ANNESLY HITS THE GROUND RUNNING
GRAHAM Annesley has hit the ground running, almost literally, in his first week as the NRL’s head of football. Last Monday morning Annesley walked from his new home at Milsons Point to Moore Park HQ. It took 90 minutes.
On his second day the cost-conscious executive caught a train to the Blue Mountains then walked several kilometres from the station to the luxury Lilianfels Pool and Spa Resort for the NRL’s lavish conference.
We’re not sure if Annesley ate his usual lunch — two barbecue sauce sandwiches — or joined the rest of Peter Beattie’s crew for the scrumptious offerings at the in-house restaurant: the pan-fried Cone Bay barramundi with wilted kale, Swiss brown mushrooms, garlic wild rice and lemon chilli sauce.
Or the Confit Duck Maryland, honey ginger infusion, taro root puree and water spinach.
HEAD HONCHOS JET OFF AGAIN
WOULDN’T you love the frequent flyer points of NRL head honchos Peter Beattie and Todd Greenberg, who are off to England on business class flights on Monday for another IRLF conference. Between them, the pair has been to Russia, Singapore, PNG, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, and now the UK, already this season.
YOU WON’T MISS A MINUTE
THEY’RE calling it the loo with a view. Punters and partygoers in the famous birdcage enclosure at Flemington racecourse on Tuesday won’t miss a moment of action — even when they go to the toilet. This window has been added at eye level above the men’s urinals to look out over the track.
BET BIG, WIN BIG
NO worries if you don’t back the winner of the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday because the TAB is betting on another 250-odd races. The TAB will hold about $125 million on the Melbourne Cup and another $120 million on the 29 race meetings Sky Racing will be covering. The first race is from Wingatui in New Zealand at 9.50am. The lucky is for dish- lickers in Townsville at 10.50pm.
GUS HATES NEW BLUE
WE sent NSW’s most successful State of Origin coach Phil Gould a text message to get his opinion on the new predominantly navy blue jersey launched last week.
Buzz: Can I please get a quote from you on the new Blues jersey for Sunday’s column?
Gus: No, no, no, no, no!
AYRES ROCKED
IT’S been a tough year for sports minister Stuart Ayres with so much opposition to his $2 billion Sydney stadium plans and the kerfuffle over the Opera House sails being used to promote horse racing.
So tough that his chief media, adviser, Vanessa Grim, has moved on to a government transport role. This is hardly ideal for Ayres in the countdown to the State election in March with the minister fighting to retain his seat of Penrith.
EARLY BIRD BLAKE
BLAKE Ferguson wasn’t due to start training at the Eels until next month.
Yet on Thursday the ex-Rooster showed up for a full session to do his pre-season testing and some drills.
The coaching staff and the players were super impressed.
Roosters and Storm players involved in the grand final have another three weeks off. Ferguson will continue doing light work until he officially starts.
CRICKET BOSS TAKES HIS LEAVE
CHANNEL 7’s head of cricket David Barham has taken indefinite leave. The former Channel 10 Big Bash boss joined Seven in April to launch its free-to-air coverage. Barham is not expected back at work until the new year.
Seven has elected not to cover the cricket limited-over games against South Africa and India this month, giving a huge free kick to pay TV network Fox Sports.
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