Shocked Ivan Cleary told Wests Tigers to take $1m a year Mitchell Moses offer off the table

IVAN Cleary proved his worth to Wests Tigers less than a day into the job by pulling a $1 million a year offer to Mitchell Moses off the table.

IVAN Cleary proved his worth to Wests Tigers less than a day into the job.

With the club still circling the Big Four — protest the name all you like, it sticks — Cleary took a look at the offers and immediately reeled when he saw the deal for Mitchell Moses.

It averaged about $1 million a year.

MATTY JOHNS: Storm should still win title

GO TIME: Tigers chair hits back at critics

Not knowing how to properly structure their salary cap has been the Tigers’ problem for a decade.

Ivan Cleary at his first Wests Tigers training session at Concord Oval.

Chris Heighington, Andrew Fifita, Bryce Gibbs, now Robbie Farah ... they were all offloaded to create room in a bulging cap and all subsidised by the Tigers, who had to pay them to leave.

Cleary knows the cap is like a jigsaw puzzle. It has to fit together with the right pieces in the right places.

The moment you pay overs for one player it leaves you short in another area. It snowballs with each new, wrong decision.

Mitchell Moses is on his way out at the Wests Tigers. Picture: AAP

So once Cleary had a half confirmed with Luke Brooks’ signing he told Moses’ management the deal was off the table. The priority was to sign prop Aaron Woods and fullback James Tedesco and if there was money left they would look at Moses.

That’s why Moses took about $300,000 less to sign with Parramatta.

As for the Big Four, public opinion is slowly turning against them as the drama plays out.

Sacked coach Jason Taylor nailed it on Fox League’s League Life Wednesday night when he pointed out the motives of the players.

LEAGUE CENTRAL PODCAST: Dave Riccio, Michael Carayannis and Fiona Bollen discuss how Cooper Cronk will go without Cameron Smith and Billy Slater if he plays on.

“I was disappointed this week to see some of the players say that they wanted to play in a club that’s going to play semi-final footy,” he said.

“Wests Tigers have said you guys are the ones we believe can take us to the semi-finals. So let’s get your head down and your bum up and you guys lead us into the semi-finals.”

That has been overlooked in Taylor’s demise. All in key positions, those four are the ones the club chose — and paid — to get them to the finals.