Open market for NRL off-contract stars as November deadline looms
NOVEMBER 1 will light a fire under the NRL player market as more than 160 players are able to negotiate with rival clubs, and Parramatta is set to dominate the headlines.
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IN just 12 days time the NRL player market will explode into life with more than 160 players free to negotiate new deals.
Players who come off contract at the end of the 2019 season will be able to test their value on the open market from November 1.
Expect Parramatta to dominate the headlines with 12 first graders from their current roster — including stars Clint Gutherson, Mitchell Moses and Corey Norman — free to talk with rival clubs.
Fox League’s Matty Johns says the Eels would be mad to let the versatile Gutherson slip away.
“He’s one of their shining lights. I think even in grim times he has been terrific, they lost him at the back end of 2017 and that really hurt them,” Johns said.
“It’s been a tough season for Moses but that happens as a young playmaker. You go through peaks and troughs.
“I have a lot of time for him. I like him as player, I like his confidence. It takes a long time to understand your own game as a playmaker. He’s still in that phase.”
Like Gutherson, Johns says young gun Matt Dufty is the kind of player that is worth a long-term investment and St George Illawarra should extend his contract.
With backs Nene Macdonald switching to North Queensland and veteran Jason Nightingale hanging up the boots, Johns says the Dragons should persist with Dufty despite some teething problems in his first full year of NRL.
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“Duty is a definite for them. One of the toughest things for young players is to hold their form all the way through the year. They start to get a little tired two-thirds of the way through, the training is hard, the physicality is hard and finding week to week consistency is hard.
“But if you look at what he did at the start of the season he was just electric. That’s the indicator of what he’s about and what he can do. Once he’s in his third or fourth year in first grade he’ll start lasting the distance and they’ll get the best out of him.
Speculation won’t go away that firebrand forward Dylan Napa is on the chopping block at the Sydney Roosters.
“Napa is very aggressive and he’s had suspensions, he always sails close to the wind but in a lot of ways that’s an asset for the Roosters as it showed at the end of the year,” Johns said.
“The game has changed, it’s gotten faster but you still need those big hard heads in the middle of the field like him.
Johns also sees the case for the Queenslander to walk away from the Bondi club and says it could help to further his development as a forward.
“Sometimes players need a change. There was discussion earlier in the year that Newcastle and some other clubs were interested,” he said.
“As a former Newcastle player I saw enormous upside to getting Dylan Napa to the club.
“But after winning the premiership, it’s one of those things as far as salary cap is concerned.
“Do the Roosters move on a couple of their more experienced forwards to make way for the younger guys like Napa in the long-term? But it’s not something you do if you don’t think your younger guys aren’t as good.”
At the foot of the mountains, playmaker Jarome Luai will extend his time at Penrith beyond 2019, in part due to the uncertainty surrounding James Maloney. Maloney is contracted until the end of 2020 but there are questions as to whether his body can handle two more seasons of NRL football.
Johns says a halves pairing of Cleary and Luai is the right move long-term.
“He just brings so much energy into that side. Talking to Nathan Cleary, he and Jarome have played a lot of their junior football together and they know each other so well,” he said.
“In time they will develop into a good combination.
“Even if the Panthers at the moment see that their No.1 combination is Maloney and Cleary, certainly the future is Cleary and Jarome.”
PLAYERS OFF-CONTRACT IN 2019
BRONCOS
Five players off contract: Patrick Carrigan, George Fai, Alex Glenn, Joe Ofahengaue, Andre Savelio
RAIDERS
Eight players off contract: Brad Abbey, Luke Bateman, Setefano Hala, Ata Hingano, Liam Knight, Jordan Rapana, Joseph Tapine, Sam Williams
BULLDOGS
Seven players off contract: Fa’amanu Brown, Danny Fualalo, Michael Lichaa, Rhyse Martin, Ofahiki Ogden, John Olive, Francis Tualau
SHARKS
11 players off contract: Kurt Capewell, Sosaia Feki, Wade Graham, Aaron Gray, Valentine Holmes, Billy Magoulias, Toby Rudolf, Ava Seumanufagai, Scott Sorensen, Cruz Topai-Aveai, Braden Uele
TITANS
Five players off contract: Jesse Arthars, Michael Gordon, Ryley Jacks, Brenko Lee, Jack Stockwell
SEA EAGLES
12 players off contract: Manase Fainu, Jack Gosiewski, Trent Hodkinson, Brad Parker, Lloyd Perrett, Toafofoa Sipley, Kelepi Tanginoa, Jorge Taufua, Joel Thompson, Dylan Walker, Frank Winterstein, Matthew Wright
STORM
Four players off contract: Patrick Kaufusi, Cameron Munster, Joe Stimson, Christian Welch
WARRIORS
12 players off contract: Blake Ayshford, James Gavet, Shaun Johnson, Solomone Kata, Karl Lawton, Issac Luke, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Agnatius Paasi, Ligi Sao, Lewis Soosemea, Jazz Tevaga, Joseph Vuna
KNIGHTS
Three players off contract: Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Slade Griffin, Shaun Kenny-Dowall
COWBOYS
20 players off contract: Carlin Anderson, Kurt Baptiste, Ben Barba, Logan Bayliss-Brow, Scott Bolton, Gavin Cooper, Reuben Cotter, Tom Gilbert, Ben Hampton, Coen Hess, Corey Jensen, Javid Bowen Ethan Lowe, Te Maire Martin, Gideon Mosby-Gela, Justin O’Neill, Matthew Scott, Murray Taulagi, Enari Tuala, Kurt Wiltshire
EELS
13 players off contract: Daniel Alvaro, Bevan French, Clinton Gutherson, Josh Hoffman, Shaun Lane, Greg Leleisiuao, Manu Ma’u, Reed Mahoney, Tim Mannah, Tepai Moeroa, Mitchell Moses, Corey Norman, Brad Takairangi
PANTHERS
Nine players off contract: Jarome Luai, Waqa Blake, Jed Cartwright, Wayde Egan, James Fisher-Harris, Tim Grant, Jack Hetherington, Sione Katoa, Sam McKendry
RABBITOHS
20 players off contract: Dean Britt, George Burgess, Thomas Burgess, Braidon Burns, Damien Cook, Joshua Cook, Jacob Gagan, Campbell Graham, Dean Hawkins, Mawene Hiroti, Matt McIlwrick, Cameron Murray, Mark Nicholls, Bayley Sironen, Lucky Ta’avale, Siosifa Talakai, Tevita Tatola, Tyrone Taukamo, Connor Tracey, Kyle Turner
DRAGONS
13 players off contract: Matthew Dufty, Jai Field, James Graham, Josh Kerr, Jeremy Latimore, Blake Lawrie, Joe Lovodua, Kurt Mann, Steven Marsters, Darren Nicholls, Reece Robson, Tristan Sailor, Tariq Sims
ROOSTERS
Six players off contract: Mitchell Aubusson, Cooper Cronk, Joshua Curran, Dylan Napa, Zane Tetevano, Sitili Tupouniua
WESTS TIGERS
16 players off contract: Josh Aloiai, Luke Brooks, Michael Chee-Kam, Robbie Farah, Mahe Fonua, Tyson Gamble, Luke Garner, Chris Lawrence, Jacob Liddle, Benji Marshall, Sam McIntyre, Thomas Mikaele, Robbie Rochow, Dylan Smith, Corey Thompson
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