‘This is disgraceful’: John Morris ‘to leave now’ as coaching saga trashed

The Sharks’ coaching saga has suddenly ramped up with a report revealing the club could ruin their season to clear the decks for their new new coaching choice.

Shane Flanagan has come to John Morris’ defence.

The John Morris saga at Cronulla has continued to be slammed by fans, pundits and even his sacked predecessor as the club looks to move on from the coach.

The Daily Telegraph first reported Morris was a dead man walking after the Sharks’ loss to the Roosters on Saturday, with news progressing on Sunday that Roosters assistant Craig Fitzgibbon had agreed to terms with the club.

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But the seeds of confusion have been sewn with journalists getting leads saying that Fitzgibbon’s deal is at the point of nutting out details, while the club denies the reports, despite having met with Morris’ management for crisis talks.

The main sticking point was revealed on Monday that Panthers assistant Cameron Ciraldo would be brought in as Fitzgibbon’s assistant.

Fitzgibbon and Ciraldo are two of the most highly touted assistants in the NRL and were the two coaches believed to be in the running for the Sharks’ top job.

The pair have also coached NSW Country together.

On NRL 360, The Daily Telegraph’s Phil Rothfield revealed it’s “package deal” for the pair.

“These two are close, they coached Country together. They’ve remained in touch, they’ve always wanted to coach together,” he said.

“I can confirm powerbrokers at the Sharks have spoken to both of them. They will get the job, providing they can sort out the money – dot the I’s, cross the T’s.

“John Morris met with the club today … It was the first time he actually had the opportunity to push his case for reappointment. But I think he was wasting his time, it’s all over red rover.”

Rothfield added a tweet on Monday night that the club could sack Morris immediately.

@Cronulla_Sharks
There is strong mail Mezzatesta & Mace want John Morris to leave NOW and bring in a caretaker.
Talk about destroying a season. This is disgraceful.

— BUZZ ROTHFIELD (@BuzzRothfield) April 12, 2021

The SMH reported that Ciraldo, who is contracted for the 2022 season with Penrith, has already approached the Panthers about linking with the Sharks in 2022.

While the details will continue to be leaked out, attention has turned to the treatment of Morris from the Sharks.

Speaking on Fox League’s Sunday Night with Matty Johns, star playmaker Shaun Johnson lamented the decision as “disappointing”.

“He hasn’t had any control over the roster, he’s been in a situation where our cap has been shot the last couple of years and he’s made do with what he’s got,” he said.

“He’s got us all on board, so I genuinely can’t speak highly enough of him.”

‘I don’t cop that’: Flanagan defend Morris

It’s been a horror weekend for John Morris.

But on Monday, Shane Flanagan, the man Morris replaced after he was banned by the NRL, was firmly on Morris’ side.

“For me it’s a bit disappointing,” he told Triple M.

“Look at this coaching, the Sharks aren’t going that bad.

“They played OK in the first half against the Roosters and they got run down in the second half.

“But a coach could hardly be blamed for that performance, the players probably need to have a good look at themselves. He’s got the team in the eight the last two years.

“For me, being a Sharks fans and I live in the area, I think he’s done a reasonable job, yeah they haven’t been in the top four and I know that’s what the club pride themselves on but there’s been some difficult circumstances.

“There’s been some good players out of form or injured over that period.

“You’ve got to get a bit of luck and to be honest, I feel a bit sorry for John Morris because the club hasn’t told us why they’re getting rid of him.

“They keep trotting out the excuse that they want to be a top-four club and John can’t attract the players to the club that they need to. I don’t cop that. I want to know why they are going to get rid of him.”

Flanagan said the perplexing part of it is that Fitzgibbon is another rookie coach and will “need to get results straight away”.

‘Red flag’ for new Sharks coaches

It was also a hot topic on NRL 360, with host Ben Ikin snapping at the news.

“I think this has well and truly been over thought, over designed by a couple of blokes who haven’t been in the job all that long,” he said. “You’ve got a guy here who is seemingly doing a great job being given a tough ask, coming into a club that had a head coach previously suspended, some big personalities, less money than all the other clubs because of the fines.”

Ben Ikin wasn't happy with the call.

Fox League’s James Hooper asked if he believed Morris could win the Sharks a premiership.

Ikin replied: “With the right roster, he’s got them heading in the right direction.

“When you’re on a board, there is really only one KPI you want from your head coach, is he advancing your program? And I think everybody was surprised by how well the Sharks have been playing this year which says to me he knows how to coach.

“More than anything, if you’re a player wanting to come to a club, better than the reputation of the head coach, you want to see the club’s aligned from the chairman to the CEO to the head coach. This would be a red flag to me knowing what John Morris has done, how long he’s been in that system, if I’m the head coach coming into that system, I’m worried.”