Lachlan Coote should not fret about long-term security as he weighs up Cowboys contract

OFF-contract Cowboys star Lachlan Coote faces some tough decisions, and DARREN LOCKYER has some words of warning for the in-demand player.

LACHLAN Coote and his off-contract Cowboys comrades are facing some tough decisions.

Should Coote, James Tamou and Ethan Lowe accept more lucrative contracts at rival clubs, or make some financial sacrifices for the betterment of the team as the Cowboys chase more premierships?

I really hope Coote stays loyal to the Cowboys. Speaking from my experience at a Broncos club where Origin and Test stars regularly sacrificed pennies for premierships, Coote can derive a lot of satisfaction by staying put in Townsville.

Coote has a fair conundrum as he prepares to run out to face Parramatta on Saturday night in Townsville. He has fielded four-year offers from the Roosters, Dragons and Souths, compared to a two-year deal from the Cowboys.

In the cutthroat world that is the NRL, a four-year contract represents enormous comfort for any player, especially Coote, who has had to fight back from serious knee and shoulder reconstructions.

Right now, Coote should not fret about his long-term security. He has just turned 26 and is in the best form of his career, so good I believe he should be considered for a NSW Origin debut this season.

Lachlan Coote is in the best form of his career.

Trent Robinson is a wonderful coach at the Roosters, so Lachlan’s game would not go backwards if he opted to go to Bondi but there is a lot to be said for personal happiness. The Cowboys are in such a sweet spot as a club that it would be difficult for Coote to walk away.

Coote is a key member of North Queensland’s spine but he must be mindful of the influence Johnathan Thurston, Michael Morgan and Jake Granville are having on his on-field game. Off it, he has fitted perfectly into the cultural atmosphere of success being cultivated by Paul Green.

I’m not convinced all premiership-winning squads are inevitably torn apart by the salary cap. No doubt it is difficult to keep a champion team together, but it can be achieved with clever budgeting and a collective display of loyalty.

In our glory years at the Broncos, guys always took less to stay. We had such a great culture that elite players such as Shane Webcke, Shaun Berrigan, Corey Parker and Petero Civoniceva recognised you could get other rewards, such as playing more representative football.

Ultimately, the Cowboys can’t have one or two off-contract guys to buy into that mentality, they will need Coote and five or six blokes to say: “We’re all staying, let’s make a small financial sacrifice for the team’’.

If the group has that commitment to each other, the Cowboys can win premierships for a while yet.

Ethan Lowe is another Cowboys player coming off contract.

COOTE’S Cowboys face a strife-torn Parramatta club but I am adamant the Eels must not lose competition points over their salary cap saga.

If the NRL strips Eels players of points, they are penalising the wrong people.

The players are not at fault. In turn, the fans would be penalised by watching a team who almost certainly won’t make the finals and the other key stakeholders are the broadcasters.

What incentive do they have to televise a Parramatta game if they begin playing games that don’t mean anything?

We need to find a way to issue a penalty to the appropriate perpetrators. In this case, that means the administrators who presided over a salary cap rort, if indeed the NRL deems a formal breach has taken place.

Deducting points from the playing group is not the answer. The breaches relate to past seasons so why should this year’s team suffer when they were not the individuals directly involved in an attempt to cheat the salary cap?

The Parramatta players deserve every chance to continue their good work this season. If some officials are found to have cheated the salary cap, let them pay a personal price for their sins.

Originally published as Lachlan Coote should not fret about long-term security as he weighs up Cowboys contract