Graham

Will the last person to leave Sea Eagles at the end of the season please turn out the lights

Could make a good onfield partnership with Blake Austin.

Rookie Gold Coast half Kane Elgey is set to meet with Manly officials and tour their Narrabeen facility as the Sea Eagles apply pressure in their bid to sign the young star for next season. Despite being offered a new three-year deal to stay at the Titans, the former Holden Cup player of the year is keen to test the open market. It is believed Manly have tabled the 21-year-old an attractive offer. Newcastle centre Dane Gagai is spoilt for choice when it comes to make a decision about his future for next season. Gagai is weighing up offers from newcastle, Brisbane, St George Illawarra and the Gold Coast and will decide his future within a fortnight. According to the Courier Mail, it is believed one deal on the table for Gagai is worth $600,000 a year. Gold Coast skipper Nate Myles has begun negotiations to re-sign on a three-year deal. Despite having an option in his contract to extend a further season, the Titans arekeen to keep him at the club until the end of 2018 which will see him to the end of his career. Parramatta fullback Will Hopoate is poised to re-sign with the club on a three-year deal. According to Fairfax media, the club and Hopoate’s management have been negotiating for several weeks and should make the decision publicly this week. Brisbane veteran Sam Thaiday has denied a report that claims he has been offered a new NRL contract to extend his time at Brisbane. Thaiday said on Tuesday he hadn’t been offered a new contract but the Broncos big man is hopeful his new role as an impact player off the bench can add more years to his career.

Some big news there!

Manly Sea Eagles have announced the re-signing of Matt Ballin until the end of the 2017 NRL season, on the eve of his 200th first-grade game for the Club. Parramatta Eels recruit Richie Fa’aoso has today been cleared to return to playing rugby league, after passing an approval process with the NRL. Fa’aoso initially went into retirement in 2013 following a neck injury, but received medical clearance to return to full-time training with the Eels for the 2015 pre-season. Will Hopoate is poised to extend his stay at Parramatta for a further three seasons in a huge boost ahead of the Easter Monday blockbuster against Wests Tigers at ANZ Stadium. Todd Carney has moved closer to a possible return to the NRL, after discussing his unfair dismissal from Cronulla with Sharks management overnight. The former representative star, who is playing for Super League club Catalans, was sacked by the Sharks in June after an unsavoury image of him went viral on social media. Carney appealed the sacking and last month won the wrongful dismissal case against Cronulla within the NRL’s appeals structure. He spoke with the Sharks board last night over Skype for the first time since winning his case. Two weeks ago, Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan indicated he wouldn’t push for a return of the exiled 28-year-old.

Sam Burgess’ English-based manager has ruled out an imminent return to the NRL for the former South Sydney forward. However, he left the door ajar for Australian clubs by quoting noted English writer Charles Dickens’ in relation to Burgess’ future. “His contract with Bath has a couple of more seasons to run and he is currently training with the England squad,” lawyer Chris Caisley told The Australian by email. “He is enjoying life in Bath and at this moment in time has no plans to return to the NRL. However, as Dickens wrote, albeit in a rather different context ...’never say never’.”

Wayne Bennett is set to lure Dane Gagai to Brisbane with the classy centre considering emulating Darius Boyd by quitting Newcastle to return to the Broncos. In a crushing blow to the Knights’ hopes of retaining Gagai, the Maroons Origin hopeful has privately expressed a desire to resurrect his Broncos career under Bennett.

NSW forward Beau Scott is likely to make a shock return to Sydney, with St George Illawarra and Wests Tigers among the clubs jostling for his signature. Scott has a get-out clause in his Newcastle contract and plans to trigger it for family reasons. It appeared Scott would finish his career with the Knights when he re-signed until the end of 2017. However, the 30-year-old is preparing for a shift that will take place at the end of the year.

Leeds CEO Gary Hetherington and St Helens Mike Rush were in Sydney during the week and were seen with several leading players agents. Paul Gallen is one player the clubs are interested in, as is Roosters centre Shaun Kenny-Dowall.

Konrad Hurrell has re-signed with the Warriors until the end of the 2018

Manly are set to receive a major boost with the re-signing of veteran hooker Matt Ballin for the next two years. Despite the Sea Eagles being linked to Brisbane hooker Andrew McCullough for next season, Fox Sports understands the club is also close to extending the deal of Ballin’s back-up hooker Jayden Hodges. According to Ballin, the 21-year-old is the ideal replacement for him and he has begun mentoring him for the role so Hodges is ready come the time Ballin retires. There is some speculation that Manly are looking at Albert Kelly as a possible recruit in the halves for 2016. Kelly is playing alongside Terry Campese for Hull KR in Super League after he was released from the Gold Coast last year

This is after apparently having had an approach from yes, you've guessed it, Manly

Foran moving is being anticipated as having a ripple effect at Manly, Parramatta and elsewhere. Ripple effect Article read Here - CLICK

Yes this was as expected. I wondered at first whether Manly would scramble to get in a late extra offer to him to get him to stay. Whatever happened or didn't the die was cast and Foran is now another in the Manly camp who's heading towards the door marked exit

They are sounding desperate

Here's the DCE Interview on Sterlo Show CLICK HERE Talks about the support he got from other players when he announced his move to Titans. Voices his respect for Toovey and shows their talk before game when DCE and Toovey talk about him leaving. DCE talks about his relationships with his team mates at Manly in the past and up to now. The Glenn Stewart leaving is discussed. Watmough's toxic comment discussed. A previous offer meaning staying at the club and it being restructured afterwards is discussed. The mechanics of his leaving Sea Eagles is fully explored. His and the Titans future are discussed. Will he be moving on to Titans in the near future or for start of next season Cherry Evans is a good interviewee. He comes over as a sensible, logical and considerate young bloke. This is a MUST-SEE interview. Sterlo is a top interviewer.

Not surprised Toovey could be let go. He's considered to have let things slip. Having said that who's been handling the players and their finances at the club? Still remember how many weeks Manly were on top of the ladder last season even when the ructions started! Toovey's apparently a qualified accountant! Maybe he'd be better in another job at the club.

Latest on Foran:

Looks like Manly are the ones who are letting it be known that they would let DCE leave straight away presumably for a good player swap and/or some money.

What's it say about the coach there and the people in charge of the money spent?

That has been tipped to happen for a couple of weeks. Manly seem to be imploding. Their self confessed targets for re-signing: DCE and Foran seem to have voted with their feet

Any media rumours that Sezer and DCE would swap places Titans/Manly appear to have been quashed. Sezer has home on Gold Coast and seems settled. The criticism of Sam Thaiday at Broncos has set rumours of him parting with that QLD outfit to move to the Titans where he might be happier and give some experience to the GC side. Thaiday is out of contract at Broncos at the end of this season. Wests Tigers prop Matt Lodge has signed with the club until the end of 2017.

Top man. The game is lucky to have blokes like Tim involved.

Printed DVDs of the Toulouse game are now available in the club shop priced

I had a chat with Annie a few years ago when visiting a relative in Langtree Park, a nursing home in Castleford. It's a place staffed with decent people doing a wonderful job. I hope Annie's last few years were happy ones.