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Folau set to depart the Dragons ?


Davo5

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On 23/01/2021 at 22:30, Click said:

Not sure how this turned into going at Hardaker, but you have no idea if the support that Wigan gave him after joining was the support he needed to finally "grow up", or if he just realised that he needs to start smartening up before he ends up without a career.

apologies it is my fault he was brought into this as a "throw away" comparison to how i felt about folau, not that he should be burnt but that IF i was running a club i would have been wary about what could happen and the risk... i didnt think it was that controversial to say he was a risk, nor that Wigan have done something right to help him... i should have known better than that on this site i suppose!

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Saw that - St George have apparently made moves to sign Folau.

Their first problem is that they shouldn't be able to approach him without Cats permission.  I don't have a problem with SL players moving to the NRL, but we need an agreement to stop poaching contracted players. Doesn't matter who it is, Folau or anyone else.  

Their next problem is that the NRL said at the time the ARU banned him that he wasn't welcome in the NRL, so they might have to get him to sign something guaranteeing no more homophobic social media comments whilst under contract.  Otherwise he's a timebomb waiting to explode for the sport, and I cannot believe the NRL would allow that without an immediate ability to wipe him out of the NRL with no chance of him suing anyone.  Lest anyone forgets, his outbursts cost RU millions in sponsors and then the payout threatened the whole sport.

Thirdly, given what happened with him, it suggests that the Dragons either don't know or don't care about the views of fans and sponsors. I suspect they've asked a few sponsors, but whether fans will cop him playing for them who knows, and will those same sponsors stay put if community backlash grows?  This was a huge issue in Australia when Folau left, and a lot of high profile union people openly asked for Folau to to be punted.  I'm really not sure he'd be worth the potential risk commercially given the likely wider community reaction, which could get very messy.

Ultimately it just shows - yet again - that clubs need to have rules imposed on them, as ultimately they do not give a rats about the wider sport, and will sign literally anyone if they think it will make them slightly better on the field.

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I have posted a balanced view (as much as poss) on our website, but suffice to say that this is not ideal for the club. 

Would they have tried to retain David Mead if they had know Folau wasn't planning on heading back north after Christmas?

But I am conflicted to an extent with the reports of a serious family illness. 

Why we would he want to be so far from home if that's the case?

 

One thing that is for sure is that Bernard and Steve backed him and despite his words to the contrary last year, its not looking like he is coming good on that, regardless of extenuating circumstances. 

 

Fancy a game of touch in Cambs or Lincs? DM me 

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7 hours ago, BrisbaneRhino said:

 

Their first problem is that they shouldn't be able to approach him without Cats permission. 

That has long since stopped being protocol in top level sport. 

 

Sadly. 

 

Fancy a game of touch in Cambs or Lincs? DM me 

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Plenty of conflicting info in that Ch.9 article to whats been said by the Catalan club, but looks likely that if the NRL give the go ahead he'll sign with St.George.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out. If the NRL say no, now St.George have gone public, what do the Catalans do? Do they take Folau back knowing he wants to be elsewhere? or just cut him?

I'm assuming he's under contract still at Catalans, not actually 100% sure if he is.

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3 hours ago, Man of Kent said:

The NRL doesn’t rule out Folau being registered, so I assume he’s off. Adieu. https://www.nrl.com/news/2021/02/02/abdo-addresses-speculation-around-folau/

On the basis of his off field activities I assume that is all above board. What is critical here is whether the "Barba protocol" will be observed where a player cannot be registered to two different RL clubs

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I have no idea why the NRL would approve his registration without safeguards to be able to dump him from the NRL independent of the Dragons.  

Even with safeguards it makes them look like sanctimonious hyporcrites if they do, as they immediately came out and said he wasn't welcome when he left union.  I'd also be very worried about community backlash - Folau was a lightning rod for something that shouldn't be an issue.  Does anyone seriously think the entire media won't be hoping he says something out of line again?

In the end its not even as if this is a player at the top of his game. He'd be OK for sure, but a star worth breaking the bank for? 

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St George lost Euan Aitken to the Warriors for 2021 and so don't have a huge amount of experience in the centre. 

Jack Bird has been signed but has had a lot of injury problems recently with only 17 appearances across two seasons with the Broncos. Although when fit he is a quality player.

Deapite only being 21, Zac Lomax is currently the key centre at St George and so Folau would add a bit of experience and cover.

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

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I hear people say you can't make a player stay, particularly if they play the homesick/family issues card, but there's no reason at all that a club shouldn't at least get some compensation if another club seeks to sign them whilst under contract. The sport as a whole could easily introduce rules on this.

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I honestly don't mind if Folau wants to stay in Australia. These are crazy times and it is impossible to know how players are coping being isolated and playing in front of no fans - especially if you are an import. What is annoying is the deception. Just be honest and say you would rather be in Australia right now given all the #### going on in the world. That is genuinely okay if a compromise deal can be achieved by all parties. That part is still important.

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8 minutes ago, Scubby said:

What is annoying is the deception. Just be honest and say you would rather be in Australia right now given all the #### going on in the world.

Yes, the deception is worrying.  Let me check the list to see if he is in any 'long term' trouble and I will get back to you.

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

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20 minutes ago, Scubby said:

I honestly don't mind if Folau wants to stay in Australia. These are crazy times and it is impossible to know how players are coping being isolated and playing in front of no fans - especially if you are an import. What is annoying is the deception. Just be honest and say you would rather be in Australia right now given all the #### going on in the world. That is genuinely okay if a compromise deal can be achieved by all parties. That part is still important.

Agreed in principle, but who tells they’re employer that you’re looking for another job until you’ve been offered one. 

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