News: Orford close to walking out

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Robertson - not signed!
Wolfman - not signed!

Ox is not the only player that has not resigned at this stage MB.

I just don't accept that the lack of a CEO is the reason players have not put pen to paper, there is smoke coming from Narrabeen, and where there is smoke the fire is usually not to hard to find!
 
SeaEagleRock8 link said:
It seems the club wants Matt to stay but do not want to stand in his way if he can get a vastly better deal.
The better deal only came to light the last two days. Up until now the club has been keen to re-sign Matt, all the way back to April. He wants three years and they want less. The only person who has refused to make a committal is Orford and he has dragged it out all the way, using any excuse including the last one which was wanting to focus on the Finals.

Pete, I actually said that there were players still not signed! Robbo and Wolfie's sigs have always been tied up with what was left after Ox signs. It isn't related to the lack of a CEO, it is related to Matt trying to put the club over a barrel for a ridiculous length of time.
 
Well it's time for an ultimatum. If he doesn't sign by next July, forget it.
Can't help wondering what Des makes of all this, I expect he wants to know which players will be available.
 
I find myself in agreement with Eagle-Rock08's abovementioned comments. Whilst the jury is out on Orford , I must say that I've always been a fan of his , and have enjoyed the last few seasons courtesy of his contribution in the halback role.

In the last 3 years , we have played in 2 Grand Finals and secured a premiership in 2008 , the year that Orford was voted Dally M Player Of The Year & Halfback of the year. I rate him as 1 of the top 5 halfbacks in the NRL. Foran is a good player but needs more time to prove himself.

The current situation with Orford is highly embarrassing for the club. The fact that we haven't had a CEO for the last few months is a major contributing factor. This wouldn't have happened under Grant Mayers watch. Another thing that baffles me is that after receiving over 90 applicants for the vacant CEO role , that Graham Lowe is on the shortlist for the role. One would think it would have been good to bring in some new blood rather than revisit previous days at the club when we were sometimes referred to as Maori Warringah with such players as the under-achieving Zero Brothers ( Tony & Kevin ).

I hope we manage to retain Orford for another 2 seasons , because without a topline halfback , I would predict that Manly won't be playing finals football next season. In hindsight Todd Carney would have been a handy pickup.
 
The problem that the cub has at the mopment is re-signing all of the players yet keeping under the salary cap.

Orford is a good player no doubt about it but he is not worth the money that he is currently on and has to accept a considerably reduced salary to stay.  He is not happy to do this hence being open to offers from ESL clubs.

The dilema the club ahs is do they sign orford for another couple of years and definately lose choc and/or Glenn Stewart or do we offer him a salary of what he is currently worth (to the club) and lose him but keep the other two?  

Who would want to be a CEO and make those sorts of decsions?
 
Corso_Pete link said:
Robertson - not signed!
Wolfman - not signed!

Ox is not the only player that has not resigned at this stage MB.

I just don't accept that the lack of a CEO is the reason players have not put pen to paper, there is smoke coming from Narrabeen, and where there is smoke the fire is usually not to hard to find!
  I've been out of the loop a bit lately.  Moving a family interstate is no picnic.  Do you have any ideas what the fire might be?

Really, if Orford gets a big money offer we should let him go, use the cash to shore up younger talent, accept we under achieve for a year or two, but keep guys like Foran in the fold.  I suspect that with all three of Orford, Wolfman and Robertson, Penn is not going to pay overs for fellows with delusions of grandeur and refuses to be held over a barrel. 
 
Poor old Beaver went to the other side of the planet to get away from him!!!!!!!! And now Bradford "want" Ox.Must be like a nightmare for him.
Let's trade Beaver back for him. ;D ;)
 
Hodkinson should go well for us next year
 
Honastly if we dont sign Orford we will go from a top 4 chance to a bottom 4. A new halves combination will take us right back and one bad year will cost us off contract players next year.

Keep Orford or dont expect much next year....
 
That's what everyone said about Parramatta when their new CEO told Brett Finch to wrack off.
 
Rambo1987 link said:
Honastly if we dont sign Orford we will go from a top 4 chance to a bottom 4. A new halves combination will take us right back and one bad year will cost us off contract players next year.

Keep Orford or dont expect much next year....

Keep Orford and don't expect to win a comp next year. It's time to move on.
 
Ryan link said:
That's what everyone said about Parramatta when their new CEO told Brett Finch to wrack off.

Parra didnt win the comp - also Parra fell into a Grand Final because the Dogs & Dragons choked... Foran & Hodgkinson need to work with Andrew Johns now if Orford gone - but nothing happening.

We need Orford even for one season.
 
Chip & Chase link said:
[quote author=Rambo1987 link=topic=181998.msg245552#msg245552 date=1258201061]
Honastly if we dont sign Orford we will go from a top 4 chance to a bottom 4. A new halves combination will take us right back and one bad year will cost us off contract players next year.

Keep Orford or dont expect much next year....

Keep Orford and don't expect to win a comp next year. It's time to move on.
[/quote]

Keep Orford and right in the thick of it to win the comp if everyone stays fit
 
Sure we'll be right in the thick of it, hard for us not to be top 8 if our side stays fully fit. I just don't think Orford will take us all the way. He's not getting any younger or quicker (or better for that matter), so if he produces what he produced this year we'll be an also ran in 2010.
 
Dan link said:
Hodkinson should go well for us next year

Agreed.  He managed to take the QLD Cup team to the Grand Final and win it in their inaugural year and shows promise for his future in the game with the talent that he has.  Sure it may not be completely 1st grade standard at the moment but given the chance he just might shine with a bunch of 1st grade talented players around him where he will learn off of them and improve his game even further.

Piss Orford off now.  Orford has put his signing decision off for way too long.  He should have been given a deadline to make a decision and if he hadn't made it by then, the club should have cut it's losses and moved on and used his money elsewhere.  He is way past his prime and shouldn't have played during this years series whilst injured.  The injured times were when we should have been giving Hodkinson a taste of 1st grade even if it was for only a week or so to give Orford's injuries a chance to heal (much like we did a few years ago when Mata's mate Monaghan took over the 7 spot when Orford was out injured).  An injury free Orford is much better than an injured Orford (even if the other teams have worked out his style of play). At least with an injury free Orford he is capable of kicking more than 10 - 20 metres.
 
Chip & Chase link said:
Sure we'll be right in the thick of it, hard for us not to be top 8 if our side stays fully fit. I just don't think Orford will take us all the way. He's not getting any younger or quicker (or better for that matter), so if he produces what he produced this year we'll be an also ran in 2010.

If the forwards produce what they did this year, then it will not matter if Orford is at halfback or a 10 year old kid is at halfback, we won't win the comp

I recall hearing similar sentiments every single year leading up to the 2008 GF that Orford could not win Manly a competition
 
It is interesting that Hodkinson has been appointed heir apparent but many but most of us have not seen him actually play or have an opinion based on one game.
 
He is the only and logical choice so I can't see anyone else being named there. Orford will be welcome if he signs again but to be honest let's get some new blood running around and our future started and underway
 
Kiwi Eagle link said:
If the forwards produce what they did this year, then it will not matter if Orford is at halfback or a 10 year old kid is at halfback, we won't win the comp

I recall hearing similar sentiments every single year leading up to the 2008 GF that Orford could not win Manly a competition

Agree with your comments re the forwards. What I don't get is the school of thought that Orford won us the comp in 2008, he wasn't dominant, he just played somewhere near the standard one would expect of a top line halfback, and that allowed the team to play to their potential. You could hardly say that we rode to a premiership on his coat tails.

He hasn't been able to reproduce that sort of acceptable form with any reliability this season (even considering that the team as a whole were below par). I'm not confident that he has it in him to put together a consistent season next year either, like I said he isn't getting any younger and he doesn't look like a player who will develop any extra strings to his bow. His kicking game borders on embarrassing over 50% of the time.

The guy is a capable footballer on his day, but those days seem to be stretched further and further apart. I for one would be happy to take the risk with Foran in the 7 next year, and Lyon at 5/8, because at least we are looking to the future. If we sign Orford for 2 years, then we are stuck with him at halfback for that period, he isn't going to get dropped and he can't be played anywhere else in the 17 (i.e. as a utility like some other halves at the back end of their careers). If he signs he'll be playing every week in the No. 7, where will that leave guys like Foran, Hodgkinson, DCE etc ? waiting in the wings for another 2 seasons ?

The other thing that concerns me is the constant excuse for his inconsistency is that he plays injured. If that injury is so chronic will it be another 12 months of mediocrity tempered with pleas of playing hurt ?
 
tbh, I have not seen anybody suggest Orford won us the comp in 2008, but he played a vital part in getting us there

Suggesting he won it single handedly is as silly as those that suggest he costs us games on his own as well

On the injury front, I never hear it coming from the man himself as an excuse, mostly Zorba puts it forward

I haven't seen anything of Hodkinson to have an opinion, I have seen enough of Cherry to think that he has some talent, but not quite enough to make it. Foran I look at and see more as a 6 than a 7

I can live with whichever way it goes. But with Orford in the side, I give us some hope of another title, without him I don't see us and in the running for the comp. My year by year view may be a bit short sighted, but I prefer to look at the coming season than 3 years down the track

My main wish if we retain Orford, is that others start to turn up and relieve the pressure from him. Last year it was pretty much all down to him, with Stewart out, Ballin going down in form a bit, Lyon not having many big games in the last 2/3rds of the season and Foran being a youngster. I have always believed he is a better halfback when taking the line on a bit more as well so would like to see more of that from him if he stays, which I think he will
 

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