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Canterbury prop Aiden Tolman is believed to have benefited from Parramatta's inability to recruit big-name players, after the Eels splashed out with a $2 million, three-year offer.
Parramatta's 50-0 capitulation to Sydney Roosters on Monday couldn't have come at a worse time as the beleaguered club has already been forced to offer ''overs'' to try to secure big names. The offer said to have been put forward to Tolman, whose only representative experience is one match for Country Origin in 2011, illustrates just how deep the Eels need to dig into their coffers to attract players.
The $650,000-a-season offer comes after several high-profile targets had rejected the club's overtures. However, those who took the bait had commanded figures that were described by a source as ''Lotto-like''.
Parramatta's hopes to make some sort of impact on the market and encourage others to join them are pinned on the 24-year-old Tolman, who played for the Australian Schoolboys in 2006 before signing with Melbourne the following season. He played for the Storm in their 2009 grand-final victory over the Eels, although the title was stripped of the club because of salary-cap breaches.
He made an immediate impression with the Bulldogs in 2011, winning the Dr George Peponis Medal after he averaged more than 100 metres a game and played for long periods.
While he has continued to develop strongly as a first-grader, Tolman started the season ranked behind James Graham and Sam Kasiano, while another Eels target, 19-year-old prop David Klemmer, is being hailed as Canterbury's ''next big thing''.
Despite signing former NSW Origin coach Ricky Stuart, the Eels have struggled to recruit players to galvanise their roster.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...talent-pool-20130403-2h77h.html#ixzz2PPDuMQri
