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Jarryd Hayne's move to five-eighth appears to be the final straw for Daniel Mortimer, who on Friday requested permission to negotiate with rival clubs on the same day Parramatta announced a raft of re-signings.
Mortimer has two years remaining on his current contract with the Eels, but after starting the year in the No.6 jersey, has spent the past two months playing for the Eels' feeder club Wentworthville in the NSW Cup.
His path to first grade was initially blocked by Casey McGuire but coach Steve Kearney has handed the No.6 jersey to Jarryd Hayne, widely considered the future position for the NSW and Australia player.
Given the Eels have also signed South Sydney halfback Chris Sandow for next season, and recruited Canterbury-Bankstown's Ben Roberts to play in the halves, there would appear to be little hope of Mortimer forcing his way back into the side. Hence his decision to explore his options.
Parramatta chief executive Paul Osborne last night confirmed Mortimer's manager, Steve Gillis, had made a formal request to talk to rival NRL clubs.
But he stressed there had been no promise of a release.
The request by Mortimer came as the club re-signed a slew of its best young players, headed by teenage centre Jacob Loko, forwards Taniela Lasalo and Mitchell Allgood plus centre Ryan Morgan.
"Steve spoke to me today and asked that he be given approval to look at options," Osborne said.
"We have given him that. We haven't said we would release him but we would consider it if he came back to us with a proposal. He's too good to be playing consistent football in the NSW Cup."
While his form over the past two years has been hit-and-miss, Mortimer was outstanding in 2009 when he helped lead the Eels to the grand final.
At the age of 22, he is expected to attract interest. However, it is understood Canterbury-Bankstown, the club where his father Peter and uncles Chris and Steve played, will not be among them.
The Bulldogs fought tooth-and-nail to get Mortimer before he re-signed with Parramatta.
Melbourne could be interested given Mortimer once trialled at the club and coach Craig Bellamy once described him as "my type of player".
St George Illawarra has also been mentioned as a possible destination.
Mortimer's decision was offset by the retention of Lasalo, Allgood and Morgan, as well as the re-signing of Pat O'Hanlon, Marmin Barba and Rory Brien.
The Eels also re-signed Cronulla forward Taulima Tautai, who made his debut for Parramatta in 2008 before leaving for the Sharks.
"Retention is as important as recruitment," Osborne said.
"We have a terrific junior representative program at the Eels and Steve Kearney is building our future around it. The retention of our players is an integral part of the football program and something we addressed as an area we needed to improve on.
"The decision from our young guys to stick with us is a great boost for the club and it's another sign we are heading in the right direction."
Captain Nathan Hindmarsh added: "You see so many Parra juniors out there playing for other clubs and I know it's something the fans sometimes get frustrated with. So for us to re-sign these young guys is a huge boost.
"Put them alongside our other experienced guys like Tim Mannah, Luke Burt, Ben Smith, Matt Keating, Jarryd Hayne and the new players joining us in Chris Sandow, Ben Roberts, Esi Tonga and now Taulima it's looking like a great mix.
"I've been playing for the Eels for a long time and I've seen a lot of great young players come through our system. And guys like Jacob Loko are right up there as the most talented I've seen."
Mortimer has two years remaining on his current contract with the Eels, but after starting the year in the No.6 jersey, has spent the past two months playing for the Eels' feeder club Wentworthville in the NSW Cup.
His path to first grade was initially blocked by Casey McGuire but coach Steve Kearney has handed the No.6 jersey to Jarryd Hayne, widely considered the future position for the NSW and Australia player.
Given the Eels have also signed South Sydney halfback Chris Sandow for next season, and recruited Canterbury-Bankstown's Ben Roberts to play in the halves, there would appear to be little hope of Mortimer forcing his way back into the side. Hence his decision to explore his options.
Parramatta chief executive Paul Osborne last night confirmed Mortimer's manager, Steve Gillis, had made a formal request to talk to rival NRL clubs.
But he stressed there had been no promise of a release.
The request by Mortimer came as the club re-signed a slew of its best young players, headed by teenage centre Jacob Loko, forwards Taniela Lasalo and Mitchell Allgood plus centre Ryan Morgan.
"Steve spoke to me today and asked that he be given approval to look at options," Osborne said.
"We have given him that. We haven't said we would release him but we would consider it if he came back to us with a proposal. He's too good to be playing consistent football in the NSW Cup."
While his form over the past two years has been hit-and-miss, Mortimer was outstanding in 2009 when he helped lead the Eels to the grand final.
At the age of 22, he is expected to attract interest. However, it is understood Canterbury-Bankstown, the club where his father Peter and uncles Chris and Steve played, will not be among them.
The Bulldogs fought tooth-and-nail to get Mortimer before he re-signed with Parramatta.
Melbourne could be interested given Mortimer once trialled at the club and coach Craig Bellamy once described him as "my type of player".
St George Illawarra has also been mentioned as a possible destination.
Mortimer's decision was offset by the retention of Lasalo, Allgood and Morgan, as well as the re-signing of Pat O'Hanlon, Marmin Barba and Rory Brien.
The Eels also re-signed Cronulla forward Taulima Tautai, who made his debut for Parramatta in 2008 before leaving for the Sharks.
"Retention is as important as recruitment," Osborne said.
"We have a terrific junior representative program at the Eels and Steve Kearney is building our future around it. The retention of our players is an integral part of the football program and something we addressed as an area we needed to improve on.
"The decision from our young guys to stick with us is a great boost for the club and it's another sign we are heading in the right direction."
Captain Nathan Hindmarsh added: "You see so many Parra juniors out there playing for other clubs and I know it's something the fans sometimes get frustrated with. So for us to re-sign these young guys is a huge boost.
"Put them alongside our other experienced guys like Tim Mannah, Luke Burt, Ben Smith, Matt Keating, Jarryd Hayne and the new players joining us in Chris Sandow, Ben Roberts, Esi Tonga and now Taulima it's looking like a great mix.
"I've been playing for the Eels for a long time and I've seen a lot of great young players come through our system. And guys like Jacob Loko are right up there as the most talented I've seen."
