NRL season 2015: Steve Matai, Kieran Foran want to join exodus from Manly Sea Eagles
MANLY’S pre-season has been thrown into turmoil, with long-serving Kiwi centre Steve Matai seeking an immediate release from the final year of his contract at Brookvale.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal the Gold Coast Titans, the New Zealand Warriors and another club — believed to be Parramatta — are prepared to offer the crash-tackling 30-year-old more than $1 million over three years for what will be the final contract of his career.
They all want him immediately to play the 2015 season.
And in a further blow to the Sea Eagles, champion five-eighth Kieran Foran is on the verge of announcing he will be quitting the Sea Eagles at the end of the year.
Matai has been unhappy at Manly for several months.
He is upset over the departure of decade-long teammates and close friends Anthony Watmough and Glenn Stewart at the end of last season.
He also believes Manly are paying him well below his market value.
New Sea Eagles boss Joe Kelly has offered Matai a two-year extension on the same money he now earns. It is nowhere near what other clubs are offering and is over a shorter term.
Kelly says he hopes to get this issue sorted as soon as possible.
“If he was to ask for an immediate release, that’s a discussion we’d have internally with our recruitment and retention committee,” Kelly said.
“I’m seeking to understand what’s going on with him moving forward.
“We’ve put an offer to him to extend but we obviously need to get some clarification.
“He’s one of a few we’d like to sort out sooner rather than later so we can focus on the upcoming season.’’
There is a thought among the players at Manly that the club should allow Matai to go because he has been such a loyal servant since 2005. In that time he has played 202 games and scored 80 tries.
By switching clubs it would allow him to set his family up for life.
Foran spoke late last year about supporting Matai’s departure, despite the fact they are extremely close.
“In Stevie’s situation I believe he has taken unders for a lot of years to stay at this club and if he can now set his family up and get a big money contract elsewhere I think the club should assess that,” Foran said.
Meanwhile, the Sea Eagles are desperately trying to convince halves Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans to sign new deals.
Foran is being chased by Parramatta, the Roosters and the Bulldogs and is unlikely to stay on the northern beaches.
Cherry Evans is more likely to remain, despite a huge offer from the Cronulla Sharks to play alongside his best mate Ben Barba.
The huge dollars needed to try to keep the halves at Brookvale is the very reason Kelly and coach Geoff Toovey can’t offer the same money rivals are offering Matai.
The Kiwi centre is refusing to comment on his plans because he is reluctant to upset teammates and fans in a public dispute so close to the start of the competition.
