Eels in Disarray: Sean McElduff’s Player Option Gamble Backfires as Club Plummets into Chaos
If Parramatta members and fans thought the sky had fallen in when local junior Blaize Talagi and his younger brother Ryda defected to arch-rivals Penrith on Wednesday, buckle up.
It could be about to get a lot worse before it gets better for the Eels.
Player options in contracts have become the buzz word at the blue and gold club and the Eels front office has managed to create an almighty shit fight.
Someone tip up Eels chairman Sean McElduff that it’s time to tap out on the player options. Enough is enough.
As the Talagi Days of Our Lives saga all season proves player options are bad for business.
They give player agents a licence to completely bend the club over.
Player agent Isaac Moses has led the Eels on a season-long shimmy-shimmy-whoosh before bowling McElduff middle stump on Wednesday.
What makes it even worse for Eels members and fans the Parramatta local junior will be playing for western Sydney arch rivals the Panthers next season.
Ouch.
Good luck to the teenager Talagi. Who wouldn’t want to go and play at Penrith alongside Nathan Cleary and be a chance of winning premiership trophies every year.
But this isn’t about how the Panthers – now the NRL’s flagship organisation – do business.
This is about how the Eels have been driven off the cliff at breakneck speed since making the grand final against Penrith in 2022.
How many player options in contracts have the Eels still got remaining?
Only three of the best players in the blue and gold backline.
The first two cabs off the rank next year will be five-eighth Dylan Brown and centre Will Penisini.
So if incoming Eels head coach Jason Ryles doesn’t find the missing Parramatta mojo early next year then Parramatta could be lining up to do the player option dance all over again.
Then the year after – even better – it’s over to champion NSW State of Origin halfback Mitch Moses.
If Moses doesn’t like the way the Eels are tracking by 2026 – he’s free to go too.
Given Moses turns 30 in September, we’re tipping he’s going to want to try and win a premiership somewhere.
Can you blame him?
Nope. Blame the Eels decision makers. They like to try and play pass the parcel at Parramatta but the truth is chairman McElduff and CEO Jim Sarantinos are the ones who are calling the shots.
They’ve pulled the trigger on making this season a complete write off with the Eels now in a race to the bottom against Wests Tigers to try and avoid the wooden spoon.
This is the same pair who secretly went on a magical mystery tour to try and sign Wayne Bennett earlier this year when Blind Freddy could have saved them the airfares and the hire car because the supercoach had already agreed to return to South Sydney.
The worst indictment about Blaize and Ryda Talagi’s decision to quit the Eels is Parramatta have now lost three local juniors out of the club’s 2023 SG Ball premiership-winning side to rival clubs for next year.
All spine players. Blaize Talagi is off to the Panthers, Ethan Sanders is off to the Canberra Raiders and Matt Arthur is off to Newcastle.
The emerging halves have left because of the perception of a blocked pathway with Mitch Moses and Dylan Brown signed on long-term deals.
But in reality – they might not be long term deals.
They could also be headed the same direction as the young guns.
We wish incoming coach Jason Ryles all the best in trying to clean up the mess.
The best thing McElduff and Sarantinos can do is get out of the way.
Give Ryles full control when it comes to the roster and the running of the football team.