A SLIMLINE Chris Sandow can pinch one of the endless headlines off Manly opposite Daly Cherry-Evans Friday night.
The ding-dong battle between traditional powerhouses Parramatta and Manly already has no shortage of subplots, including Cherry-Evans’ signing soap opera, Kieran Foran’s potential move to the Eels, Parramatta coach Brad Arthur’s rumoured shift to Manly, and Anthony Watmough’s talk of the Sea Eagles’ “toxic environment’’.
Is it any wonder there are fewer than 2000 seats less for Friday night’s blockbuster out west?
But Sandow has dropped five kilos in the off-season to tip the scales at just 81kg _ the lightest he has been in years — and will do his best to steal the spotlight of multimillion-dollar man Cherry-Evans.
Arthur ordered Sandow to drop the pounds this time last year, and the little playmaker has somehow stripped even more fat courtesy of hard work and a strict diet.
“We all know what Chrissy can do, but it’s about him doing it for longer periods and more often,’’ Arthur told The Daily Telegraph on the eve of Parramatta’s opener.
“If we could reduce some of his skinfolds and get his weight down, he’d be able to do what he does really well for longer periods, and not fluctuate in and out of games.
“To his credit he’s worked hard and is now 81kg. Most games last year he played around 85kg.
“He’s got plenty of speed, and we want him running the ball.’’
Like Cherry-Evans, Sandow is off-contract at the end of the season, but unlike Cherry-Evans, Sandow hasn’t been shamelessly shopped around by his agent.
Arthur, however, said a new contract had not proven to be an extra motivation for Sandow.
“I’m sure it’s in the back of his mind, but Chrissy is a winner, he wants to win, he wants to compete, and he hates to lose,’’ Arthur said.
Life without Jarryd Hayne begins for the Eels, but Arthur said if it wasn’t for Sandow and Corey Norman in the halves, the No. 1 wouldn’t have been able to achieve what he did.
“I think the boys are actually looking forward to showing what they can do without him (Hayne),’’ Arthur said.
Despite the distractions at Manly caused by the intense speculation surrounding the futures of Cherry-Evans and Foran, Arthur wasn’t about to take them lightly.
When asked about the rumours linking him to the northern beaches, Arthur said: “I’m committed to the 17 players playing this week, and the 40 players we’ve got in our squad. And I’m committed to the Parramatta fans.’’
Watmough has taken a few swipes at Manly’s culture, but Arthur didn’t expect the back-rower to cop any extra on-field treatment from his former teammates.
“They’re too smart for that, they’re a team of footballers, they’re all good mates, if he runs into them, they might put a bit extra into their tackle, but they won’t go out of their way to get him,’’ Arthur said.
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Yes im sure DCE is chomping at the bits to play with his great mate choc.
LOL