PARRAMATTA have earmarked Brett Kimmorley as a potential fallback halfback option should they miss out on the signature of Melbourne superstar Cooper Cronk.
And whoever they sign could get the chance to work with club legend Peter Sterling, who has been sounded out about replacing Andrew Johns as a halves consultant.
The Eels are desperate for an experienced halfback and have money to spend following the loss of Kris Keating (Bulldogs), Feleti Mateo, Krisnan Inu (both Warriors) and skipper Nathan Cayless (retirement) for next year.
The indifferent form of halfback options Daniel Mortimer and Jeff Robson, coupled with the looming departure of promising playmaker Keating, has prompted officials to pull out all stops for Cronk.
However, if Cronk, contracted to Melbourne long term, isn't part of a fire sale to get the Storm under the salary cap for next season, the Eels will consider offering Kimmorley an NRL lifeline.
Kimmorley, the NSW halfback for the opening Origin game, is yet to decide whether to continue his career into a 17th NRL season. The 33-year-old has intimated he would like to stay at Canterbury, but that club's recruitment of Manly halfback Trent Hodkinson and Keating -coupled with the presence of playmaking options Ben Barba, Blake Greenand Ben Roberts - may mean leaving the kennel is Kimmorley's best chanceof playing on.
Parramatta officials have also spoken about the prospect of throwing an NRL lifeline to Matt Orford should they miss out on Cronk and Kimmorley. The former Manly halfback is contracted to Bradford for a further two years but has returned home for season-ending shouldersurgery. There is speculation the former Dally M medallist wants tofinish his career in Australia.
''At the end of the day we lost Kris Keating and we need to replace him with someone,'' Eels chairman Roy Spagnolo said.
''We've got enough money in the cap to accommodate Cooper Cronk with an offer and we've done that, there's no hiding the fact that we're in the market for him.
''If we miss out on him, we might look at getting someone as a stop-gap situation for 12 months or whatever the case is until someone else, like a [Peter] Wallace or someone with some experience is available to be there long term with Daniel Mortimer. We're waiting foran answer to see what comes out of Melbourne and then we can look toapproach Noddy or Orford or someone like that.''
The Eels are also in the market for a new halves coach after Johns parted company with the club following his race row with Parramatta centre Timana Tahu.
The Sun-Herald understands that coach Daniel Anderson has spoken to Sterling about the prospect of coming on board. Sterling declined to comment while Anderson didn't return calls.
The prospect of the former NSW and Australian No.7 again becoming involved with the Eels is welcome news for supporters. Sterling is a revered figure and is the greatest halfback in the club's history, but hasn't had any formal coaching involvement since consulting to theWarriors several years ago.
Spagnolo confirmed that Sterling had been approached 12 months ago and that it would be up to Anderson to decide whether to replace Johns. Former Eel Brett Kenny, who is coaching the club's NSW Cup side Wentworthville, has publicly stated his desire to be consideredfor the role.
Replies
Kimmorley IMO is the next big thing in coaching. If we sign him, I'd like it to include keeping him around as DA's assistant after his playing career ends.
i think Kenny and Sterling as halves coaches would be great, have to help build combination.