Eels Blogs

RECONNECTING with the community is one thing. Allowing fans to dictate terms to the club’s administration and coaching staff is another matter altogether.

While Newcastle Knights fans planning a ‘‘re-sign Willie Mason’’ protest next week are entitled to their opinion and should be admired for their passion, the powers-that-be should not waver on their decision to release the former Test prop.

Mason rewound the clock a few years in Sunday’s 40-10 win against St George Illawarra, reminding everyone why he has been a crowd favourite at Hunter Stadium, but incoming coach Rick Stone has not allowed his heart to overrule his head, nor should he.

Mason will be 35 next year and, while he insists he can play for another two seasons, his best days were clearly long ago.

Just consider the following statistics.

According to the NRL Stats website, Mason averaged 89.8 attacking metres per game this season. There were 37 front-rowers in the competition who gained more ground on a weekly basis.

In defence, he averaged 18.5 tackles per game, which left him an unflattering 71st on the list of props.

For Newcastle alone, the numbers suggest Kade Snowden and Adam Cuthbertson clearly contributed  more than Mason this season, while David Fa’alogo and Korbin Sims were on a par.

Big Willie may be a character, a lovable rogue. But despite his capacity to create a headline, in terms of performances he is a far cry from the dominant force who was once a NSW and Test regular.

The emotional campaign on social media this week calling for his retention is in stark contrast to the mid-season announcement that Cuthbertson had signed with Leeds Rhinos, which did not register even a rumble of discontent.

Cuthbertson has been an unsung hero in his three years at the Knights, and if not for a knee injury that sidelined him for six games could easily have finished as Newcastle’s player of the season.

He averaged significantly greater output than Mason in terms of playing minutes, yardage and  tackles, and the Knights will find his season-best 40 off-loads damned hard to replace.

In a nutshell, Cuthbertson is a far more valuable commodity than Mason – and five years younger – yet his decision to leave prompted no outpouring of discontent.

All of which reinforces my theory that Mason’s popularity is based more around his celebrity status than what he offers on the field.

While it is only natural that supporters form sentimental attachments to players, coaches have to operate in a pragmatic, results-driven world.

If Stone thought Mason was a key man on Newcastle’s roster, then rest assured he would have been retained.

But the coach has clearly weighed up the pros and cons, done his sums under the salary cap and come to the conclusion Mason is expendable.

I’m more than happy to back Stone’s judgment and would suggest he is entitled to a bit more respect than the ‘‘save Willie’’ brigade have been showing.

It is not only Stone, incidentally, who would appear to harbour concern about how much more life is left in Mason’s ageing legs.

Despite the big fella declaring ‘‘there’s a lot of offers out there’’, I have seen no signs of rival clubs clamouring for his signature.

And, significantly, departing Knights coach Wayne Bennett, one of Mason’s great supporters, will not make room to accommodate him at the Broncos. 

Mason may yet be thrown a lifeline. The Dragons are looking to beef up their engine room with some big bodies, and there are rumours the Panthers are interested.

Good luck to him and his new club if that proves the case.

But fans who are of the belief that Mason’s heart is in Newcastle and he should be allowed to finish his career with his home-town club should cast their mind back to 2010.

At the time, Mason was searching for a club after being discarded by the Roosters. The Knights chased him, but he knocked back their offer to sign with North Queensland.

Whatever allegiance the Toronto Workers junior felt to Newcastle apparently ran a distant second to other priorities, such as joining a team he felt had more chance of winning a premiership. 

That’s all fair enough. Mason weighed up what was best for his career and made a business decision. 

Four years down the track, the Knights have done likewise.

Mason is not the only one who needs to move on.