Eels Blogs

Speaking ahead of Thursday night’s clash with Penrith at CommBank Stadium, the Eels coach came out swinging against critics who claim Luai’s one-year deal with the club next season is a short-sighted sugar-hit flying in the face of a long-term plan.

When asked about the strategy around signing Pezet for a stop over year on his way to Brisbane in 2027, and now Luai before he joins Papua New Guinea, Ryles was blunt.

“Jonah is an up-and-coming player who has done his apprenticeship and is on his path to becoming a seasoned first-grader, and Jarome is a four-time premiership winner, so there’s a little bit of a difference there,” he said on Wednesday.

“I don’t apologise for anything that we’ve done, we’re working through (consequences of player options in contracts) and this is a result of it.

“Things happen for a reason and we’ll continue to move forward.

“The biggest thing for us is we want to win now, and also get prepared for the future and make this a sustainable footy club that can sit up the top of the ladder.”

It follows a week of headlines after Luai’s arrival was announced on July 14, days after the Wests Tigers said he was free to look elsewhere for 2027.

Concerns about third party deals with Chiefs sponsors as well as his role in recruiting players to the NRL expansion club have been raised, but the Eels would rather have him at the club than play anywhere else.

Ryles said his experience as a multiple premiership-winner and his diligence at training and to the pursuit of excellence will help prepare his young squad for the future, allowing them to take more time with rising guns Lorenzo Talataina and Joash Papalii.

He explained Dylan Brown’s exit after enacting options in his contract created hurdles in the club’s long term plans, and they’re in the process of upgrading and extending while getting rid of player options.

“We’ve taken a long term view on what we’re doing, we’ve gone long term with Izzy (Iongi), it started at three and now he’s in for five years, and obviously with Mitchell (Moses) … he had player options in his contract so we traded those out and we re-signed him for five years, and then Riley Smith jumped out of the ground there and we extended his contact, Tallyn Da Silva became available so we signed him for four years too.

“We’ve taken a long term view with our spine and we’ve got Jonah in the short term, Dylan had options in his contract and as it turned out he executed on one of those and got the deal of a lifetime, and that happens if you put yourself in that situation.

“We’re working through that now and when a player like Jarome comes up, with the age of our spine and to give Mitchell a hand going forward and help us with now and prepare the group coming through, we see that as the best option for our footy club.

“We’ve got younger players that are coming through our pathways in our system who may be ready in 12 months but this gives them a bit more time to get their reps in NSW Cup and learn off a true pro who has won a lot of premierships.

“I see it as a win/win for us. People will have their opinions at the end of the day but this is what’s best for us going forward and that’s what we’re doing.”

He also denied the signing will put any player off side.

“We’re sitting in a spot on the ladder where we don’t want to be, and it’s no one’s fault directly, but we need more experienced players and Jarome fits that bill at the moment.

“That’s what we’re going to go with. There’s no fear there.”

Moses is set to return to the field from a cork following his State of Origin win with NSW, while star centre Will Penisini is a chance of returning from a groin injury but is likely to come through NSW Cup.