Tim mannah speaks about Hayne

Parramatta club captain Tim Mannah says no man is bigger than the Eels - even his superstar best mate Jarryd Hayne.Mannah had lunch with Hayne on Monday and admits his code-hopping former teammate asked him when the Eels were going to make an offer.AdvertisementMannah, though, says while it may be disappointing for fans that Hayne won't be returning to Parramatta any time soon, the embattled Eels are intent on building a club and team "that's sustainable for the future" rather than splashing out for one player."Gold Coast have offered him a very big sum and one thing we've learnt at the club is one player isn't bigger than the club," Mannah said after Hayne's announcement on Wednesday that he was joining rival NRL club the Titans.RELATED CONTENTHayne laments state of Parramatta EelsWhy Eels fans should be filthy about Hayne dealMannah admitted he relayed Hayne's quest for an offer to Eels officials and thought it "kind of got the wheels moving a bit quicker to get something to him".But he said with all the upheavals at the club in 2016 it was always going to be tough to secure Hayne's services.New adventure: Jarryd Hayne at the announcement with new coach Neil Henry.New adventure: Jarryd Hayne at the announcement with new coach Neil Henry. Photo: Jason O'Brien"We don't have a head of football at the moment," Mannah said."We have a CEO now but there was a little period there where we didn't have a lot of leadership that could have made the right calls."One player isn't bigger than the club": Tim Mannah."One player isn't bigger than the club": Tim Mannah. Photo: Getty Images"But whether or not we had people there, it might not have changed anything anyway."I don't know if we would have gone down that path of throwing that kind of money around."It's all done now so there's no point us crying over split milk."He's made the decision that's best for him. He's a grown man and he's got to look after himself."At the same time, Parra, we want to look after ourselves as well."It would have been nice to have him at Parra but he's looked after himself and it's a good chance for the club to kind of take a step back, look at what position we're in now."We've got a bit of space to work with and a bit of money to spend and we can go ahead and build a team we want to build."Mannah said he understood Hayne's urgency to seal a deal."He's got a chance to play some finals footy this year," he said."And I guess if you wanted to have a crack at that, you'd have to get it done pretty quick."

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Replies

luk3_182 August 3, 2016 at 12:55pm

Timmy deffinatly not happy with this outcome. Great response though! Much more respect for timmy today.
- CarloEEL2 > luk3_182 August 3, 2016 at 12:58pm
  
  Was there an offer or not????
  
  This sounds ambiguous...
Jpav August 3, 2016 at 12:57pm

Well said Timmy
The Badger August 3, 2016 at 12:57pm

Yay ...looks like Timmy's gonna be a lifer.
- Alan Hunt > The Badger August 3, 2016 at 3:42pm
  
  Well who else would be silly enough to take him off our hands???
Round and proud August 3, 2016 at 12:59pm

Well said
Snakey - Sack Dylan Brown August 3, 2016 at 12:59pm

A lot of contradictions here from Tim but i agree 1 player isn't bigger than the club.
Snakey - Sack Dylan Brown August 3, 2016 at 1:00pm

Very ambiguous lol
Longfin Eel August 3, 2016 at 1:01pm

That second last line says it all. I hope the Tits get thrashed and don't make the 8.
The French Fullback #1 August 3, 2016 at 1:05pm

We had the space in the cap. Todd just didn't want it to happen. Plain and simple. The "we want to help Parramatta" had as much truth to it as the "lifetime agreement" statement. None. Greenberg is a germ.