The Warriors have made an aggressive dash into the player market for 2011, making a $400,000 offer to Parramatta star Feleti Mateo and tabling a fresh bid for his Eels team-mate Krisnan Inu.
But the club says it has almost given up on signing Sonny Bill Williams, despite the Bulldogs softening their demands for a huge transfer fee before handing over Williams' NRL registration.
The Warriors were reluctant to talk about their moves for Mateo and Inu, with chief executive Wayne Scurrah saying only: "Mateo is a classy player, but I can't comment on what negotiations may or may not be in progress."
But recruitment boss Dean Bell confirmed the club was in a position to sign both Parramatta players, not just one, for next season. "We are looking at every option really, but we don't have to sacrifice one over the other," he said.
Mateo said yesterday he would like to stay at Parramatta, which cannot match the money the Warriors are offering. Newcastle and the Bulldogs also want the Tonga captain.
"I'd love to stay at the club," Mateo said. "I'm a local boy and they're keen to keep me, so hopefully we can sort something out. If not, I'll have to move on."
Mateo was flattered by the interest from rival clubs, saying: "It's always good to know that people think good things about you. I just need to sort out my footy and the rest will take care of itself."
With the Eels juggling their salary cap in an attempt to retain the core of their 2009 grand final side, the Warriors hope Inu will be the one squeezed out with Kris Keating, Nathan Cayless and Eric Grothe also off-contract and Daniel Mortimer and Jarryd Hayne newly re-signed.
"I'm aware of the interest from the Warriors and Newcastle," Parramatta CEO Paul Osborne said. "It's one of those things when you've got a successful football team, everyone wants to come and plunder. But Feleti is a Parramatta junior and we're in serious talks with him. We think we can convince him to stay. Clearly there is more money elsewhere but he loves the joint and we love him."
The Star-Times understands the Warriors have mandated Bell to move early on recruitment for 2011, and the bids for Inu and Mateo are not the only concrete offers they've made.
"We have a plan and [list of] targets and I must say a lot of those targets have been re-signed by their clubs, but we are looking at [more] and continue to assess where we are," said Bell.
Meanwhile, Scurrah has signalled the Warriors are dropping the chase for Williams.
The Warriors were originally dissuaded by the Bulldogs' demands for a fee of up to $3 million to release Williams' NRL registration, but yesterday Bulldogs chief executive Todd Greenberg said he was willing to drop those demands.
The Sunday Star-Times understands Williams' agent, Khoder Nasser, has been fobbing off his multiple suitors and has told them he won't make a decision on his future for another eight weeks.
"We've stepped right back from the whole Sonny Bill thing at this point, we've just parked it."
I'm pretty confident he'll stay with Parra. I'm not so sure with Inu, but hopefully we can retain him as well. This article doesn't go into too much detail so it may just be speculation at this stage. Ozzy seems to be confident as well... one thing that bothers me a little is that Mateo is resigned to moving on if he can't come to an agreement with Parra... unlike Inu who seems to want to stay no matter what.
But would it really be worth playing for a shit team just because they offer you more money?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/league/3446642/Warriors-offering-400k-for-Mateo
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In his first hit out for this season i think he showed glimpses of what is to come, couple of good runs and an ofload or two. Wasn't his best game but none of our players were that good on friday night, none were terrible either.
Some supporters will say we made it to the finals without him and we can win without him. I completeley agree with that statement but who scored our only try ( i think) against the Titans in our semi? Parra can win without anyone player but it is as a collective team including Feleti Mateo that makes us the team we are. Feleti is one of, if not, the best ofloader in the game. The likes we havent seen since Sonny Bill left.
I have said it before, and i dont want to sound like a broken record but that's how strong i feel about it. Mateo in the forwards, Mortimer in the halfs and Hayne in the backs is the future of our club. IMO anyway.
Lets hope Osborne weaves his magic wand and retains Mateo
We will have more chance to win a comp then the Warriors so hopefully that plays a big part in the decission.
I know he started on Friday night but is has been suggested by some that perhaps he should have come off the bench for improved impact as he was a little lacking in terms of aggression early on. I agree with these sentiments and it one of the reasons why he probably isn't a starting lock forward.
I think Mateo is worth $350,000 but his role in the side might need to be reviewed. He is a playmaker and he could take a lot of the pressure off Jarryd Hayne who has enough to worry about as a fullback without having to carry the burden of coming up with matchwinning plays every single bloody week over a long season.
Is Robson capable of throwing the pass that Hayne delievered to Burt on the weekend? if the answer is no then he should not be an NRL half for mine.
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