Wests Tigers fans need Jahream Bula to stay. Phil Gould isn’t helping
There were two questions worth asking after the
Wests Tigers continued their magical run on Sunday afternoon.
Firstly, what is happening with the future of gun fullback Jahream Bula?
And secondly, why is Canterbury boss Phil Gould, in his job at Nine, allowed to repeatedly heap praise on the 24-year-old, who has been linked with a move to the Bulldogs during the free-to-air coverage?
Let’s start with Gould’s Bula love-in on Sunday. In commentary during Nine’s coverage, Gould did not hide his admiration for Bula’s display, in which he scored two tries, at Campbelltown Sports Stadium.
“That’s an athlete.
“Gee-whiz he’s going to be a good player.
He’s just creamy, so fluid, beautiful, like apple pie on a Sunday.”
Brenton Speed, who was sitting next to Gould in the commentary box, then pointed out “plenty of other clubs are monitoring Jahream Bula and his contract situation”.
“Hopefully from a neutral’s perspective, and a Wests Tigers perspective, he stays at this club, but it will be tough to keep him,” Speed said.
Gould kept quiet, then Nine cut to a commercial break.
Good things are
happening at the Tigers right now, and Bula is arguably the best player to come through the grades since the old owner of the club’s No.1 jersey, James Tedesco.
He can run, he can leap, and when you watch him live, it’s incredible to see the ease with which he moves in backplay, appearing to float over the turf before putting himself in a position to receive the ball.
As it stands, Bula has a mutual option in his deal for 2027. The Tigers have until next month to activate the club option, to retain Bula on a salary of $900,000. Arguably, the Tigers would be wasting their time taking up the extra 12 months if Bula had no appetite to stick around beyond 2027.
Bula can activate the option, worth $800,000, or walk away and pursue a better offer elsewhere.
This is where Gould and the Bulldogs come into the picture. And why so many Tigers fans would have winced every time Gould spoke about Bula.
Last year, Gould used his media platform to speak glowingly about
Bula’s Tigers teammate Lachie Galvin. If you needed a refresher, Gould described Galvin as the best teenage footballer he had ever seen.
Galvin is now a Bulldog.
It emerged late last year the NRL and Rugby League Players’ Association planned to clamp down on what commentators who held official positions at NRL clubs could say about contracted players.
The NRL put out a statement in the new year stating: “Clubs have been advised that the definition of tampering will now include certain
public and private statements that could be seen as attempts to lure or entice a player to join another club.”
To be fair to Gould, he wouldn’t have been doing his job if he did not acknowledge Bula’s feats. But where do you draw the line? How do you separate praise from public courting?
Maybe someone should ask Bulldogs fullback Connor Tracey how he felt about one of his bosses speaking so glowingly about a rival fullback.
In the hope of getting a response from Gould himself, we sent him the following text: “Wanted to ask about game yesterday, and whether you might appreciate Tigers fans getting a little edgy, even angry, after hearing you speak so glowingly about Jahream Bula, a fullback who has already been linked to the Dogs.”
Gould responded with two words.
“Grow up.”
St George Illawarra’s pursuit of Cowboys fullback
Scott Drinkwater late last week was significant for the Tigers because the Red V were also keeping tabs on Bula.
Bula deserves all the praise he gets. Fans love him. He is a cleanskin, a gentleman who loves his family and his faith.
It was not that long ago coach Benji Marshall was still the biggest drawcard with young Tigers supporters. Now, the fans’ idols are all on the park, with Bula and Jarome Luai, Adam Doueihi and Sunia Turuva.
The Tigers took years to overcome the loss of Tedesco. They can only hope Bula stays put. And that Gus can control himself the next time he calls a Tigers game on a Sunday. Maybe game-day catering can throw in a few apple pies.
