Firstly I want Teddy to resign with the Tigers answers your last question
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Honestly with the squad we have , we probably shouldn't have any financial restraints and if we have again that a issue the Tigers have brought on themselves
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They know who is coming up off contract and what approximate market price they will attract its not like " Surprise its 2014 , we have 8 players coming off contract "
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The Tigers must have had a list in order of priority who to keep and who is less important
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Tedesco is the top of the list in 2014 and most would agree I believe
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If Teddy has a long kicking game he has the potential to be the next Darren Lockyer
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And before every one has a laugh about that comment , I'm the same bloke who said Teddy will become a better fullback than Brett Hodgson and I'll stand by those comments as well
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This young man could be our once in a generation player in the fullback role for many years to come
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He could be our next captain
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We can't lose him to anyone
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If we lose Tedesco ,Mayer needs to man up and take responsibility and accountability for it
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Am I looking at this fairly , yes , we must retain Tedesco
Well my question was effectively, if we are offering 500k, and another club is offering well over that, do you think the Tigers should match that offer no matter what. I take it your response is yes. I disagree. I still have some concerns over his knee. I would want to see him play out another couple of years without injury before he was offered superstar money.
Anyway, that is all hypothetical because neither of us knows the figures being offered - which was sort of my point.
There is one of two possibilities
1) We are unable or unwilling to offer Tedesco a fair value
2) We are unwilling to offer him what he wants and what is on offer elsewhere.
If we are unwilling to offer Tedesco a fair amount then that is absolute folly. He is clearly a superstar in the making. If we are unable to offer him fair value it is absolutely poor management. However it is not really on Mayer and the current club management, so it is unfair to castigate the current administration - it is not responsible for the current contractual obligations.
If it is the second, I am entirely on board with the club. We are not a club that can afford to offload players ala the Roosters and the Bulldogs. No player is bigger than the club. We should not be corraled into offering a player more than he is worth. That creates situations where we may not be able to offer players in the future.
I'm particularly hesitant about offering big contracts to players who are so reliant upon their speed and agility. Look at what happened with Lawrence. Before his hamstring trouble he was a genuine star and was on the cusp of origin selection. We are paying him accordingly to that ability and he is well below that.
Tedesco may well make it to the very top echelons of the game, but comparisons with Lockyer at this stage are laughable. Lockyer won three grand finals, most games for a single club, two golden boots, won 6 straight origin series as captain, played more SOO games than any other player, clive churchill medal winner, the list goes on.
In fact, by the age Tedesco is now Lockyer had won a premiership, won an origin series, and played for Australia. He was a prodigy.
Maybe he'll get there, but if you are suggesting the Tigers negotiate with Tedesco with a view to him being as good as Lockyer then you are being foolish. Hell, Brisbane wouldn't have offered Lockyer the sort of money they would have if they knew he was going to be as good as was.
If you are suggesting they are similar in style then I think that is completely wrong as well. Lockyer looked like a 5/8 from a very young age. I've not seen Tedesco show anything like the ballskills Lockyer had at a young age.
I think Tedesco is a fantastic player. I don't know what our cap situation is, but I would advocate a very, very healthy contract. Something like what the Dogs paid Morris. Anything else would be overs in my opinion.
