Jack Wighton to join South Sydney Rabbitohs in 2024

[Billy Walker]

The only smart thing I see about this offer is that it allows us to cut ties with him before his 35th birthday. His 25th and 30th haven’t been swell. $4.1m over 4 years - we’ve basically offered him to be the face of hate for all failures over the next 4 years.

[-PJ-]

So what was he due to earn in 24 if he decided to stay on with his player option ?

[Billy Walker]

I reckon there are other clubs tempted to match the offer that have no intention of signing Jack but are curious to see just how stupid we are.

“Dolphins have matched - quick make it $5.7 over 5 years”

[dubby]

It’s big money, but I might be going against the grain here; I think his best footy is still in front of him.

I just can't see it. He's a big, physical player, but has nothing like the skills to compensate for the body slowing down in his 30s.

Agreed

[Azza]

Just when I think it can’t get more depressing to support this club, they reach new levels of ineptitude.

On the plus side he’s the most well-paid airhead I know

[Finchy]

If we have that sort of money for a 5/8 I wonder why we didn't go after Munster with it when he was on the market.

Munster turned down $5.6mill pa over 4 years from the Dolphins, to take a pay cut for $4mill over 4 years to stay at the Storm.

If he wasn’t going to his home state of sunny QLD to be coached by Wayne for an extra $1.6mill, he certainly wasn’t coming to chilly Canberra to be coached by Ricky for only $1.1mill pa.

[rayden83]

It’s big money, but I might be going against the grain here; I think his best footy is still in front of him.

I just can't see it. He's a big, physical player, but has nothing like the skills to compensate for the body slowing down in his 30s.

Agreed

It really depends on the athlete. The sports science and conditioning these days is so good athletes can remain in peak physical condition well into their 30s. Look at athletes like Federer, Williams, Ronaldo etc, still at the top of their game even into their late 30s. Jack is lucky in the sense he has largely remained injury free for most of his career.

Of course none of the above matters if the motivation isn't there. But if Jack wants to remain a top footballer and puts in the effort I'm sure we will get value out of a four year contract.

[gerg]

Jack gets paid..

Well he's on the record for saying he wants to win a premiership. If it was about the money they usually say that this is their last contract and they want to set themselves (and family) up for their future. But I'm guessing he'll take the money and not the offer from a real premiership contender.

[Roger Kenworthy]

Lol at all those who said Wighton was dumb for opting out. This deal smashes that myth - common sense operating from his manager. He wouldn't have got that $1mil at 34 if he opted in and waited another year.

[radicalraider]

[greeneyed]

Wayne Bennett ups ante for Jack Wighton as $2 million war chest revealed

Wayne Bennett has formally contacted Wighton’s management to set up a meeting with the Raiders star in his quest to deliver a marquee player to the Dolphins.

Bennett has had preliminary talks with Wighton’s management with a view to setting up a formal meeting in the coming weeks before the former Dally M Medallist makes a definitive call on his future next month. The Raiders have tabled a revised $4.4 million package to Wighton but Bennett said he is open to matching Canberra’s latest offer, with the Dolphins possessing a $2 million salary-cap war chest.

Read more: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport ... bb9cc3040d

[zim]

So what was he due to earn in 24 if he decided to stay on with his player option ?

Was 900k or something like that? As mentioned earlier 1.1 would be inline with a salary cap correction. If we had money to go after players before (eg fifita) then we should still have that available.
4 years is too long at that price. I wonder if the last 1-2 are player or club options.

[Choc Magic]

Right now I'm inclined to cancel my 4 memberships with the club as I'm happy to support them financially, but not so they can recklessly dish it out to grossly underperforming players

Your membership money doesn't contribute to the salary cap... it contributes to the gym equipment that Papali'i and Tapine don't use.

[radicalraider]

Wighton is reminding me of Blake Ferguson when he said he came to win a comp too.. we know how that ended..

[Billy Walker]

Right now I'm inclined to cancel my 4 memberships with the club as I'm happy to support them financially, but not so they can recklessly dish it out to grossly underperforming players

Your membership money doesn't contribute to the salary cap... it contributes to the gym equipment that Papali'i and Tapine don't use.

I laughed hard at this!

[LimeGreenMachine]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

[Choc Magic]

Raiders Chief Negotiator: "Is this still available..?"

[Botman]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

Clubs learnt pretty quickly front loaded contracts didn’t work
No one wants to take a pay cut year after year. Players on front loaded deals simply got pissed off and agitated for new deals because their pay went down despite performance being the same or better

Contracts scale up typically have stepped increases built in the structure
So a 3 year 1.5m deal isn’t usually a flat $500, or a 700k year 1 and 400k year 2-3

It’ll more look something like:
450k - 500k - 550k

[Raiders_Pat]

Wayne Bennett ups ante for Jack Wighton as $2 million war chest revealed

Wayne Bennett has formally contacted Wighton’s management to set up a meeting with the Raiders star in his quest to deliver a marquee player to the Dolphins.

Bennett has had preliminary talks with Wighton’s management with a view to setting up a formal meeting in the coming weeks before the former Dally M Medallist makes a definitive call on his future next month. The Raiders have tabled a revised $4.4 million package to Wighton but Bennett said he is open to matching Canberra’s latest offer, with the Dolphins possessing a $2 million salary-cap war chest.

Read more: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport ... bb9cc3040d

I hope they do match it or go above and Jack takes their offer. Whatever the case, I certainly hope we don't make a new offer that's higher than the current one if Dolphins do come up with a similar deal. Four years at $4.4 mil total is way too much for a 30 year old.

[LimeGreenMachine]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

Clubs learnt pretty quickly front loaded contracts didn’t work
No one wants to take a pay cut year after year. Players on front loaded deals simply got pissed off and agitated for new deals because their pay went down despite performance being the same or better

Contracts scale up typically have stepped increases built in the structure
So a 3 year 1.5m deal isn’t usually a flat $500, or a 700k year 1 and 400k year 2-3

It’ll more look something like:
450k - 500k - 550k

Fair point , I wonder if this could be different due to the fact the last year of the contract will be his last year in the game.

[Green Blogger]

At least if he walks away we have driven the price up elsewhere.

[The Nickman]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

Clubs learnt pretty quickly front loaded contracts didn’t work
No one wants to take a pay cut year after year. Players on front loaded deals simply got pissed off and agitated for new deals because their pay went down despite performance being the same or better

Contracts scale up typically have stepped increases built in the structure
So a 3 year 1.5m deal isn’t usually a flat $500, or a 700k year 1 and 400k year 2-3

It’ll more look something like:
450k - 500k - 550k

Yeah, hoog point, I was about to say something very similar. Absolutely nobody, whether they're a football player, coal quality expert, gardener or helmet clipper for the ACT ambulence service, nobody ever wants to take a pay-cut moving forward. You either want your salary to be good and remain static, or (preferably) it increases with time.

[The Nickman]

And you 'eard me... hoog point.

[Raiders_Pat]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

Clubs learnt pretty quickly front loaded contracts didn’t work
No one wants to take a pay cut year after year. Players on front loaded deals simply got pissed off and agitated for new deals because their pay went down despite performance being the same or better

Contracts scale up typically have stepped increases built in the structure
So a 3 year 1.5m deal isn’t usually a flat $500, or a 700k year 1 and 400k year 2-3

It’ll more look something like:
450k - 500k - 550k

Yeah, hoog point, I was about to say something very similar. Absolutely nobody, whether they're a football player, coal quality expert, gardener or helmet clipper for the ACT ambulence service, nobody ever wants to take a pay-cut moving forward. You either want your salary to be good and remain static, or (preferably) it increases with time.

Nobody wants to. But this is the sporting business. People generally take pay cuts when they transition from playing to coaching, for instance. And it's not uncommon for players to take a pay cut at the end of their careers in any sport, including the NRL.

[Ruben Daley]

We don't know how the contract will be structured.
It may scale down over the last 2 years , remembering the salary cap is increasing over the next couple of years as well

Moses is reported getting 1.25m.

If we let Jack go , what will it cost us to get an equivalent or better player.
Probably a lot more and more likely not at all.

4 years is a risk but if we don't take that risk then what are we left with?

Clubs learnt pretty quickly front loaded contracts didn’t work
No one wants to take a pay cut year after year. Players on front loaded deals simply got pissed off and agitated for new deals because their pay went down despite performance being the same or better

Contracts scale up typically have stepped increases built in the structure
So a 3 year 1.5m deal isn’t usually a flat $500, or a 700k year 1 and 400k year 2-3

It’ll more look something like:
450k - 500k - 550k

Your bolded statement is true of younger players but I don't think it applies in this case because Jack will have decreasing leverage as the deal progresses. We're paying him for four years because we really need him for two years and need to outbid other clubs. He won't be in a strong bargaining position midway through this contract, so the club won't be compelled to respond if he agitates for a pay rise.

I think clubs learned more that back-ended contracts don't work. That's how Manly etc. got hamstrung for years.

So I'd love for the club to frontend load Jack but seriously doubt they did.

[GreenMachine]

Fingers crossed the sea donkeys and coach side mouth convince Jack to leave…
I’m sure Paul **** will spin it positively in favour of his beloved buddy Ricky..

[Raider of d Lost Ark]

Wayne Bennett ups ante for Jack Wighton as $2 million war chest revealed

Wayne Bennett has formally contacted Wighton’s management to set up a meeting with the Raiders star in his quest to deliver a marquee player to the Dolphins.

Bennett has had preliminary talks with Wighton’s management with a view to setting up a formal meeting in the coming weeks before the former Dally M Medallist makes a definitive call on his future next month. The Raiders have tabled a revised $4.4 million package to Wighton but Bennett said he is open to matching Canberra’s latest offer, with the Dolphins possessing a $2 million salary-cap war chest.

Read more: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport ... bb9cc3040d

This is insane, I have a few thoughts…..

$1.1 million is the absolute max I’d be paying for Wighton, I’d be ok at that price but anything more based on his last couple of seasons is crazy.

If the Dolphin’s had this war chest, why didn’t they throw it at Moses? A genuine half that can game manage, has a short and long kicking game and kicks goals…..

Where will the Dolphins plays Jack? All the talk is the Dolphins have O’Sullivan, Katoa, Milford and Nikorima to play in the halves. That makes Jack a $1million per year centre

This is going to drag on and from that article he isn’t making a decision until next month? I hope we can start winning a few games, I’d like to read about something other than this contract saga.

[greeneyed]

The risks and reward for Canberra Raiders with Jack Wighton contract offer

If the movie Moneyball taught us anything, it's that it's important to look past the dollar amount and instead at the value, and squeeze that for all it's worth. So if the reported value the Canberra Raiders have offered to Jack Wighton in his next contract is correct, the question Green Machine fans must ask is if he's worth it.

Read more: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/ ... /?cs=14239

John Bateman open to Jack Wighton reunion at Wests Tigers

John Bateman has rolled out the red carpet to Jack Wighton, relishing the prospect of linking with his former Canberra teammate at the Wests Tigers.

“He’s a very good player who’s gone on to play for NSW and won the World Cup last year,” Bateman said. “He’s a great bloke and if he wants to come here, he can feel free to come here. The better players – you’d take them in your squad. Jack’s 30 years old now so this will probably be the biggest (decision) in his career.”

Read more: https://canberraweekly.com.au/john-bate ... ts-tigers/

[Billy Walker]

The ego on Bateman right…..

[FROG]

People ask who I'd target in his place. How about throwing this money at joey manu after his contract expires at the roosters in 24. He is reported to be on about half that amount. Surely he has a price where he considers the move and surely 1.1m and a chance at a spine position gets you into a conversation

[Billy Walker]

People ask who I'd target in his place. How about throwing this money at joey manu after his contract expires at the roosters in 24. He is reported to be on about half that amount. Surely he has a price where he considers the move and surely 1.1m and a chance at a spine position gets you into a conversation

Good call.

[twistedbydesign]

People ask who I'd target in his place. How about throwing this money at joey manu after his contract expires at the roosters in 24. He is reported to be on about half that amount. Surely he has a price where he considers the move and surely 1.1m and a chance at a spine position gets you into a conversation

I couldn't believe they were able to hold him last time his contract was up. Warriors went hard as I recall? Just feels like the kind of guy who would move the needle for so many clubs across the NRL - including ours - was shocked someone didn't splash enough cash to lure him away from Bondi, Roosters sombrero jokes not withstanding. Absolute stud, and still only 26.

[dubby]

And you 'eard me... hoog point.

.

Sent from my SM-G991B using Tapatalk

[Green Machine]

We have to spend what, 90/95% of our salary? We may as well give it to Jack because no one else nearly worth a mil are coming here.

[Northern Raider]

Just when I think it can’t get more depressing to support this club, they reach new levels of ineptitude.

On the plus side he’s the most well-paid airhead I know

Luke Brooks??