(Sighs whistfully into the distance)

Lovely stuff.

Back on topic...

One thing I'd not do in future is give a player like Merrin a "window" to look around - make it plain its either stay or tear up your contract.

Its one thing to allow an overseas player to go home early, its another entirely to act as a last resort just in case they can't tee anything better up. If a player wants to go home early they need to share the risk.

Is Prior a marque signing?

Agreed. The whole Merrin situation has left a bitter taste in the mouth for me..

TBF, I know we keep going on about it but the writing was on the wall last year with Merrin, after the horrible family tragedy's it was always a matter of time before he went back and who could blame him.

Don’t blame him one bit for wanting to go back home, it’s the way it’s happened which has ed me off.

Has Trent actually come out and said thanks at all to the club or fans? Seen him reshare various posts on insta stories where players are wishing him well and NRL accounts are welcoming him back. I've had every sympathy with his desire to return home, and the club were very generous in openly giving him the opportunity to. He's definitely given 100% every time he's stepped onto the field for us and always seemed to be a man of integrity. I was really pleased with the way he conducted himself last year when surrounded by speculation etc. While I can understand why he needs to go the way he's gone back on his word after coming back sticks in my throat a bit but I've not seen him actually thanks the club for their support anywhere? Realise I may have just missed it but after all they've done if he's just walked off without so much as acknowledging how much the club have supported him then I'll be absolutely disgusted.

Agree with other comments on here. He's a huge loss but glad we haven't got the inevitable circus of rumour following him through the season before the inevitable departure at the end of the year, or half way through the season. I'd rather anyone not wanting to be here be gone.

He’s not said a thing, which again seems off, but maybe the club have said don’t issue a statement?

I think the club are keen to downplay it as seen with the announcement being a footnote in the Matt Prior announcement however I think a short statement from Trent would have ended the matter and fans would have been a bit more sympathetic IMO

I would have thought the management could have judged this situation a bit better .He was given a time limit to find an acceptable new deal .that time ran out and he came back seemingly full of enthusiasm for the coming season . Did the club really believe him ? Or was there an agreement between the two that " ok your back until so thing comes up then no matter how far into pre season, or even if season has begun you can leave" I dont think so I think our management has egg on there faces .

I think you’re being harsh on the club here, maybe they did take him on his word (I did aswell to be honest) it’s not their fault if he backflips on that, the club were quite rightly accommodating to his situation, if he genuinely thought in his mind he would leave at the first opportunity he should have let the club know that (he may have done) or not come back at all, coming back goving it the fully committed BS is not a good look, he was the one wanting to break a 4 year contract so he has to take the risk.

Thats what gets me the most, the fully committed massive thanks to the club statement he gave when he came back then 3 weeks later hes gone... I know he had family tradedgy but he should have stuck with Leeds once his decision was made to come back otherwise what was the point of the deadline agreement

Hasnt he got a bit of form on this though, I think he left St George under a bit of a cloud and then signed for us after committing to the Panthers?

No. The panthers wanted him out while he was still under contract.

Certainly seems that way from what happened at St George and Panthers

Right man, completely wrong time. We got to see flashes of the big man but I don't think we were in any fit state to truly make him put down roots, which is a shame. It didn't bode well how he came to sign on for us and the short time afforded to him getting over here, settled and raring to go. To be frank, from the minute he signed we've had an almost non stop media circus and a distracting "will he go, wont he go" routine which im pleased has ended.

I can see that this pishes folk off and tbh it pishes me off too, but it is what it is, hes put his family first and we unfortunately are left in the lurch. Still, free's up a marquee spot so......

I’m not too upset. He’s a good player and I’d rather he was with us than not. But it frees up cap space and the main thing for me is I think it makes our backrow quicker and more dynamic.
When you think last season we often had Ferres and Merrin there, now we’ll possibly have Martin, Ward and maybe Cuthbertson at loose rather than prop.

I agree it does free up cap space quite a tidy sum too.
But it`s more around IF we use that money that worries me.
Yes we have a tons better squad than this time last year but we need to keep on strengthening and the loss of Merrin has in my opinion put us back a little.
Get a tidy replacement and a decent centre/winger and see where we end up.

I wonder if Sinfield is doing the Oz trip with GH in January?

Not sure that’ll happen this year considering Agar has just been over speaking to agents and putting things in place. I reckon they have something in the pipeline

Oh fine

Didn’t Agar mention that they did have some possible signings lined up incase Merrin didn’t return? And didn’t want to mention names as they were still under contract?

Yep he certainly did. We wait with baited breath

Wonder if those players signed on elsewhere when Merrin returned tho

Possibly and why it makes how Trent handled it worse

I understand one more signing to come before the season starts.