So you don't believe that Berrigan has anything to do with it?

Jesus H Christ. Give your head a very large bang.

You think it is down to Berro? Berro was called along with a lot of other players last season with the drinking culture and if that is in any way true i will be happy if he has learnt nothing from him.

Give yourself one if you think Berrigan is a class hooker.

Yes I have no doubts he has tbh....I believe now though that Houghton can do a job, at the minute he looks the better deal, and I believe we could release Berro and free up some dosh and spend it where we really need it.

Very true that....yet he never got shipped out

Couldn't afford too.

Personally I hope he gets an offer he can't refuse from the NRL, think we could use his salary better.

How much cash do you reckon we would free up? Because Berrigan clearly doesn't want to leave and would want a large portion of his final year's salary to walk away from his contract. That would also count on the cap.

If Berrigan left it would free up a quota spot but very little cash to do anything with it IMO.

I'm guessing I imagined that he won a Clive Churchill Medal then? Someone had better tell Wayne Bennett what a poor coach he is too.

Would be my favourite outcome also.

That depends on the conditions of his 4th year though Kosh.

Stuart Reardon and Matt Diskin have won the British equivalents, are they class too ? One man of the match perfomance doesn't mean your class.

Just to clear this up. We cant just release Berrigan. His final year was optional but it was based on him making 50 appearances which he has done. Therefore the "option" is not there anymore.

He's been on record as saying that those conditions have already been met.

The point is he consistently played that well, hence why he was only kept out of the starting Australian XIII by Cameron Smith. Is Wayne Bennett wrong?

Is Bennett wrong about what ?

He most certainly did...I idolised him in those days...however sadly he has failed to deliver those kind of performances here, or indeed any where near.

And we talk about Dobbins living in the past, but some are happy to let players stay on past performances??

That was on the form of three years ago though not now. Cam Smith is leagues ahead of Berrigan. Berro has been good for us but we are paying him is not a good players moeny, it's much more. That's not his fault but if he decides to take one of these NRL offers that have been muted then I reckon we could get another hooker for much less money and have money to spare for other players.

Cheers. So the questions become: do we keep him at starting hooker and relegate Houghton to the bench, do we stay as we are and have him off the bench rotating with Houghton, or play him somewhere else, or not pick him at all?

Houghton may be better on current form but Berrigan is without a doubt our best hooker and will hopefully return to form and to think berrigans not given houghton tips is just silly.

Does he currently warrant the wage he receives and could it be used better is a fine discussion but some of the posts in this thread are just sickening tbh.

He should start games and Houghton should be off the bench, that's what their respective games demands.

Thing is, we've already upgraded contracts for Tickle, Houghton and Whiting, plus I can't imagine Fitz will take a cut for another year. If Fielden is coming as well, he'll be on more than Cusack. Personally I'd look at Houghton/Washy at hooker and spend the rest in the backs.

"Berrigan is rubbish" is not a statement I'd agree with however I would question whether he'd been good value. I personally don't think he has - in the last 2 seasons fair enough as we've had no 6 or 7 and he's had to carry the side playing wherever the coach asks him. This season, despite us having one of the best packs in the league he's been disappointing hopefully he'll show his real class when it matters this season but he doesn't do enough for me for a former SOO and international player.