www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/leag ... miwge.html

www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/leag ... miwge.html

Widdop is on $550,000 a year at the Dragons.
That is around £290,000 pounds, you would think Leeds would have to up the anti to make him move back to England after going to Australia as a 15 year old, perhaps £350,000 per season?
Big chunk of the salary cap.

Is there a vote on the marquee player allowance soon? If it goes through only £200k would count on the cap.

Have you met Mr Hetherington?

We wouldn't pay anywhere near that for a player.

Mr Hetherington has never before had the job of trying to replace Sir Kevin Sinfield.

If Leeds offered Widdop a pay increase, it would have to be substantial for him to leave a great set up for him at St George-Illawarra, where he is a star and with a good chance of getting the club into the playoffs. It would have to be not a 20% pay increase but at least a 50% pay increase I would imagine, and Leeds cannot offer that.

Why would Leeds have to Woo him with substantially more money if the player has already decided he wants to return to the country of his roots?

I would think at a push Hetherington MAY be willing to match his current salary of around 300k but i would be gobsmacked if he paid anymore.

Anyone who knows him will know he wouldn't pay that much for Greg Inglis never mind Widdop.

Why would he want to leave a potentially successful NRL team to join a moderately, by NRL standards, team in this country?
He would have to be paid a kings ransom to ever consider lowering his standards.

I would tend to agree in normal circumstances but Leeds will be freeing up some massive cap space with Sinfield and JP off the books so it isn't beyond the realms of possibility.

Again, i would agree but if Widdop is wanting to move back, that is of course his choice.in that case no club would have to pay over the odds as it is Widdop who wants the move however im sure he will get or close to what he gets over there here.

I personally as a leeds fan am not bothered if we sign him or not as would like to see Sutcliffe given the 6 shirt and we could be better served spending the cash on other areas but would be great to see him in SL somewhere.

Widdop isn't the sort of 'name' who will put bums on seats so I can't see Leeds breaking the bank to try and get him when there's Sutcliffe, amongst others, to be promoted.

And, as we're beginning to see all-too-clearly now, this wonderful 'new era' isn't all it's cracked up to be and Leeds don't need to spend big to remain one of the driving forces.

I don't know in what universe the Dragons are successful (although they've played better than their usual lamentable defending this season, to be fair) and Leeds are 'moderate'.

Leeds are hot favourites to be Grand Final contenders. Can the Dragons say the same?

If often helps if you READ a post and UNDERSTAND what is says, rather than believing it says something else!

Dragons are doing quite well in the NRL. Not as well as Leeds in Super League, but still doing well.

I am sure that Gareth Widdop has developed roots in Australia by now. His family is all there. Why uproot his wife and child to go to Leeds? Can Leeds compete with the white waves of Woollongong beaches in the summer? I doubt that he is "homesick" for Halifax. More likely he considers Sydney or Wollongong home. That is why he would only consider a move to Leeds if he was offered a massive pay hike.

Nobody knows what Widdop wants. Maybe, just maybe, he could be seduced by the lure of replacing the most successful captain in Super League history. Must be tempting.

People move to the uk from all over the world, especially from down under.

Why is it on RLfans that Oz is held in such high esteem and no one in they're right mind would live in the UK.

Quite.And we are talking about a lad who is actually from these isles and has strong roots over here.

I was just watching the Dragons earlier, and yes, they are doing pretty well this year. They seem to have sorted their perennial defensive weakness lately, and with Widdop and Benji on song, are always a threat in attack. But realistically, will they be there or thereabouts at the business end of the season? After all, the deeply ordinary Knights were top of the table not long back.

I wouldn't mind living in Halifax: nice little town.

But Mum and Dad are living in sunny and colourful Australia, not in overcast, rainy and grimy Leeds. What deeper roots are there than parents?

Moreover, who could forsake the sunny lifestyle of fresh succulent oysters, prawns, barramundi and salmon in abundance, consumed with a cool glass or two of sauvignon blanc or chardonnay, in exchange for a dreary lifestyle of gristly. bone and gravy laden pies, and soft mushy peas, washed down with a couple of pints of warm beer?

Surely Mother and Father?

Mère et père?

There are Aldi , FarmFoods , and Lidl stores allover the M62 corridor so most , if not all , of the items you list , should be available to him at very reasonable prices should he choose to move to the north of this fine country of ours .
Furthermore . Blackpool , Morecambe . Skegness , Scarboro and Bridlington etc have some fine beaches where you often see people on surfboards .

You've tried trolling this groundless line under a different user name in the past. It was as poop then, as it is now.