Storm's $1m offer for Matt
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2005 9:18 am
From todays Hearld Sun.
Will it come true????????????
Storm's $1m offer for Matt
By PETER BADEL
13feb05
MELBOURNE Storm is confident of re-signing key playmaker Matt Orford after offering a deal that could net the halfback $1 million.
Storm will meet Orford, 26, and his manager, George Mimis, this week and expects to have the halfback signed before the opening-round match against Newcastle on March 13.
Orford won't become a free agent until July 1, but Melbourne is desperate to secure the playmaker before he is bombarded by big-money offers from rival clubs.
Storm will table a three-year deal. After a magnificent 2004, Orford is one of the most sought-after players in the NRL and could command a minimum $300,000 a season.
"This is a great time to do it. We're very confident we'll have Matt Orford signed up by the start of the season," Storm recruiting chief Peter O'Sullivan said.
"We're progressing pretty well, we've indicated we want to know where Matt sits by the start of the year, and we'll meet this week to get a clearer answer.
"Matt is happy here. He's played the best footy of his career at Melbourne, he's come a long way here. He's now in the top echelon of halfbacks and we think we've had a lot to do with him getting there.
"Obviously, he wants to do the best he can financially, but our offer's on the table and it's now up to Matt to make a decision."
Orford, a Gosford junior from the NSW Central Coast, signed a one-year deal with Storm last season as he awaited a decision on whether the Central Coast would become the NRL's 16th team in 2006.
But with the NRL delaying any expansion for another year, Orford accepts he may never play for his home region and is reluctant to sign another short-term deal.
But Mimis said it was still too soon to say it was a done deal with Storm.
"Matt is certainly happy in Melbourne and he'd be happy to stay there," he said. "But that's not to say he won't have a look at the market."
Storm will also begin talks with hulking three-quarter Matt King, who made Country Origin selection last year in his first full season of first grade.
Will it come true????????????
Storm's $1m offer for Matt
By PETER BADEL
13feb05
MELBOURNE Storm is confident of re-signing key playmaker Matt Orford after offering a deal that could net the halfback $1 million.
Storm will meet Orford, 26, and his manager, George Mimis, this week and expects to have the halfback signed before the opening-round match against Newcastle on March 13.
Orford won't become a free agent until July 1, but Melbourne is desperate to secure the playmaker before he is bombarded by big-money offers from rival clubs.
Storm will table a three-year deal. After a magnificent 2004, Orford is one of the most sought-after players in the NRL and could command a minimum $300,000 a season.
"This is a great time to do it. We're very confident we'll have Matt Orford signed up by the start of the season," Storm recruiting chief Peter O'Sullivan said.
"We're progressing pretty well, we've indicated we want to know where Matt sits by the start of the year, and we'll meet this week to get a clearer answer.
"Matt is happy here. He's played the best footy of his career at Melbourne, he's come a long way here. He's now in the top echelon of halfbacks and we think we've had a lot to do with him getting there.
"Obviously, he wants to do the best he can financially, but our offer's on the table and it's now up to Matt to make a decision."
Orford, a Gosford junior from the NSW Central Coast, signed a one-year deal with Storm last season as he awaited a decision on whether the Central Coast would become the NRL's 16th team in 2006.
But with the NRL delaying any expansion for another year, Orford accepts he may never play for his home region and is reluctant to sign another short-term deal.
But Mimis said it was still too soon to say it was a done deal with Storm.
"Matt is certainly happy in Melbourne and he'd be happy to stay there," he said. "But that's not to say he won't have a look at the market."
Storm will also begin talks with hulking three-quarter Matt King, who made Country Origin selection last year in his first full season of first grade.