Manly chief executive David Perry is confident Daly Cherry-Evans’ decision to re-sign with the NRL premiers will help the club keep their other big-name players.
Cherry-Evans put pen to paper on a lucrative upgrade to his current deal on Friday, believed to be worth in the region of $500,000 per season that will keep him at the club until 2015.
Perry admitted is was a huge relief to keep the star halfback, who requested a release from his contract this month, after talks to replace his previous agreement, which paid him just $85,000 per year, stalled.
“It was a difficult deal to get done, but we are very happy to keep Daly and I think it shows to all of our supporters that we can keep our players,” Perry told AAP.
The positive news is much-needed for the club, following the acrimonious departure of ex-coach Des Hasler which overshadowed the Sea Eagles’ brilliant 2011 campaign and grand final win.
Perry said high among the club’s next priorities was to tie backrower Tony Williams to a new deal and also convince five-eighth Kieran Foran to remain at Brookvale.
However, if the pair remain, it could see star fullback Brett Stewart look elsewhere to seek the reported $600,000 a year he’s seeking in what would be the 27-year-old’s last big contract of an injury-hit career.
Perry refused to be drawn on whether Williams, Foran and Stewart had started talks with the club, but did admit that Cherry-Evans’ decision to stay could have a positive impact on his teammates.
“I hope so,” he said.
“Daly and Kieran are close on and off the field and we see them as the future of the club.
“The reality is that we cannot keep everyone, but we will be doing our best to ensure we give it our best shot.”
Cherry-Evans’ manager Gavin Orr said the commitment from the club to keep the core of last year’s grand final side was the deciding factor in why he wanted to remain.
“He wanted to stay at Manly but wanted to know that others will too,” Orr told AAP.
“He was given some undertakings by the club that they were trying to keep players and, once we sat down with the board and worked things out, he was happy to show his commitment to them.”
The new agreement puts Cherry-Evans on par with the likes of Johnathan Thurston, Billy Slater and Greg Inglis as one of the top earners in the game.
Orr denied asking for a request was a case of him playing hard ball, but felt the new agreement was in line with his standing in the game.
“I just wanted to see what was out there and wanted to ensure Daly got a deal that represented his market value,” Orr said.
“He’s doing the business on the field and the new contract reflects that.”
