Source :- THE AGE NEWS
Mark Nawaqanitawase’s management have been assured “fullback money” will be available to the superstar winger if he returns to the NRL and develops into a top-level No.1.
And if he doesn’t, he will still be able to count on about $1 million a season as the best-paid winger in rugby league.
We revealed last week there have been positive talks between the Roosters and Nawaqanitawase’s management about the star returning to league after his two-year rugby stint with Japanese side Saitama Wild Knights. A significant part of those discussions related to a possible change of position from wing to fullback.
We have also been told by the NRL that they are firmly of the belief that Nawaqanitawase will be back in the 13-man code in two years.
The Roosters believe he is worth much more than any other winger in the game. Nawaqanitawase’s management are interested in him filling the fullback role when Roosters champion James Tedesco retires. But the club is keen to get him back as the best-paid winger in the history of the game.
He won’t be short-changed if he suddenly becomes a world-class No.1. The view now is that Nawaqanitawase’s best position is as a winger, but given his incredible ability, they would never rule him out as a potential fullback.
“Mark is the best winger in the world right now,” Roosters chairman Nick Politis told this column. “We were blessed to have had Daniel Tupou, so we know the standard.
“We love Mark. We love his family. He will be paid like the best. We want him back, and we are confident he will come back.”
Mark of a champion
Still on Nawaqanitawase, four-time Roosters premiership-winning coach Trent Robinson has made the stunning admission that he had been confused as to how to coach the winger who has transformed the position forever.
Robinson says he has never seen a winger like Nawaqanitawase and admitted his impact on the Roosters has been similar to the one made by Sonny Bill Williams, who joined the club in 2013 and led them to a premiership.
Some judges even thought Nawaqanitawase deserved to win the Clive Churchill Medal as the man of the match in the Roosters’ 19-18 grand final win over the Knights last Sunday.
Reflecting on Nawaqanitawase’s two-try performance in the decider, Robinson said: “For Mark, it was normal for him to do that in the game, but the impact that he has on the wing has never been seen before.
“It was really special to watch [him] change the way that wingers can play the game. I’ve seen some of the best players of the last 20 years. The way that the wing position has changed … he has changed it.
“I loved watching Wendell Sailor play or, you know, Brett Morris, or those sort of players. But then you go to Mark, who … it’s not based on a position. It’s based on a freedom and experimenting, and all of that that he brought to the wing was really special. We haven’t seen it before, and it’s hard to coach.
“It’s because it’s hard to get someone to that level. He has to have it already. To coach a young player to say, ‘Do things that other players don’t do’ or ‘Take risks like he does’ … yeah, it’s not an easy path to coach someone.”
So how do you do it?
“I don’t, he brought that with him. Our job was to unlock it,” Robinson admitted.
“He walked in the door with it. It was just allowing him to play that way. But to get someone to play that well … it’s all the basketball that he’s played. It’s when the action finishes at training, he will chip, he will grubber, he will flick. He won’t just throw the ball back to the play-the-ball.
“He will always experiment at the end of a play. Sometimes that’s frustrating for coaches and sometimes it’s not … but he’s constantly experimenting and it comes off a lot more than I’ve seen before.
“I’ve had this before when someone’s changed the shape of the club. Sonny Bill did the same and, you know, we worked to get him back in ’14 and then again in 2020.
“Mark, he’s an adventurer. He’ll go off and go to Japan and he might go other places, but I’d like a couple of those stops to be back here at some point.”
Bondi sands
While on Robinson and the Roosters, his idea of each player bringing sand from Bondi Beach and sprinkling it on Accor Stadium at the captain’s run before the grand final was amazing.
It was a nod to the community his team was representing and to those who lost their lives in the alleged terrorist attack at Bondi on December 14, 2025 which resulted in the deaths of 15 people.
It shows what a deep thinker and community-conscious individual Robinson is.
The sand was gathered by a Roosters employee’s son and placed in jars for each player to spread over an area of the ground where they wanted extra assistance on game night.
Robinson is a self-confessed hippie. He explained to me that the quartz in the sand carries intent. It’s something that resonated with every player, and it brought the team together as much as the Kokoda track walk they did in the pre-season.
“On that trip we learnt about working together in twos and working as mates and that was a big part of our year,” Victor Radley said after the grand final.
It’s incredible how these kind of themes bring teams together.
Some have questioned Robinson’s reputation as a coach, pointing to the fact he has a near Origin-strength squad at his disposal most years.
It’s a simplistic argument that ignores the ability of the man who has coached the Roosters to a fourth title. It overlooks the themes and inspiration he drives as the team’s leader.
“I think it comes with the territory,” he said of the criticism. “If you wish that didn’t happen at the Roosters, then you shouldn’t be here. So the underdog status doesn’t come often to the Roosters. But then also the people making those comments don’t realise how hard it is as well.”
Perth Bear the brunt
Anthony De Ceglie was warned by this column some weeks ago that his job as the chief executive of the Perth Bears was on the line – and that may explain why he has been making subtle inquiries about the possibility of a job at the Nine Network.
It’s being said that De Ceglie resigned from his position. Bluntly, he had lost the support of the board, who wanted him gone at the start of the week.
De Ceglie didn’t have a great rapport with many of his colleagues, but one of the final straws was the addition of gold in a Bears logo in their “out of hibernation” clothing range.
The gold outline on the logo was seen as a direct reference to the “gold” of Western Australia, and it matched the gold of their main sponsor, Cash Converters. Bears tragics were furious, as the black, white and red colours of the club were viewed as sacrosanct.
There is still pressure on Bears head coach Mal Meninga, who recently went rogue by declaring the club was interested in signing Latrell Mitchell, contrary to the view of the recruitment committee.
Meninga and assistant coach Ben Gardiner are also still not seeing eye to eye. That puts pressure on both men.
Momentary laps
Did one of rugby league’s great traditions die last Sunday night?
The Roosters players seemed to forget or ignore the lap of honour as a group and instead did their own thing after their victory. Players went to family and friends. But as far as a group lap went, we didn’t see one.
Halfback Sam Walker was surprisingly subdued after the game. He was heading for the tunnel shortly after full-time. I told him most of his team were still seeing family or friends, so he poked his head back out of the tunnel.
When I interviewed him, it was like he’d just had a club win. Clearly it had not sunk in.
Tupou’s farewell not a shock to teammates
Right on full-time in the grand final, there was an emotional moment between Daly Cherry-Evans and Daniel Tupou. It was a clear indication that the Roosters players – or at least some of them – knew what the rest of the code didn’t: that the veteran winger was set to announce his retirement.
“Yeah, we had an idea that was coming,” skipper James Tedesco said. “It wasn’t a total surprise.”
Abdo court out of grand final
Ex-NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo was a noticeable no-show at the grand final. He was invited as the former boss of the NRL, but had tennis commitments and couldn’t attend.
Classy Kangaroos
There is plenty of class in Australia’s World Cup playing group. And there was a nice nod to some recent Kangaroos greats.
The Kangaroos’ training bibs show some familiar names: Johns, Lockyer, Cordner and Smith. Legendary players and leaders in the green and gold. It’s a nice touch.
Shark loves his league
Australian golfing royalty Greg Norman was sourcing his own tickets for the grand final when NRL boss Peter V’landys intercepted his request.
Norman is an old-school league man.
“I have not been to a game in 20 years or so … it’s great to be here,” Norman said.
I remember Norman attending a game in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2006 when Souths played an exhibition match against the Leeds Rhinos in the pre-season.
Norman arrived via a helicopter that day, with NBA basketball legend Dennis Rodman also in attendance. I interviewed Norman then and he was enthusiastic about the code.
On Sunday night, Norman was the star attraction in the NRL box, which also featured South Sydney die-hard Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
V’landys made a speech during the evening and made special mention of the best-loved guest – Charlotte Driussi – the daughter of Bulldogs chairman Adam Driussi. She has had significant health battles and has come through the other side.
Bulldogs general manager Phil Gould is going to employ Charlotte in the club’s growing AI department.
New TV dominates NRL HQ
V’landys is certainly putting his mark on the NRL. This giant TV has been installed in the foyer of rugby league HQ. If you doubted the importance of television to the game, you won’t any more.
He is also in the process of installing a giant football at the front entrance. Welcome to PVL land.
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