Tremendous. Leader. Marquee.
Given the adjectives Gold Coast coach Neil Henry is using to describe Manly star Daly Cherry-Evans, there appears no doubt the Titans are poised to go all out to lure the 25-year-old back to Queensland.
Cherry-Evans is off-contract at the end of the 2015 NRL season, with his availability sure to spark an intense bidding war across the competition.
Titans officials including Henry met Cherry-Evans at a Sydney restaurant last week in what the Gold Coast coach describes as "encouraging" talks.
Desperate for a major playing signing following a tumultuous 12 months, the Titans are reportedly set to offer a club record $3 million, three-year deal to the Queensland and Australian representative.
If true, the offer would dwarf the four-year, $1.6 million deal offered to Scott Prince as the Titans' inaugural marquee signing ahead of their NRL entrance in 2007.
Henry says no formal offer has been tabled but it's clear Cherry-Evans is a major target in his plans.
"Being a Queenslander and State of Origin player, certainly the club would look at trying to move him up here," Henry said.
"He would be tremendous for us. He's certainly an experienced player now. He's got great leadership and he can get a team around the park.
"He's certainly worth looking at. Whether or not we can table an offer that his management are going to be happy with remains to be seen."
Manly will obviously be desperate to retain Cherry-Evans but, with halves partner Kieran Foran also off-contract, there are doubts over whether the Sea Eagles can keep both stars.
Parramatta and Cronulla are also reportedly interested in the Mackay product.
Should Cherry-Evans sign with the Titans, it would be a huge vote of support for chief executive Graham Annesley's rebuilding of the embattled club, who almost folded due to near bankruptcy in 2012.
Henry said Cherry-Evans had been impressed by the club's new start and had indicated it was something he would be keen to be part of.
"They've (talks) been as encouraging as they can be," he said.
"He's got a number of clubs interested in him.
"Not sure of timeframe for his decision - we'd like a resolution to it but, at the same time, we've got our halves here.
"We need to get on with our season but, in the background, we can do some negotiations."
Share
