With Daly Cherry-Evans’ Origin future now decided, it’s time for the veteran Manly skipper to come clean on his club future.
There is no denying it has been a huge disruption for everyone at the Sea Eagles going all the way back to round three, when DCE first announced he’d be leaving for a new home in 2026.
But the fact is it continues to hang over the club like a dark cloud, and it’s surely an unnecessary distraction as Manly walks the tightrope to play finals this season.
It would be especially frustrating for his teammates given everyone knows he’s eventually going to end up at the Roosters anyway.
So why does DCE continue to drag it out like it is some kind of top-secret CIA project?
You can only assume it’s a selfish motivation, instead of the skipper leading the way with a team-first attitude and doing what is best for everyone at the club that has paid his bills for the past 15 seasons.
His form has been inconsistent all year and his performance in the golden point loss to the Knights summed up it up perfectly.
After a masterclass last round in Manly’s win over the Broncos, DCE again started fast against Newcastle to guide Manly to a 16-0 halftime lead.
But it was like he took off his Manly hat and slipped into Origin mode at the break, because he then went missing when his team really needed him when the match was on the line.
If Cherry-Evans had of closed out the game it would have made it almost impossible for Slater to drop him.
As it turned out, it confirmed why it was the right time for Slater to make the tough call.
It’s worth remembering Queensland’s loss in game one came on the back of consecutive defeats to lose last year’s series.
