Losing KP was the beginning of the end

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KEVIN Pietersen's joy was so obvious it was a surprise his typing fingers didn't punch a hole in his phone.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS! I JUST CANNOT! But well done Bangladesh! You deserve it."

That now famous tweet was not written by a man whose prime emotions were anger or disappointment.

It was by a man bursting with the everlasting satisfaction of knowing that however modest England were with him they were simply atrocious without him.

A cynic may suggest that it also shows why he was left out in the first place.

That England's failure was his success. To Kev, it's always been about Kev.

But he is not the first discarded star to feel this way and the deeper issue is England's failure to handle and harness him.

Most star teams have a maverick player. Genius often comes in quirky packages.

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Down through the generations there were times when players moaned it was all about Flintoff or Botham or Bradman or Warne and how they seemed to play by different rules, which of course they did.

The trick is learning how to manage them and England never got there.

But back to that later.

England needed a character like 'KP' for his campaign. Picture: Darren England. Source: News Limited

Trying to list the full reasons behind England's World Cup demise is like detailing the cause of the GFC. It's a long and complex story.

The failure of their coach Peter Moores to inspire the side proves once and for all that there is a difference between a successful county coach whose job it is to rouse a group of pliable professionals and an England coach who has to be a big time thinker and tactician and motivator.

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The fact that Moores said he would have to look at the data to explain England's poor performance is like the captain of the Titanic saying he would have to check flow charts to see why his vessel sank — mate, you hit a frickin' iceberg!

The choice of Eoin Morgan as a captain was a disaster. His batting form was terrible and even his permanently anguished demeanour, which resembled a man with a serious wind problem trying not to show it, radiated bad vibes for his team.

England captain Eoin Morgan after his side were knocked out of the World Cup. Source: Getty Images

His refusal to sing the anthem was a hollow one for a team craving zest and sparkle they could never find.

In terms of charisma, Winston Churchill he ain't.

When long time captain Alastair Cook was dropped just before the Cup many felt it was overdue.

Cook may not be a sabre-rattling captain but he is a strong man and a reliable leader of men. They missed him.

Good teams tend to be noisy trainers. They laugh. They joke. The pull pranks. England's training sessions were so quiet and spiritless it was as if they were taking place in the state library.

But Pietersen's exit was the torpedo midships.

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Pietersen may be hard to handle but he did captain his country and play more than 250 games for England. It's not as if they were trying to handle a great train robber.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan, a fine leader of men, handled Pietersen best by realising early on there were several essential elements in dealing with him.

Pietersen's forensic thirst for information meant he had to be given as much as possible about any issue that concerned him.

Also, he needs to be listened to and respected.

That was about it really. Other superstars have been managed equally effectively.

You might think Shane Warne would have been tough, but early on Mark Taylor solved everything by being brutally firm with him to the point where an umpire once asked whether there was any on-field sledging replied "just the normal between Tubby and Warnie.''

But they somehow clicked.

When Warne became a superstar and went on a team bonding camp he was initially banned from taking a carton of cigarettes before he told organisers "if they don't go neither do I.''

Sometimes you have to be pliable. Firm sticks can just break in two — just like England this campaign.

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Titans text message: pool game or drug deal?

Titans NRL club stars Greg Bird and Dave Taylor have pleaded not guilty to drugs charges on the Gold Coast.

A CASUAL invitation to a game of pool at a suburban pub is at the centre of allegations a Gold Coast Titans player was involved in supplying cocaine.

With the five Titans involved in the cocaine scandal still yet to be returned to the club's active roster, The Courier-Mail can reveal a key plank in the Crime and Corruption Commission case against Kalifa Faifai Loa relates to a casual mention of a Gold Coast tavern.

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Text messages with alleged code words and hidden meanings are central to allegations against several of the eight past and present Titans facing charges of supplying cocaine.

Their lawyers labelled the allegations weak and want the charges thrown out and the players reinstated immediately.

Titans NRL player Kalifa Faifai Loa appears in Southport Court on drugs charges. Pics Adam Head Source: News Corp Australia

Faifai Loa, a former New Zealand and Samoan Test player, faces one count of supplying cocaine after the CCC allegedly intercepted text messages about Treetops Plaza at West Burleigh.

Titans NRL club stars Greg Bird and Dave Taylor have pleaded not guilty to drugs charges on the Gold Coast.

He allegedly sent a message saying "Meet me at the Treetops Plaza in Burleigh".

It will be alleged other messages related to meeting at the shopping centre's tavern to play pool – which the CCC will allege was code for a drug deal.

As well as being a part of pool games, an "eight ball" is also street slang for a quantity of cocaine weighing about 3.5g and worth over $1000.

Faifai Loa's lawyer Campbell Maccallum said the allegations were "wildly speculative".

Allegations against reigning Titans player of the year Beau Falloon include references to a text message saying "Our season starts now", while other players allegedly sent messages to accused cartel kingpin John Touma featuring references to various varieties of wine.

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Touma, whose drug trafficking case returns to Southport Magistrates Court today, once ran a wine distribution business.

Meanwhile, the Titans team announced on Tuesday for this weekend's NRL round featured none of the players facing charges.

The Titans board has already been briefed of the case against the players and hopes to make a decision on their immediate playing future within days.

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Kent: Focus on the bigger picture

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WHEN it comes to short turnarounds, nobody knows the pressure time can bring better than the kids at The Children's Hospital, Westmead.

They live in a world where their daily actions really are, far too often, matters of life and death.

They know all too well that what they have today could be gone tomorrow, and it could be everything. Second chances don't always come around. 'There's always next week' isn't always a choice.

Des Hasler at Bulldogs training in Belmore. Picture Craig Greenhill Source: News Corp Australia

Yet for reasons we never seem to learn many of these kids could teach us a thing or two about what's important.

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They accept their plight with a matter-of-factness that staggers those of us who worry over looming deadlines, or interest rates, whether my God is better than your God.

Or wins on the football field.

Perhaps better than anybody they know life is to be sucked dry. That true joy is often the small things, laughter on cold afternoons, a hug from mum, or something as simple as an afternoon without real pain.

Rugby league has always been a strong supporter of sick kids.

The Charity Shield has been raising money for sick children since 1982.

Just last week Manly players visited children at Stewart House, which helps children who have a little less than most of us.

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And this week Parramatta play Canterbury in what has in recent years become the Bandaged Bear Cup.

It will be the Bulldogs' first home game and a cut from the gate will go to the hospital to help the children.

For very good reasons the Bulldogs wanted to publicise the game as broadly as possible. They thought back to what Parramatta did last year when it was the Eels' home game and Parramatta asked if some Canterbury players could join them at the hospital. So the Bulldogs thought the best way to promote Friday's Cup was to again get players together with the kids.

You have no idea how much the kids look forward to this.

Last year Tim Mannah joined Josh Reynolds and there, in real life, were full-blown NRL stars. This was laughter on a cold afternoon and a hug from mum all wrapped up in one.

So Canterbury called Parramatta and asked if the Eels would join them at the hospital.

Brad Arthur rearranged his side's training schedule so his players could visit The Children's Hospital. pic Mark Evans Source: News Corp Australia

The call from Canterbury came as a short inconvenience to Parramatta coach Brad Arthur. He was not expecting it, so he had Parramatta's week all planned out.

There's nothing new in that. Every club has a strict schedule depending on whether it is a five, six, seven, eight, nine or 10-day turnaround between games.

Never mind, Arthur changed the schedule.

So the Eels would have a full day training on Monday and have a lighter day on Tuesday, with players training at 12.30pm before going off for individual work or, for some, heading to the hospital.

Then Canterbury called back. The Bulldogs had changed plans.

Coach Des Hasler was worried, the Eels were told, about the short turnaround.

Given Canterbury played Penrith last Sunday and have just five days to get ready for Parramatta on Friday Hasler, the Eels were told, didn't want his players going to the hospital.

Five days, he couldn't spare a couple of hours.

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The Eels were a little annoyed, mostly because they had shuffled their week to help out Canterbury and the Dogs now refused to be inconvenienced.

What they did not waiver on, though, was visiting the children.

On Tuesday Darcy Lussick, Semi Radradra and Tepai Moeroa headed to Westmead to visit the children without a Bulldog in sight.

Little Taleigha-Rose Musico has been quarantined this past week. She is four years old and was born with half a heart and when she got a virus, after surgery just before Christmas, there was nothing good about it.

Until the Eels turned up.

"She's all dressed and excited," mum Emma Musico said.

"Loves them."

The Bulldogs have since said they might send a player later in the week and you can be sure they will after today, and will insist they always intended to.

But that doesn't make it right. The game is important and winning is important, we all know that.

Parramatta Eels visit the The Children's Hospital at Westmead for Bandage Bear Cup game against the Bulldogs. Pic Brett Costello Source: News Corp Australia

Of less consideration is rugby league is a game where parents entrust their children to NRL clubs from an early age, knowing the great influence clubs will have on their boys but letting them go anyway with a kiss and a hope that the club will not only continue developing them as footballers, but as young men.

On Tuesday, one club delivered on that unspoken promise.

They gave the kids at the hospital something they all need, a boost, and without even realising got a little something for themselves, too.

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Cats give Hartman ‘indefinite break’

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YOUNG Cat Brad Hartman will take an indefinite break from football to deal with a range of personal issues.

The 20-year-old will return to live with his family in South Australia where he will weigh up his football future over the coming months, after his parents met the club yesterday morning.

Geelong football manager Steve Hocking confirmed late yesterday that as a result of the meeting, Hartman had been granted time out of the AFL program to work through "some personal challenges".

"He has been working with a psychologist and that will be ongoing moving forward," Hocking said. "This is about more than football. It is about educating Brad to make better choices and to help him figure out what does his future look like.

"At this point of time, it is important for him to spend time with his family to assess his options."

Brad Hartman celebrates a Cats win with fellow first-gamer Darcy Lang. Picture: Colleen Petch Source: News Corp Australia

Hartman, who comes from an elite basketball background and was taken by the Cats at pick 77 in the 2012 national draft, showed rapid development last season and played five AFL games.

But he returned to Simonds Stadium after the off-season break not meeting certain fitness markers set by the club.

And there was also an incident in December while driving home in South Australia, where he was charged with failing to stop at a stop sign after he allegedly clipped a parked car.

That incident has left Geelong's $250,000 sponsorship deal with the Transport Accident Commission hanging by a thread.

Hocking said the leadership group sat down with him upon his return to the club.

Brad Hartman in action against Hawthorn last season. Picture: Michael Klein Source: News Corp Australia

"They (the leadership group) set certain standards but Brad has found it difficult to meet those," he said.

"From day one when he got to the club, Brad has suffered from homesickness. It comes and goes, but when he does go back home (to Murray Bridge), when he first gets back, that yearn to be back home is particularly difficult for him."

Hocking said the club would continue to work with Hartman, with player welfare officer David Johnson set to fly to South Australia periodically to keep in personal contact with Hartman and his family.

"His teammates will also stay in touch with him, he has strong friendships here," Hocking said.

"At this stage, we will reconvene with Brad towards the end of March with myself, David Johnson, his manager and his family, and we'll also have the psychologist involved.

"If Brad is feeling like he wants to play AFL, then we will try to draw a map from there as to what the next few months look like. If not, then that is fine, and we will continue to work with him in transitioning to the next stage of his life.

"In the past month, he has been enrolled in a course involved around teaching and he has been really engaged in that and has enjoyed that. He may go away and say 'I want to pursue a career in teaching' or he may want to try and do both.

"Either way we will be here to support him in those decisions."

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Manly ready to release DCE to Titans

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DALY Cherry-Evans' future at Brookvale is untenable with Manly bosses contacting the Titans to discuss a compensation deal that would deliver him to the Titans this season.

The Courier-Mail can reveal Manly's recruitment-and-retention committee is prepared to explore a player-trade as the Sea Eagles begin planning for life after Cherry-Evans.

In the latest twist to the Cherry-Evans affair, the Titans have fielded a call from a Sea Eagles representative offering the playmaker's services for this season.

Manly have contacted Daly Cherry-Evans over a possible release. Source: Getty Images

The Test half-back is due to launch his Titans career next year, but the Sea Eagles are ready to broker an immediate severance package featuring benefits for both parties.

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Manly chairman Scott Penn says Cherry-Evans remains in the club's plans, but won't stand in the playmaker's way if the Titans are willing to discuss an exchange of players.

"If the Titans came to us and said, 'We want Daly early' and there is a deal to be done, we would certainly look at it," Penn said.

"As of today, Daly is firmly part of our plans for this year ... but having said that, it doesn't mean that's how it plays out."

Asked if Manly will consider compensation in the form of a player-swap, Penn was unequivocal.

"Yes that's certainly an option," he said.

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"There is multiple options, but the news is still fresh and we have a game to play on Saturday night. The most important thing is that if a deal (to release Cherry-Evans) is done, it is done behind closed doors and doesn't affect our play on the field.

"We are open to that scenario. We are in the market right now and if the Titans have some opportunities within the club, we will talk to them."

Ideally, the Titans would take Cherry-Evans tomorrow, but one impediment to an expedited transfer is the club's salary-cap position.

The Gold Coast would have to outlay around $500,000 to accommodate Cherry-Evans this season — funds the Titans can only free-up by offloading a number of big-name stars.

Besieged duo Greg Bird and Dave Taylor, currently fighting cocaine-supply charges, face uncertain futures at the Titans. But it is understood coach Neil Henry is a fan of both and would oppose any moves to jettison the pair to fund Cherry-Evans' immediate purchase.

Titans NRL player Greg Bird appears in Southport Court facing drugs charges. Pics Adam Head Source: News Corp Australia

And while the Sea Eagles have been linked with Titans rookie Kane Elgey, Gold Coast hierarchy are hopeful Cherry-Evans can mentor the under-20s half-back ace next season.

However, it is clear Manly powerbrokers are ready to cut a deal, with Penn underscoring frustrations with mid-season departures by calling for a transfer window.

"It's not a good look for the game for players to sign six to 12 months in advance and we need to do something about it," he said.

"There is a risk your heart is not in it and we need 100 per cent from every one of our players every week.

"If there is a risk that is not possible, then you are better off releasing them earlier.

"Daly is a professional at heart. The expectation is that he will play out the way with us, but it doesn't mean that's how it plays out."

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Titans CEO Graham Annesley was tight-lipped on Tuesday on the prospect of Cherry-Evans joining the Titans in the coming weeks.

"Daly is currently contracted to Manly and I'm not prepared to say or do anything that could be interpreted as an attempt to destabilise another club's playing roster," he said.

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Watching England lose never gets old

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YOU didn't have to be from Bangladesh to mark it down as the most enjoyable moment of the World Cup.

Watching the England cricket team sink without trace, especially when playing in Australia, is one of sport's purest pleasures — and it never gets old.

It is, of course, unsportsmanlike and disrespectful to say so, but, hey, that's the way it's been for nearly 150 years of one of the world's most passionate sporting rivalries — and it works in reverse, too.

That's why the derision being heaped on the heads of the poor old Poms diluted the applause for the east Asian battlers, who have never had a finer moment.

Bangladesh fans celebrate their team's win over England. Source: AFP

The Bangas may have been sold short. This was the third time in four one-dayers they have knocked England off, and just as Ireland, with a faint air of indignation, declared their defeat of the West Indies was not an upset, this may have been no aberration either.

England's embarrassment is acute. There will not be enough back doors to sneak through when they get home a fortnight ahead of schedule.

We might be chortling here, but as always the worst savaging has come from their own camp followers.

Sir Ian Botham said a week ago they were the worst one-day side England had ever fielded, and predictably Geoffrey Boycott couldn't get stuck in hard enough.

England the Adelaide Oval after their loss to Bangladesh. Source: Getty Images

"They're not as good as some think they are," Boycott wrote. "Most have been in denial, kidding themselves they have been unlucky, but it is impossible to be unlucky all the time."

He said heads must roll, a response of which the English were fond of hundreds of years ago. There has been no shortage of seconders.

If it was no laughing matter in London, it was in other unlikely places.

Someone in Malaysia tweeted: "When can we play them?"

And from Japan: "Dear ECB_cricket, this might not be a great time but as there is room in your schedule, fancy a game in Japan on your way home? #challenge"

Having been whitewashed 5-0 the last time they were here, English cricket is again in disarray a few months ahead of the next Ashes battle, so some big decisions loom.

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Not least will be a rethink, surely, on exiled batting star Kevin Pietersen, who spent the first half of the summer making good runs in the Big Bash League and then repaired to a Caribbean resort to watch — with barely disguised amusement — the disaster unfold.

And that's what it was. In five matches England have beaten only winless Scotland and cannot be considered cast-iron certainties against Afghanistan on Friday.

In 11 attempts they have never won the World Cup, losing the final three times, and since the last of those, in Melbourne in 1992, six tournaments have produced only five wins against Test nations.

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This was one of the worst denouements because Bangladesh tried hard to throw away the win with a simple dropped catch and some ordinary death bowling.

They were rescued by a magnificent final four balls by their best quick, Rubel Hossain, who bowled fast, full and straight — a simple strategy that doesn't get employed often enough.

They will now almost certainly play their quarter-final against India at the MCG tomorrow week in front of a huge crowd in a pulsating atmosphere.

It's not what Melbourne was expecting — but it might be a better spectacle than England could have been relied on to produce.

ron.reed@news.com.au

Twitter: @Reedrw

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Alonso to miss Australian Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso has been ruled out of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. Source: Mark Thompson / Getty Images

TWO-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso will miss the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne after suffering concussion in a crash in testing.

"Fernando's doctors have recommended to him that, following the concussion he sustained in a testing accident at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on February 22nd, for the time being he should seek to limit as far as is possible any environmental risk factors that could potentially result in his sustaining another concussion so soon after his previous one, so as to minimise the chances of second impact syndrome, as is normal medical procedure when treating athletes after concussions," McLaren said in a statement. "In order to limit those environmental risk factors, specifically, his doctors have advised that he should not compete in the imminent Australian Grand Prix meeting, which will take place on March 13th, 14th and 15th.

"Fernando has understood and accepted that advice, and the two McLaren-Honda cars will therefore be driven in Australia by Fernando's teammate Jenson Button and the team's test and reserve driver Kevin Magnussen." The 33-year-old Spaniard crashed into a wall at the track in Barcelona when he ran wide on the final day of the second pre-season test and had to be air-lifted to hospital under sedation.

Alonso spent three nights in hospital before being released and as a result sat out the final testing session in Barcelona last week so as to rest and recuperate at home in the northern Spanish city of Oviedo.

McLaren remain hopeful that Alonso will be cleared to race in the second Grand Prix of the season in Malaysia on March 29. "Fernando's doctors acknowledge that he feels fit and well, and that he regards himself as ready to race, and, that being the case, they are comfortable with the fact that he has already recommenced physical training, with a view to preparing for a return to the cockpit of his McLaren-Honda car for the Malaysian Grand Prix meeting on March 27th, 28th and 29th," the statement continued. "Indeed, his doctors are supportive of that ambition, satisfied as they are that he sustained no damage whatsoever during his testing accident on February 22nd.

"All at McLaren-Honda fully support Fernando's decision in respect of his doctors' advice." Alonso has only just begun his second spell with the Woking-based team after an ill-fated one-season stint in 2007 when McLaren were expelled from the constructors' championship and fined a record $US100 million ($127.86 million) dollars for spying on confidential technical information from Ferrari.

On top of Alonso's crash, McLaren have endured significant reliability problems in testing with their new Honda-powered MP4-30 car.

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Typo has Thurston at sixes and sevens

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MICHAEL Morgan has staved off Lachlan Coote to win the Cowboys fullback spot as coach Paul Green revealed a team-sheet "typo" was behind Johnathan Thurston's shock naming at five-eighth.

Green appeared to have pulled another selection switch with Thurston when the Maroons champion was named in the No. 6 jumper for Saturday night's clash against the Roosters.

Thurston finished the second half of 2014 in the No. 7 jumper, and it appeared Green had conjured another selection surprise when he installed Robert Lui as halfback for Round 1.

Michael Morgan has beaten Lachlan Coote to the Cowboys fullback spot for round one. Source: Supplied

But Green assured Cowboys fans Thurston would remain in the No. 7 jumper, saying he would investigate how the Test star appeared at five-eighth in an official team list sent to the NRL.

"It's a typo," Green told The Courier-Mail on Tuesday.

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"I don't know who made the error and I'll be working out who made the mistake.

"But there's no tactical change, 'Johnno' will be playing in the No. 7 jumper and Robert Lui will be our five-eighth."

Green also maintained the status quo with the versatile Morgan, whose grip on the fullback spot appeared to be slipping after Lachlan Coote threw down the gauntlet in pre-season.

Returning from a knee reconstruction, Coote wore the No. 1 jumper in two trials against the Broncos and Titans and made it clear he had his heart set on claiming the fullback spot.

But Green said Morgan's outstanding form last year in the backfield was a factor in his difficult decision to leave Coote out of his 19-man squad.

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"That (Morgan's efforts in 2014) certainly came into consideration but it was also Cootey's form this year," he said.

"I'm not saying Lachlan was bad, but he's only played six games in two years, he's been out for 12 months and it will take him a bit longer to get back to his best.

"In pre-season, I wanted to get some footy into him without the pressure of the NRL.

"It was a tough call, but Cootey will play a part in our season at some stage, no doubt about it."

In other selection news, Storm recruit Justin O'Neill beat Kyle Feldt to a wing spot, while at hooker Rory Kostjasyn did well to hold off Jake Granville, who will play off interchange.

Up front, Broncos import Ben Hannant has clinched a starting spot at the expense of James Tamou, who is recovering from neck surgery.

"I have the luxury of picking on form," Green said. "It's up to guys who get that chance to keep it too because they have quality players underneath them."

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Benny’s bolter to take on Rabbitohs

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BRONCOS bolter Aaron Whitchurch overcame two years of heartache and an ugly contract spat to help launch Wayne Bennett's new era against Souths tomorrow night.

As revealed by couriermail.com.au, Bennett has taken one of the biggest gambles of his 27-year career, naming Whitchurch as his bench utility for Brisbane's showdown with the premiers at Suncorp Stadium.

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Sam Thaiday and Aaron Whitchurch at Red Hill. Picture: Annette Dew Source: News Corp Australia

Eighteen months ago, the 22-year-old was warned by doctors he might never play rugby league again after a spinal operation which saw him cut adrift by the Broncos.

When Whitchurch was thrown a lifeline by Bennett at Newcastle last year, only for the Knights to renege on the deal, he was entitled to fear his NRL career had hit a dead end.

But tomorrow night, Whitchurch is the poster boy for Bennett's Broncos resurrection, ousting Kodi Nikorima for the final spot on Brisbane's interchange bench.

The 100kg powerhouse played the last of his three NRL games in 2012 and has been rewarded by Bennett for fighting back from his medical and contractual sagas.

Whitchurch's manager Sam Ayoub last night detailed the contractual spat that left the former Australian Schoolboy in limbo and considering legal action against the Knights.

Wayne Bennett at Brisbane Broncos training. Picture: Darren England. Source: News Corp Australia

"Wayne was actually keen to sign Aaron to Newcastle," Ayoub told The Courier-Mail.

"Unfortunately, there was a shameful backflip by the officials there, but thankfully Aaron has hung in there and now he has the reward he deserves.

"We'd agreed to terms. Wayne was keen on him, but when we requested the contract to sign, the Knights never sent one.

"His family wanted to seek legal action, but Aaron didn't want that. Thankfully, the planets have aligned and he has been reunited with Wayne at the Broncos."

With his speed and robust frame, Whitchurch is capable of playing wing, centre or back row. He won major credit points during the Broncos' pre-season military camp, where Bennett was impressed with Whitchurch's attitude, leadership and team-first ethos.

As a teenager, Whitchurch was one of Queensland's hottest talents, scoring the Maroons' first ever try in the maiden under-20s State of Origin clash in 2012. But shortly after, he suffered a back injury which cost him a Broncos contract and crippled his career.

Aaron Whitchurch in action for Redcliffe Dolphins. Photo by Andrew Seymour. Source: News Corp Australia

"The doctors told him it was very unlikely he would ever play NRL again," Ayoub said.

"After the operation, he didn't want to risk getting injured again, he was about to get married and was going to focus on a career as a landscaper.

"But Aaron was always a committed kid and we knew he had the ability to bounce back if he was given the opportunity.

"As a junior, he was a standout. There's a saying you never forget how to ride a bike and Aaron never forgot how to play football."

Bennett backed Whitchurch to handle his Souths baptism, saying last night: "He's a great young talent, I'm really pleased for him."

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Merrin relegated to the Dragons bench

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PENRITH-bound prop Trent Merrin has been relegated to the Dragons bench for Monday night's season-opening clash against Melbourne.

Just 24 hours after announcing he would quit the Dragons at the end of this season to take up a lucrative three-year-deal — believed to be worth $750,000 a season — at the foot of the mountains, Merrin was named as part of a six-man Dragons bench for the WIN Jubilee Oval clash.

Trent Merrin listens to Wayne Bennett during NRL All Stars training at Runaway Bay. Pics Adam Head Source: News Corp Australia

Instead of NSW Origin star Merrin, coach Paul McGregor has opted for new recruit and cult hero George Rose to make a shock start alongside Leeson Ah Mau in the front row.

ROUND ONE TEAMS: SUPERCOACH ANALYSIS

ROUND ONE TEAM ANNOUNCEMENTS

For the Storm, Cameron Smith has been named to make his return, despite battling an ankle injury.

Jordan McLean, who was involved in the tragic tackle on former Knights forward Alex McKinnon last year, has been named at prop.

In other round-one team news:

● DANNY Wicks, who spent time behind bars for drug trafficking, looks like he will have to wait another week for his NRL return despite being named on a six-man bench for Parramatta. Wicks has also been named in Wentworthville's NSW Cup side;

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● SOUTH Sydney coach Michael Maguire named a seven-man bench for the premiers' opener against the Broncos tomorrow night, including new recruit Tim Grant and in-form rookie Chris Grevsmuhl; and

● SHAUN Fensom lines up for the Raiders, which is a remarkable feat given knee surgery was expected to keep him out until May.

Cronulla skipper Paul Gallen will play, with Ben Barba and Michael Ennis stepping out in the club's colours the first time.

Gallen said of the Raiders, who travel to the Shire on Sunday: "They're an underrated side, they've got really big, strong forwards, and some really good outside backs who are on the edge of playing Origin.''

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