Tweet
THE force of nature otherwise known as Willie Mason is expected to hit Sydney next week and he will immediately be on the hunt for a new NRL club.
Yet there's already a slight hitch - nobody wants him.
Mason effectively threw his hands in the air himself yesterday when he tweeted this as he prepares to leave the south of France: "When I get back in oz I'm gonna get a bidding war between coogee dolphins and wombats going I'll go for 2 pies and 3 powerades post game." Vintage Mase.
As revealed in yesterday's The Daily Telegraph, the former Bulldogs, Roosters, Cowboys and Hull KR forward has been cut loose by French rugby side Toulon after just one match and two pre-season friendlies.
He has told friends he is likely to return to the eastern suburbs - where he has a heavily mortgaged house in Clovelly - next week after payments from Toulon suddenly stopped coming.
Indeed, Mason has been nagging well-known sprint coach Roger Fabri via social media that he wants him to condition him when he returns. Alas, almost every club in the NRL contacted yesterday said they had no interest, even if Big Willie had told this newspaper last month: "Fortunately there are some coaches out there who still think I have a lot to offer."
Some officials scoffed at the idea. Some thought if any club would pick him up, it would be Cronulla, which showed last year it was prepared to throw five-eighth Todd Carney a lifeline.
Sharks officials confirmed last night they had no interest in bringing Mason to the Shire.
For months, the word on the grapevine has been he will make a stunning return to the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs keep saying that is rubbish.
That's not to say he won't end up somewhere.
When Mason does return, embattled player manager Sam Ayoub will shop him around, because regular agent Greg Keenan is not accredited to do business in the NRL.
If he does sign with a club, there will be none of the telephone-number like figures he was on at the Bulldogs or the Roosters.
Try five figures, at best, as a club would most likely have to squeeze him into their second-tier salary cap.
Mason's greatest selling point, though, could be his ability to sell.
"Willie can talk the talk," said one official from one of his former clubs. "He could sell oil to the Arabs."
Yet there's already a slight hitch - nobody wants him.
Mason effectively threw his hands in the air himself yesterday when he tweeted this as he prepares to leave the south of France: "When I get back in oz I'm gonna get a bidding war between coogee dolphins and wombats going I'll go for 2 pies and 3 powerades post game." Vintage Mase.
As revealed in yesterday's The Daily Telegraph, the former Bulldogs, Roosters, Cowboys and Hull KR forward has been cut loose by French rugby side Toulon after just one match and two pre-season friendlies.
He has told friends he is likely to return to the eastern suburbs - where he has a heavily mortgaged house in Clovelly - next week after payments from Toulon suddenly stopped coming.
Indeed, Mason has been nagging well-known sprint coach Roger Fabri via social media that he wants him to condition him when he returns. Alas, almost every club in the NRL contacted yesterday said they had no interest, even if Big Willie had told this newspaper last month: "Fortunately there are some coaches out there who still think I have a lot to offer."
Some officials scoffed at the idea. Some thought if any club would pick him up, it would be Cronulla, which showed last year it was prepared to throw five-eighth Todd Carney a lifeline.
Sharks officials confirmed last night they had no interest in bringing Mason to the Shire.
For months, the word on the grapevine has been he will make a stunning return to the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs keep saying that is rubbish.
That's not to say he won't end up somewhere.
When Mason does return, embattled player manager Sam Ayoub will shop him around, because regular agent Greg Keenan is not accredited to do business in the NRL.
If he does sign with a club, there will be none of the telephone-number like figures he was on at the Bulldogs or the Roosters.
Try five figures, at best, as a club would most likely have to squeeze him into their second-tier salary cap.
Mason's greatest selling point, though, could be his ability to sell.
"Willie can talk the talk," said one official from one of his former clubs. "He could sell oil to the Arabs."
Comment