NRL legend Wally Lewis has slammed Manly’s club culture and the attempts to drag Daly Cherry-Evans’ name through the mud.
It comes after the Sea Eagles halfback shocked the NRL world last week by revealing he plans to play next year at a different club, and even sensationally turned down a $1.5m two-year offer from Manly, tabled to him minutes after he announced he would be leaving.
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In the aftermatch Cherry-Evans turned down Manly’s revised offer and while he insisted it would be a civil split, in the days that followed it appeared it will be anything but.
It led many to claim Cherry-Evans’ Sea Eagles legacy has been ‘tarnished’, suggesting he cares far more about money than loyalty.
After that and several other nasty claims, Cherry-Evans said he had become a target of a ”nasty” smear campaign.
And in an explosive rant on Monday, Lewis said the Cherry-Evans saga is atypical Manly, who he says has a history of attempting to destroy the legacies of players who choose to leave the club.
“When you put somebody up who has had a wonderful past but has a question mark over their future it just invites all the experts to come out and sink the boot in,” Lewis said on Wide World of Sports’ QLDER.
“A lot of people will suggest that that’s Manly. It’s what happens at the Silvertail territory. (But) they do that to all of their players. They love them while they’re there and when they go, they really do put that boot in.
“(Manly need to) get it out of the way and stop it (from) affecting every game. It is putting even more pressure on DCE.”
Lewis’s comments come after Manly legend Mark Carroll stuck into the wantaway No.7.
“As a former Manly player, I am really disappointed in Cherry-Evans’ actions,” Carroll wrote in an online column for The Nightly.
“I know a lot of ex-Manly players feel the same way but are unwilling – or unable – to truly voice their opinion.
“And I’d be surprised if a number of his current teammates aren’t filthy with him, although they are toeing the line and saying the right things publicly. I know I’d have the sh**s if I were them.
“To turn around and announce on live television you’re quitting the club that has given you a sh**load of money and set you up for life is piss poor form in my book. I think it will tarnish his legacy on the northern beaches.”
Former NRL star James Graham also called out Cherry-Evans for caring more about money than the club.
“He (Cherry-Evans) says he felt disrespected because Manly didn’t go up to the level of remuneration he expected and therefore felt disrespected,” Graham said on Triple M’s Sunday Sin Bin.
“But what that says is it is all about money and the fans don’t want to see that.”
Graham also said he believes Cherry-Evans’ actions have “ruined” their premiership window.
“He signed a mega-mega deal in 2015. Has he got them anywhere? Has he got that team anywhere?” Graham continued.
“So with that in mind when we go to these last two years, this season, next season and maybe the season after they could be in a potential (premiership) window.
“But I think this year’s gone. He’s ruined the opportunity for this year, in his last year of a deal.
“And if he went ‘Maybe I owe this club a little bit, maybe if I don’t chew up over a million dollars that helps the club recruit in other areas or keep key players’.”
The Roosters and Dolphins are understood to be keen on Cherry-Evans services.
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