One of the first things Kieran Foran did when he was appointed to the Manly coaching staff was phone good friend Daly Cherry-Evans.
Rugby league’s worst-kept secret – Cherry-Evans joining the Sydney Roosters – is expected to be confirmed in the next few days, but that did not stop Foran putting in the call to the most capped Sea Eagle of all time just to see if there was any chance he would return to Manly.
“When we spoke, I said, ‘How about a backflip, Chez’, and he just laughed,” Foran said.
“I don’t know what will happen. I do know he wants to play on, and he will, 100 per cent he will.
“But I told him it would have been lovely to finish his career at Manly. He really deserved that.
“For one reason or another, he wants to go in a different direction. We don’t know what that direction is, but it will be the best thing for him and his family, and as a mate, I’ll always support him.
Kieran Foran will play his last game of rugby league in Sunday’s Pacific Championships final.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
“Kingy [new chief executive Jason King] has now come on board. Kingy and Jamie Lyon were huge influences on me in terms of leadership. Kingy was a wonderful talker, and you always thought he’d go on to bigger and better things in the football realm.
“It’s great he’s got the job. It would have been nice to have ‘Chez’, but it’s not to be.”
There is a sense the band is getting back together on the Northern Beaches with premiership winner Foran returning as an assistant coach, former captain King as CEO and even the appointment of Nathan Gibbs as chief medical officer.
Cherry-Evans failed to strike a deal with former chief executive Tony Mestrov, but with Mestrov’s departure, and with the Roosters’ deal yet to be made official, there was nothing stopping the halfback having a change of heart.
Kieran Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans with the NRL trophy in 2011.Credit: Janie Barrett
As 36-year-old Cherry-Evans prepares to play on, Foran, who produced his best football in the halves with “DCE” at Manly, including collecting he 2011 NRL premiership, is 80 minutes away from finishing his wonderful career.
Sunday’s Pacific Championships final between New Zealand and Samoa at a packed CommBank Stadium will be the last time Foran runs the ball in anger.
Despite feeling physically and mentally fresh, Foran said it was better to bow out 12 months early than leave it too late.
“I’m done, and I feel as though the timing is right for me,” he said. “It’s nice to go out playing some good footy, and feeling like I’m doing what I need to do for this footy side. I’m at peace with my decision. I’ll certainly miss it.”
What has made Foran’s job easier the past two games is playing behind a strong Kiwi forward pack, featuring James Fisher-Harris, Joe Tapine, Moses Leota and Naufahu Whyte.
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