ST George Illawarra Dragons enforcer Tariq Sims’most recent contract negotiation was the simplest of his NRL career – and he did it by cutting out the middleman.
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Off-contract in 2019, Sims, from Gerringong, this week penned a three-year contract extension with the club that will keep him in Wollongong until the end of the 2022.
It was contract he, along with and wife Ash, brokered on his own behalf having done away with player mangers a number of seasons ago.
Given the tumult surrounding player contracts and transfers, fans could well hope more players follow suit, and Sims certainly has no regrets over going it alone.
“In the back end of my career my wife and I made the call to brush the player managers and represent myself,” Sims said.
“It's a tricky process and if you're not prepared for it it can hurt you in the back end but my wife's as smart as a whip and it was a great process. At times dealing with different clubs and people can get quite stressful but the Dragons were great.
“[Recruitment chief] Ian Millward was a pleasure to deal with and we've been communicating since round 20 last year. I obviously wanted as many years as I could but for them to throw up three years was outstanding.
“It's been a long process but I'm very happy with the outcome and very excited to commit for the next couple of years.”
The lengthy deal is reward for a stellar season from the Dragons reigning player of the year, who arrived mid-season in 2016 with his career seemingly at a crossroad.
That switch saw he, Ash and their two daughters living out of a two bedroom hotel room having made the instant shift from Newcastle. It's fair to say their future seems a whole lot more stable two years on.
“We were living out of a little two-bedroom hotel room across the road here [from WIN Stadium] while we were finding our feet,” he said.
“It wasn't the ideal situation, but for a coach like Mary [Paul McGregor] to hand select you and tell you that he's wanted to coach you from a young age, it held a lot of sway in where I would end up.
“It took a lot self-belief to walk into a club like this that was very competitive and pretty stacked for spots. I've always backed myself and I've always known what I can and can't do, I just really needed that coach to coax that out of me
“Now we're really, really settled the kids are in school the wife's working and it's very exciting times for us to have that stability in knowing where I'm going to be for the next three or four years.”
The deal sees Sims remain a key cog in the club's long-term plans, plans the 28-year-old is convinced are leading his towards the ultimate prize.
“I feel like we're within striking distance of that trophy in the next couple of years so [re-signing] was pretty much a no-brainer,” he said.
"Different players [contracts] are structured differently and different clubs are structured differently but the Dragons have done a lot to make sure we can keep the core group of players together because that's what it takes to win a premiership.”
One man tipped to become part of that core group is Eels half Corey Norman, who's set to confirm a switch to the Dragons as early as Friday after being released by Parramatta on Thursday.
Norman has long been linked to the Dragons, with Kurt Mann's release freeing up cap space to make a play for the talented play-maker's services.
The club's expected to announce the three-year deal as early as Friday with Norman likely to push for the No. 1 jumper given skipper Gareth Widdop's assurances that he'll be with the club in 2019.
He also shapes as the likely replacement should Widdop fail to see out the remainder of his contract that expires at the end of 2021.
It will see competition for spots heat up, something Sims is all for.
“If you've been around the game a long time you know when there's a lot of smoke and mirrors and you know when there's some truth to it,” Sims said of the reports.
“It's sad Kurt's left, he was a really important part of our team, but if that door closing opens up another one for Corey Norman to possibly come here and be part of a competitive team with the Dragons, great.
“I think it'll lift the level of intensity for a lot of players in the positions he covers, halves, fullback the centres because he's a great ball-player, he's a real competitive person and I think he'll really fit this style of rugby league.
“Playing under a coach like Mary and his staff, they draw the best out of players, and I think that's going to put a lot of pressure on positions but it's going to be a lot of healthy and good pressure.”