Jason Ryles was mowing the lawn at his South Coast home when the phone call from Parramatta came through. The deal was done a few hours later.
While Parramatta were doing their due diligence on Jason Ryles, the prospective coach was doing some homework of his own.
Mimis’ comments resonated with Ryles, who after a comprehensive assessment of the Eels’ credentials, was ready to walk away from an understanding with Melbourne chairman Matt Tripp that he would one day take over from Craig Bellamy at the Storm – if he ever hangs up the clipboard. However, there has long been a belief within the Parramatta organisation that a disconnect between the team and the club was holding them back.
In a recent chat with Ryles’ former St George Illawarra coach Nathan Brown, the veteran mentor laughed when asked if he saw a future coach in Ryles two decades ago.Not because the former prop didn’t have the footy IQ to transition into coaching, but because the fiery temperament of players like Ryles led to Brown losing his luscious, curly locks.
The Eels hierarchy listened as Ryles spoke to them about his coaching journey, which began in 2012 when he turned down a mid-season holiday as a player at the Storm to help Dean Pay coach the likes of Alex McKinnon, Boyd Cordner and David Klemmer in the inaugural NSW under-20s team. The Eels, out of respect for Smith and everything he did for the club in a previous life, listened to his pitch but didn’t believe a trip back to the future would be beneficial for a club looking to end the longest active premiership drought in the league.
The Eels, with their roster, pathways system and community fan base, ticked all of his boxes. Club officials, however, wanted to know if he ticked all theirs.