DISGRUNTLED Sea Eagles star Anthony Watmough is expected to be granted an immediate release this week, enabling him to join Parramatta next season.

The Daily Telegraph can reveal the majority of Manly’s retention committee is now comfortable with Watmough leaving a year before his contract expires.

The decision still requires the endorsement of head coach Geoff Toovey, but that would appear highly likely given the three other committee members — Dave Perry, Steve Gigg and David Warwick — are not inclined to block Watmough from going immediately.

media_camera Anthony Watmough in action for the Sea Eagles against the Eels.

The committee is expected to have further discussions over the next 48 hours, prior to an announcement closer to the weekend.

The only sticking point is how much Manly are willing to contribute towards Watmough’s salary for next year.

Under his back-ended Manly contract, Watmough was due to earn $970,000 next year. The inflated pay day is due to $300,000 worth of bonuses that have been deferred over the course of his previous three years at Brookvale. Manly are contractually obliged to pay Watmough the entire amount, regardless of whether he stays or goes.

However, Parramatta have been under immense salary cap pressure and will struggle to contribute a significant sum toward Watmough’s contract next year. It’s understood the total payout from Manly could go as high as $350,000 — still leaving the NSW Origin back rower $620,000 short on what he stands to earn on the Northern Beaches in 2015.

Even with a raft of third party deals, Parramatta are no chance of making up the shortfall. The alternative is to back-end the difference across the remaining seasons of Watmough’s new Eels contract, which could now be as long as four years.

media_camera Anthony Watmough during a Manly training session.

Turning 31 in a fortnight’s time, Watmough is confident that he can continue until the end of 2018 and possibly become rugby league’s most-capped Australian first grader. He has already made 286 NRL appearances — just 69 short of the 355-game record that’s held by Broncos great Darren Lockyer.

Aside from his displeasure with the club’s treatment of good mate Glenn Stewart, Watmough fell-out with Sea Eagles officials over their refusal to offer him a three-year extension in July. Manly wanted to secure him for life with a two-year extension worth $1.2 million, but the local junior was adamant that he wouldn’t contemplate anything less than three years.

A life member of the club who debuted in 2002, he felt he was worthy of a handsome final contract and was also sensitive after Stewart’s departure, as well as that of prop Brent Kite to Penrith a year earlier.

If the figures add up, Manly could have as much as $600,000 worth of additional breathing space under their salary cap next year.

The clear priority would be props, with only a relatively small fraction of their cap invested in front rowers Brenton Lawrence, James Hasson and Josh Starling. Co-captain Jason King has also retired, leaving the Sea Eagles another man short up front.

The extra space could also be used to front-load new deals for halves Kieran Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans, both of whom the Sea Eagles are desperate to keep beyond the end of their deals next season.