Gould has sought the advice of the man who managed him, Wayne Beavis, and he has thrown his support behind the move. Gould helped recruit Beavis his biggest star, Brad Fittler, and others as he built his business. Now Gould is going to start from scratch. It’s an amazing move given he could have gone into coaching or run a club. Instead he thinks the management of players needs to be done differently and has seen a gap in the market. Beavis has retired and there are other agents, including Isaac Moses, who are facing sanctions from the NRL. Moses was issued with a breach notice in December asking him to “show cause why his accreditation should not be suspended or cancelled”. There are also rumours long-time agent Steve Gillis may sell his business, while other well-established agents are considering retirement in the next few years. Gould would be pitted against established companies and individuals such as SFX (George Mimis, Paul Sutton and Darryl Mather), Sam Ayoub, David Riolo, Allan Gainey and Chris Orr but thinks he can carve out his own market share.

Gould will also seek to manage players from other sports, celebrities and media figures. Mitchell was on the brink of joining Bulldogs Souths got a bargain when Latrell Mitchell committed to the club eight months after this column broke the story that the Roosters feared he was bound for Redfern. His $600,000 contract is considerably less than he could have earned anywhere else. But the truly unlucky club to miss out on Mitchell was the Bulldogs, not Wests Tigers. The Bulldogs distanced themselves from the Mitchell negotiations early on, but this column was told time and again that there were ongoing meetings. In fact, we were told that on November 21 that Mitchell shook hands with the Dogs to say that he was joining the club.

Loading Clearly that didn’t happen. And the Bulldogs ‘‘non-interest’’ ran out a couple of weeks later, leaving Mitchell with no option but Redfern. The Rabbitohs say Mitchell is on the right track fitness wise and they are already positioning their salary cap to secure him to a long-term deal. Burgess deal nearly cost Richo his job We told you last year that Sam Burgess was feeling unloved by South Sydney as he dealt with a marriage break-up and fears his career could be over. Throw in his ‘‘kangaroo court’’ comment about the NRL judiciary and he felt the world was against him.

Souths’ head of football, Shane Richardson, wore the brunt of Burgess’ feelings – but it was misplaced. Richardson had taken flak from within the club after he signed Burgess to a long-term deal when his body was busted. Leading the charge against Richardson was chairman Nick Pappas, who felt the club should have been more thorough before finalising the contract. Loading The deal was completed after Burgess had been medically examined, and it was done when the Broncos had a five-year offer on the table for the star Rabbitoh. In the end, it was a new injury that ended Burgess’ career and, fortunately for Richardson, Souths were able to get his contract off their salary cap. But the damage is lasting. Pappas wanted Richardson to go, but the board voted heavily in favour of retaining him. It leads to the question: can Pappas stay as chairman given his stance? Pappas has many friends at the NRL and is said to be keen on a start with the ARL Commission. That may be his future. Richardson has a contract until 2022.

Endangered Shark Josh Dugan may never say it out loud, but be assured he thinks there are people at Cronulla trying to paint him in a bad light. He is convinced the club wants to get rid of him. With that in mind, it’s hard to see anything but an ugly end to the relationship. There are those at the club who think he is not putting in, that he doesn’t want to play. He has missed training sessions. If Dugan was a valued member of the team, he would be allowed to take weeks off to try and get himself right. Former representative star Josh Dugan is feeling very much unloved at Cronulla. Credit:Jon Veage He has told people he is on his last legs; his knee is arthritic and he has cartilage damage. The club believes his knee is sound. A specialist has urged Dugan to rest for a month and then consider surgery. A payout may be on the cards and that could provide the Sharks with some cap relief over the next two years.

Gone to the Dogs Josh Addo-Carr has been linked to the Roosters and Rabbitohs, but if he doesn’t end up at the Bulldogs in 2021 it will be a surprise. They have the cash he is after. There is also the thought from Canterbury officials that he could be the face of the club. Shire straits Despite assurances no Sydney club would be relocated, the NRL is keeping a keen eye on the Sharks as they stumble towards a new season with no chief executive, no licensed club, a borrowed home ground and problems in the playing ranks. Unfortunately for Cronulla, senior figures at Rugby League Central have long believed the Sharks are more at risk of folding than any other club. It would be a godsend for the NRL as it could replace the Shire club with a second Brisbane team, which would substantially boost the value of the game’s broadcast rights. It could also stage a game at Suncorp Stadium every weekend, leading to a significant increase in attendances and television ratings.

On January 7, Richard Munro became the fifth CEO to depart the Sharks in seven years. He followed Bruno Cullen, Steve Noyce, Lyall Gorman and Barry Russell, who have all come and gone since 2013. Loading Cronulla fans made it clear on social media they believe the problem lies with the board. There is talk of a clean-out at the upcoming elections. The problem for the Sharks is they are running out of time. They have closed their licensed club for 18 months while they redevelop the leagues club and have taken the unusual and expensive step of spending millions buying a golf club, which still isn’t open to fans. The Sharks have opted to play the next two seasons at Kogarah while the renovations are completed, which will undoubtedly lead to lower attendances and revenue. On the field, the Sharks are facing an uphill battle this year after losing a host of talent and experience, including Paul Gallen, Matt Prior, Jayden Brailey and Kyle Flanagan, among others. They are struggling with their salary cap to the point where there has been talk of offloading leading players.

It all shapes as a perfect storm for a club that has traditionally struggled. The difference this time is the NRL, despite its denials, will grasp any opportunity to take the franchise north. Clearing the air Fox Sports revived the famous Controversy Corner program last year with Graeme Hughes in the hosting role made famous by the late Rex Mossop. It did reasonable numbers on a Sunday and then survived a move to Mondays, but Hughes has been told he is not required for this year’s show. He never had a comfortable relationship with some members of the panel and those close to the veteran broadcaster say that may have played a part in his demise. Hughes would not comment about that or his relationship with any of the panellists. Fox Sports deny there was any issues with any panellist. Bill Harrigan, the best ref the game has seen, also mysteriously disappeared from the show and was replaced by the very watchable Geoff Toovey. Andrew Voss will be the new host.