It’s not likely that Ivan wrote a cheque to the Tigers as an escape fee. He is said to have had the amount absorbed in his Penrith contract to compensate the Tigers for his early departure. It cost him a lot to make the switch to chase his dream of coaching his son. Loading The move west has taken a considerable toll on Ivan and his family. Nathan is the most unflappable of young men, but he was affected. He got off social media at the time and he has decided against renewing a deal with Fox Sports that tied him to making comments for the network. When I spoke with Nathan at the start of the season he said there was one particular line of criticism that had particularly irked him. ‘‘It was pretty tough watching what was being said ... it would be hard for anyone,’’ Nathan said.

‘‘Itwas probably hardest on my little siblings and my mum because they were not used to that scrutiny. Me and Dad are used to it. It’s the game that we play and we have to take it on the chin. ‘‘There was one article which said that he was un-Australian for what he was doing. Obviously, I don’t agree with that, but you just have to move forward.’’ Nathan is delighted his dad is onboard. ‘‘The trust between player and the coach is hard to find, but we have that,’’ he said. ‘‘In saying that, it’s almost made it harder for me because everything I do I want to impress Dad. There is probably more pressure on me now, but ... I am learning about that as I go and I have to just keep working hard on my game.’’ Sweet 16: TV will decide NRL’s future Fans worrying about whether their clubs will be caught up in the expansion debate should rest easy: it isn’t going to happen.

The television networks will determine the optimum number of teams in the competition, and they believe that number is 16. Loading The NRL has already been forced to squeeze the eighth game of each round into the unpopular 6pm Friday slot when most people aren’t even home from work. Where they would put a ninth game if the competition was expanded to 18 teams is anyone’s guess. People are suggesting games in Perth would be a good idea. The free-to-air networks would not support a game on Sunday night when they are airing premium shows. And here is the kicker: the NRL would also have to come up with an additional $26 million a year to fund two teams, money that simply won’t be forthcoming in the next television deal. Many within the NRL fear the next TV deal will be smaller than the present one.

The expansion furphy was thrown up by Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter Beattie, who initially supported it, then said it was too hard, then put it back on the agenda. Commissioners have confided that expansion has not been on their radar and are bemused by the public discussion. If it’s being pushed from within the NRL to get a reaction, it has worked. It has also stopped us talking about the tsunami of off-field drama. Expansion – or making clubs relocate – is the most emotive topic the game has. Beattie has shown with his string of gaffes, including his recent social media greeting to the late Laurie Nicholls, that he doesn’t have a great grasp of the game’s history. He was focused on getting the Queensland trains to run on time when fans marched the streets in 2000 demanding that Souths be reinstated. The truth is the NRL would love a second team in Brisbane. But that will only happen if a Sydney team collapses.

See you in court The NRL has more than a month of court-room drama coming its way. Jarryd Hayne’s case will be in court on Wednesday, while Jack de Belin returns on April 17. Both are facing aggravated sexual assault allegations. Day in court: The Jarryd Hayne case will turn attention again to the NRL summer of shame. Credit:AAP

Tyrone May returns to court on May Day, May 1, after being charged with filming and disseminating sexual acts with two women without their knowledge and consent. Dylan Walker is in court on May 10 to face charges of common assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The summer of shame is a long way from being over. Best of friends? For many years, the so-called football whisperer, Joe Wehbe, and his buddy, player agent Isaac Moses, were as thick as thieves. So many of Moses’ clients swore by Wehbe that there was a push from Moses at one point for Wests Tigers to sign Wehbe as a mind guru. Wehbe has been publicly praised by the likes of James Tedesco and Daly Cherry-Evans, and some coaches have allowed him to play a role at their club. But there is a problem looming: a case is listed in the NSW supreme court next month where Wehbe’s company is up against Moses’ company. It may be news to some of the players Moses represents that he had a business relationship with Wehbe.

We will learn more about that if they air their dirty laundry in court. We have been told that a number of Moses’ players are looking for new agents. Another sad demise Friends of ex-Kangaroo and Maroons star Brett Dallas are not surprised with his recent court appearances. One of his former teammates alerted me to his bizarre behaviour a couple of years ago.

He left his family about eight years ago and has been mixing with a bad crowd. Those close to Dallas say he has been in rehab half a dozen times. Drugs have been his issue. Fall from grace: Brett Dallas back in his days as a North Sydney Bear. Credit:Sydney Morning Herald This week he pleaded guilty to stealing four pairs of board shorts, an SD card and portable charger. He’s a long way from the red-haired, baby-faced flyer who wowed fans with North Sydney and Canterbury in the 1990s.

Bulldogs Pay up Loading The Bulldogs started making noises about re-signing coach Dean Pay after we said he was under the pump a few weeks back. We have nothing against Pay. By all accounts he is a very decent bloke. But players have questioned whether he is better suited as an assistant coach. We heard early in the week that Pay was about to have his deal extended. Countless calls to Canterbury chief executive Andrew Hill went unanswered. Then, at 2.38pm on Friday, we sent Hill a text. Just over an hour later the club announced Pay would be in charge again in 2020.