To be fair, there is one crucial difference between the stuff in the Aus press and the T&A piece.

While the Aussies seemed a bit vague on detail and said Orford was going to ask for a release, the T&A piece says he actually HAS asked for a release. It firms up all the speculation and I think we can resign ourselves to him leaving now.

im going to batter orford for this

You will have to get past his mummy first.

I doubt you could batter a fish.

Dead right. I understand that the so called severity of his shoulder injury that he insisted could only be rectified in Oz is now in question and that the "remedial" operation he had there was minor, and one that could have been done easily at the Bulls expense in the UK.

rlMimis groundedrl

[i"SFX hotshot George Mimis has spent the past two days stuck in Los Angeles and was last night desperately sweating on a return flight. Several clubs are keenly waiting for Mimis to return, none more so than the Eels, who want to know if they have nabbed Mimis's client Matt Orford."[/i

Complete this phrase;

George Mimis is a.....

(I'd like to just put a line of ****'s but I suspect I'd have to put, ...good agent for his clients, and his clients only....)