Sea Eagles captain Daly Cherry-Evans claims he just wanted what was best for the players in response to reports he was 'too aggressive in meetings' between NRL and RLPA over pay cuts.
Danny Weidler had reported on how the NRL did not want Cherry-Evans to be a part of the on-going meetings between the two camps.
"Cherry-Evans took the NRL on and asked them some really hard questions and it got to the point where they didn't want Cherry-Evans to be part of ongoing meetings," Weidler said onย The Big Sports Breakfast.
"No one will come out and say that is definitely the case, but he was considered too volatile and too aggressive for the players in a lot of ways with the stance he was taking and the passion he was speaking with."
Cherry-Evans has responded to Weidler comments, saying he wanted to ask the important questions, not cause ripples amongst others.
"Obviously people have to protect their own image and their own jobs in the game so I can completely understand if people need to protect themselves but I can assure you I didn't go in there with any agenda," Cherry-Evans said on Fox League Live.
"I just wanted what's best for the playing group and just felt as though I had to ask the questions that everyone was thinking. There's no bad blood there, if all this stuff that's coming out is true then that's fine, it's not going to stop me and my ways and what I'm trying to achieve."
When pressed by the Fox League Live panel, Cherry-Evans was forthright with what his questions were to the NRL.
"The first thing I wanted to understand was our financial position, why we were in that position as a game that we could only be offered two months of pay over the next seven months? I needed to understand why couldn't it be more. Why couldn't we take a percentage pay cut over the next months not just a big hit?
"The other thing I wanted to know, if we were going to make such a big decision I wanted all the financials laid out for us to see. Once you have clarity I feel you can make the best decisions moving forward."
Former South Sydney Rabbitohs captain Sam Burgess has applauded Cherry-Evans for taking such a strong stance but wants people to protect the longevity of the game, not their image.
"It's quite refreshing [to] hear someone stand up for what they believe in in the game, but I disagree with you there, I don't understand why people have to protect their image.
"What we've got to protect is the longevity of the game and the finanical secuirty moving forward."
