Chris Rattue: Keeping Maloney key to bright future

James Maloney. Photo / Getty Images

The future is here for the Warriors and hopefully it won't slip away.

It comes in a pint-sized package of 80kg - to mix the imperial with metric - named James Maloney.

He's a running, kicking and passing machine - the No6 the Warriors have waited so long for.

Having emerged from the mill via Parramatta and Melbourne, the 24-year-old Maloney is perhaps an unlikely star, although anyone who gets the Storm interested is worth checking out.

Maloney has gone from the fine print to the headlines in just over a year, starring again as the Warriors clung on against Newcastle on Sunday then crushed them in the final stanza.

The Warriors have hit bull's-eye with Maloney, and clubs across the ditch must be wondering how he got away.

Over the coming days, weeks and months, the club's ability to secure the five-eighth on a long-term deal will play a massive part in determining their future.

Every contending club needs a star in the halves - Brisbane have Darren Lockyer, Wests Benji Marshall, Melbourne Cooper Cronk, the Cowboys Johnathan Thurston, and St George Jamie Soward.

The most significant part of Maloney's game is his outstanding kicking, because an erratic history in this department has been an eternal handbrake against the Warriors' aspirations.

Maloney is secured until the end of 2012 but he must be seen as a long-term centrepiece in the Warriors' plans.

Loitering menacingly in the background is the otherwise welcome news that the NRL is to increase the salary cap significantly - something that Southern Hemisphere rugby league desperately needs.

But this could muddy the contract waters for a while. Player managers - those who must be obeyed - might be reluctant to negotiate any big deals until they know what the new financial horizons are.

That aside, Maloney is in a position to take the mantle once held by Stacey Jones in the Warriors halves.

After an excellent debut season for the Warriors in 2010, there was concern he might suffer a second season fade. The arrival of Feleti Mateo even seemed to threaten his place.

But he has brushed the doubts aside.

Signing Maloney long term is critical to the Warriors' future - on past evidence they won't get many opportunities like this again.

His performance against Newcastle was further confirmation that the playmaker the Warriors have needed for so long has arrived.

On the flip side, Brett Seymour looks a bit sluggish in the No7 jersey. His future looks far less certain.

Doubting Cleary

A few weeks ago I questioned the wisdom of retaining Ivan Cleary after the Warriors' awful start to the season. I'll happily become a Cleary convert, and munch cheerfully on my words, if the current win-loss ratio can be maintained.

I'm still not entirely convinced about their title claims, but Cleary's troops are playing some terrific football and their defence has been outstanding in the final stages of matches. And the really good news is that Manu Vatuvei, the number one strike weapon, has still to hit top gear.

NETBALL: BRUTAL HONESTY

Teammates and opponents marvel at the skills of Casey Williams and the Kiwi netball star gets a gold star for her honesty in assessing this Sunday's transtasman final between the Queensland Firebirds and the Northern Mystics.

The Magic defender didn't bother with any patriotic hogwash when she evaluated the prospects for the final - the Firebirds "are on fire" and will win, she said.

Which is only stating the obvious. The Firebirds are unbeaten, have home advantage and New Zealand has never won the title. The portents aren't good for the Mystics.

RUGBY: OUT BY A HAIR

Mystery of the month: how did the Cheetahs' blockbusting loose forward Ashley Johnson miss out on the 51-man preliminary Springboks as they prepare to defend the World Cup?

Methinks he may be a tad too fancy for that tough Bok coach Peter de Villiers, who claims slap-dash Sonny Bill Williams is bad for rugby union.

The wild-haired Johnson should do himself a favour and get back to rugby union's core values, the mysterious tablet of stone the Bok coach used to beat Sonny Bill over the head with. Johnson might start by getting down to his barber and ordering a short back and sides - that's what a Springbok forward should be all about.