Cayless era ends at Parramatta

Parramatta will officially draw the curtain on the Nathan Cayless era at the NRL
club when they farewell him at a tribute dinner in Sydney on Saturday night.
Cayless, Parramatta's longest-serving captain, bowed out of the game this year after
14 seasons and is one of the most popular figures in Sydney's west.
The veteran of 259 games will be honoured by past and present Eels teammates,
members of the triumphant 2008 World Cup-winning New Zealand team Cayless captained
and South Sydney skipper Roy Asotasi.
Replacing the Wentworthville junior is an enormous task for incoming coach Stephen
Kearney, who coached the World Cup victory in 2008.
But as much as the Eels will miss his presence when they need someone to drag the
team upfield with bullocking runs, rising Parramatta prop Tim Mannah believes the
club will miss his influence off the field most.
"We're definitely going to miss Cayless," Mannah told AAP.
"Nath's definitely the kind of person who has a bit of an aura about him and his
leadership over the past ten years speaks for itself.
"He's been at the club for 14 years and as a captain he's definitely one of the best
there was.
"He'll definitely be missed, so we're going to be looking to Nathan Hindmarsh and a
few more of the senior players to fill that gap that he's going to leave."
Mannah blossomed in 2010 after Cayless took a particular interest in developing the
young front-rower, resulting in his Origin debut.
The 22-year-old is one of three players gunning for Cayless' treasured No.8
Parramatta jersey, with Eels recruit Carl Webb and fellow representative forward
Justin Poore fighting to start alongside New Zealand international Fuifui Moimoi.
The night, which is expected to attract a crowd of over 360 people to Doltone House,
will also feature speeches from Kearney, former Eels coach Jason Taylor and Alan
Jones.
A documentary of his career will also be shown, plus a performance by a haka group.
AAP