Round-13 rule unlucky for some Monday's Expert Josh Papalii has waved goodbye to the Raiders, but reportedly now wants to stay in Canberra. Photo: Colleen Petch All indications are Josh Papalii wants to be a Canberra Raider next year. And if that's on the money, the contract saga between the Raiders and Parramatta will get a whole lot uglier before it gets better. Talking to people behind the scenes, my gut feeling has been the 20-year-old wants to stay in the capital, despite signing a three-year contract with the Eels last month. I'll put my credibility on the line and say the Raiders are favourites to keep him. When Papalii decides, possibly as soon as this week, every party involved, including the man, will have some serious explaining to do. The Eels have revealed they have sought legal advice on what action to take should Papalii stay in Canberra. It's a clear message they know he's having second thoughts and they are readying themselves to wage war on the Raiders. There's no doubt the Raiders are fuming at the way it's been handled and will go on the record with their grievances, should Papalii walk. Parramatta are almost certain to do likewise, should Papalii perform a backflip. Reliable sources have said Papalii informed the Raiders he signed the Eels deal because he was informed of the round-13 loophole by his management. If true, he knew the option of staying in Canberra didn't evaporate as soon as his signature hit that piece of paper. Should he decide to stay with Canberra before the halfway mark of the season, the Eels deal is officially null and void. It's also been alleged Parramatta were encouraged by Papalii's manager, Col Davis, not to issue the media release trumpeting his signing because he was having second thoughts. They did so anyway, and Canberra feel it was a deliberate ploy to turn up the heat on Papalii. The Raiders also allege they were only informed that Papalii had signed a contract with Parramatta two weeks after the fact. Before Canberra's trial against Canterbury last Saturday, the day after the story broke, Papalii addressed the squad on the team bus and stated his desire to stay at Canberra. Papalii is certainly not an innocent party in all this. He will have to look the media and Raiders and Eels fans in the eye and explain why or how it has come to this. And the NRL need to look seriously at scrapping the round-13 clause. It's the worst rule in the game. Fans simply can't stomach a player turning out for their side one year, knowing he will be wearing someone else's colours the next. And what's stopping other players and managers from using the rule as a safety net, or virtual blackmail to force the incumbent club to match a rival's offer? Canberra are trying to bolster Papalii's contract through third-party deals, and that could also set a dangerous precedent. The Raiders did the same to keep fullback Josh Dugan, their highest-paid player. It has the potential to cause jealousy among teammates - an "if it's good enough for them, why not me?" mentality. Dugan's manager, Paul Sutton, is in favour of the abolishment of the round-13 rule. I think it's a bad rule. I'm a 'your word's your word' type of guy," he said. It doesn't matter if there's a rule out there saying you can change [your mind], I just think it's an honour thing, morals and integrity. It puts the player under unnecessary stress. You make a decision, back your decision and get on with it. Raiders chief executive Don Furner believes it's a case of "better the devil you know," and an improvement on the old June 30 non-tampering rule. "It gives the incumbent club every chance to retain their player," said Furner. It annoyed fans picking up the paper before a ball was kicked and seeing their player was going to another club. The idea of setting up a date and saying you can't have contract talks before that date, it was always getting broken. It's fanciful to try and pretend that people were sticking with those dates.