The Parramatta Eels are set to raise eyebrows, with the revealtion contract extension talks for Jason Ryles are ongoing.

Ryles is halfway through a four-year contract at the blue and gold, with the club coming off a season where they finished at the wrong end of the ladder.

Ryles was given a long leash early on with the Eels, where he has rebuilt the roster, and moved on a number of experienced players to build a squad he wants.

Some of the contract decisions in more recent times have left question marks dangling though, with Jonah Pezet joining on a one-year deal for 2026, and Jarome Luai for 2027.

The Eels have, regardless, performed well below expectations, although they haven’t been helped by an injury toll that has bordered on the worst in the competition at times.

Despite the fact Ryles has another two years to run on his four-year contract, and plenty of suggestions he is under pressure, it has been revealed by The Sydney Morning Herald that the Eels have actually begun talks over a deal that would keep him in the west of Sydney until the end of 2028.

While no other clubs are in the process of getting ready to make a poaching raid on the Eels head coach, it’s understood the club want stability when it comes to moving forward, and Ryles is the man they believe will bring eventual success.

The Eels, in the midst of a 40-year premiership drought, are understood to have already held two meetings with Ryles’ management, although it’s unclear how far progressed those negotiations are.

Ryles, who had one of the game’s best apprenticeships under Craig Bellamy and Trent Robinson, was always thought of as a potential successor in the Victorian capital, but it now appears that is off the table with Bellamy likely to hang up the clipboard at the end of 2027.

The Storm are yet to make a call on which way they will go long-term, although have suggested more than once that they want someone who knows the ins and outs of the club to take over from one of the game’s most successful ever coaches.

Ryles will be undoubtedly under pressure to bring better results to the Eels’ success-starved fan base in 2027.

Luai’s arrival gives him a representative calibre halves combination, although there are still major question marks over the forward pack and outside backs.

The Eels have brought in Jaydn Su’A alongside Luai for 2027 and have a talented crop of youngsters working their way through, but with only three spots left in their Top 30, and minimal salary cap, more major changes to the playing group for next year are unlikely.