And just like that we bid farewell to Jamal Idris, for now at least. Idris has been released by the Penrith Panthers to do whatever his heart desires and while it does mean that the Panthers will now have to rely on youngsters to step into that void, this isn't as dramatic as it might sound.

There's a few reasons why I don't find this to be that dramatic or crazy, thanks in part to the nature of Idris himself. Some see the way Idris loves non-footy life as a negative because it could take away from his production on the field (the life of a pro athlete huh?) whereas I love it and if Idris wants to take time out from football to explore the world and go live in Tibet, which he was close to doing before joining the Panthers, then good for him. Idris hasn't settled since leaving the Bulldogs a few years ago with a tricky time at the Gold Coast Titans resulting in Idris coming back to Sydney, to a club where he would apparently flourish thanks to the family vibes and smiling faces in Penrith.

I could say that it was naive of Phil Gould and the Panthers to think that they could get Idris solely focused on footy, but injuries to Idris definitely played their part and I can imagine Idris sitting there nursing his injury, thinking about all the other things he could be doing. The timing of this is the most interesting aspect though as it comes a few weeks after whispers about Idris possibly moving to the Melbourne Storm started circulating, around the same time as the proverbial shit hitting the fan with Ivan Cleary being sacked. It would be silly to not draw some links here, maybe Idris was given a prime example of everything that he might not like about the NRL and decided now was the time to get out of it.

Sure, there's a huge element of what might have been for Idris as he showed immense talent when he burst onto the scene. I always hate to think this way though as Idris has played more NRL games than most and has had to battle a never-ending cycle of injuries which must be emotionally and physically draining. Idris could well be back in the NRL at some stage and he would know that any future opportunity in the NRL would come with a far smaller salary and at a club who is willing to give him a chance, not the club he wants to go to.

I have and always will like Jamal Idris, all the best champ.

Things are still extremely funky in Tiger-town, at least there's certainty around the future of Martin Taupau who will head to Manly next season. Taupau had been destined for the door since the 2015 season ended and I think Manly fans should be fairly excited about their 2016 prospects because the signing of Taupau is a great steal ... steal yet they would have paid a fair whack for him. Taupau will likely start at lock, a position which saw guys like Ligi Sao and Blake Leary do a job in without the impact that Taupau offers the prospect of having a forward pack that includes Taupau, Nate Myles, Jake Trbojevic, Tom Symonds, Jame Buhrer, Lewis Brown and Darcy Lussick is nothing less than exciting.

Taupau leave the Tigers who continue to be the most generous team this summer has they give out new stories to the media like hot meals at Christmas. Coach Jason Taylor said the loss of Taupau will be absorbed by Suasuo Sue who keeps on improving each season and relishes life in the middle, alongside Matt Ballin.

Replacing Robbie Farah (age 31) with Matt Ballin (age 31) makes no sense. No wonger Wests Tigers fans are up in arms #UniteCommitAchieve
— Matt Pritchard (@MattPNBL) October 30, 2015

Ballin is likely to head the other way, leaving Manly to join the Tigers and while this is a good signing in terms of what Ballin offers as one of the most underrated players in the NRL, it only heightens the confusion at the Tigers. Robbie Farah is still with the Tigers and has shown up to pre-season training ready to rip in, which we can take as a sign that Farah doesn't have many offers to go elsewhere and/or he doesn't want to leave - I reckon Farah doesn't want to leave because the offers aren't flooding in for his services.

Farah, up to this point has been the elephant in the room, so what's going to happen when Ballin arrives ready to start the season as the numero uno dummy half at the Tigers? Farah looks to be super stubborn and he's definitely digging his heels in, putting the ball back in the court of Taylor and thus ensuring that it is the Tigers/Taylor who looks bad should Farah end up playing in reserve grade. At the moment it looks like that will be exactly what Farah will be doing as you wouldn't sign Ballin to sit behind Farah and Manaia Cherrington. There's two ways the Tigers could rank these three hookers: Ballin, Cherrington, Farah or Farah, Cherrington, Ballin. I'm fairly certain that Farah is currently last on that list.

The William Hopoate sage continues, with the latest headlines having him going to the Bulldogs ... who don't exactly need a centre of Hopoate's calibre. We'll have to stay tuned to this one and with lawyers involved it's hard to see it being a quick process.

Kevin Gordon has also left the NRL with a chronic hip injury forcing him to call time. Gordon was once a winger with plenty of potential who had shown flashes of his talents, yet over the past year or two he struggled for game time with the Gold Coast Titans thanks to that hip issue and he was rarely sighted in the NRL. Again, Gordon got to play in the NRL and enjoy life as a NRL player so good on him, although this is also a reminder about how fragile a long and prosperous NRL career is.

Joseph Paulo is leaving the Parramatta Eels to join the Cronulla Sharks in another solid all-round deal. The Eels have bases covered in their forwards and Paulo was surplus to requirements there while the Sharks will put Paulo's skill (his greatest asset) to good use, especially through the middle of the field. Paulo is a ball-playing forward similar to Feleti Mateo and in combination with Paul Gallen, Luke Lewis and Wade Graham, the Sharks will pose a different threat in 2016.

Keep an eye on the Rabbitohs with all this kerfuffle surrounding Sam Burgess. I don't care for Sam Burgess' return to the NRL as much as I'm interested to see how various Rabbitohs players are pushed out the door in the process. Chris McQueen and Dylan Walker are the two names that are getting thrown around, with McQueen suffering a lean patch which saw him lose his Maroons jersey and become a non-factor with the Rabbitohs while Walker is still a highly talented youngster but the prescription drug drama might come into play. McQueen would likely head back to Queensland while Walker would be a prized signing for any of Sydney's big clubs.