The Robbie Farah-Jason Taylor situation has taken a nasty twist with the lawyer representing Farah publicly questioning whether the Tigers coach will keep his job.

Julieanne Levick has been advising the NSW hooker in his ongoing battle with the Tigers.

The former skipper has asked for a release from the club and wants the $400,000 that he is owed up front plus his full contract paid out.

In an email to this column Levick said: . "An entirely appropriate move by Farah in the face of an untenable situation under Jason Taylor," Levick wrote.

"Farah's no fool, he's in charge of his destiny and once again he's made a wise choice to back himself.

"It's glaringly obvious that the club will suffer absent Farah and there is no doubt that Taylor will struggle in his attempt to steer the ship. I have every confidence that [Justin] Pascoe is a man of his word and he will pay Farah his full dues.

"All things considered, you really have to wonder how much longer Taylor has left at the club, it would be easy to get the feeling that Pascoe is hamstrung by the board."

Farah's manager, Sam Ayoub, explained the situation in an email.

"Danny, as disappointing as this is, it must be remembered that it was initiated by the Wests Tigers, it was publicly driven by the Wests Tigers and is still being driven by the Wests Tigers," he wrote. "The only parties that I feel sorry are Robbie Farah and the fans because this has been brought upon them.

"They have made it untenable but have publicly and directly committed to meeting all the financial obligations to Robbie.

"Today's speculation about which clubs Robbie will or won't join is nothing but that.

"We will deal with that side of things at the appropriate time but right now, there are other issues that need to be put to bed."

The issues at the club run far deeper than the Farah situation. Taylor doesn't know that the unconditional support that he thinks he has from Tigers officials is wavering. At the start of the year, he is a string of losses away from being a former coach of the Tigers. Let's put Farah to one side and start with the halves Luke Brooks and Mitchell Moses.

Make no mistake that Taylor wants them to be the focal point of his team – it's a significant part of the reason Farah was snubbed. The problem is that both players are questioning whether they have long-term futures at the club.

They want to know who the coach is going to be after the first few months of the season. It's why they decided to postpone an option worth $600,000 for 2017 that was ready to be taken up in January. The club will tell you a different story.

When I first heard about the story, Tigers club boss Justin Pascoe set me straight.

"We, in conjunction with their management, proposed to extend their option date," he texted. Fair enough, but I'll believe what I'm getting told. And when rival clubs say they are getting told that the halves are on the market that is significant, but there will be denials they are being shopped.

Taylor also called me – he has had media restrictions placed on him in recent weeks – to explain his version and emphasise that it's wrong to think he is under pressure for his position. Point taken, and the board is making all the right noises. But there is enough underlying chatter to cast doubt on the situation.

Clarke pleads

It was the saddest moment in cricket's long and rich history in this country, but Michael Clarke never wants it to be forgotten.

With the anniversary of Phillip Hughes' death set to make headlines this week, Clarke wants to make sure Hughes' family is supported for as long as they want and need it.

"I hope that the cricket community, the cricket family continue to rally around the Hughes family," he said. "They deserve our support every day. I know that there is not a day that has gone by where I don't think of him. Hughesy was one of the first people I thought of when our little girl was born. He was into us for ages to have kids, he was always saying it was time we did.  I know how he'd be feeling. I wish he was here for every day, for so many reasons. Life hasn't been the same since that day."

During the Ashes series Hughes was with Clarke every step of the way. If he didn't wear his black armband he'd have it in his pocket. 

Best mates: former Australian captain Michael Clarke and Phillip Hughes out in the middle together.

The Hughes family are still angry at many things and, as the anniversary approaches, they are missing their son more than ever. They have done nothing publicly, but they did co-operate with Malcolm Knox and Peter Lalor to write Phillip's biography.

The parents sometimes know what they are angry at but sometimes they are not sure. They are angry at cricket; it killed their son, in their view. Sometimes they are angry at their town, their friends and each other. They even had to endure rumours they had split, but Greg and Virginia are still together. Still grieving.

Sometimes they are angry at officialdom, but Cricket Australia has tried to manage an unmanageable situation. The haste to stage a Test after his death caused some angst.

CA have done what they can financially. They paid out his contract in full, paid the family as though he played every Test, every one dayer, the World Cup and bonus payments.  And the man who bowled the ball, Sean Abbott, is still sorry.

It's impossible to feel anything other than sorry for Abbott and it's probably still too raw for him to express how he feels. It's unclear if he has a relationship with the  family.

The SCG will be shut to the public and media on the day that he was struck.  The historic day-night Test starts in Adelaide on the anniversary of the death. Players will wear black armbands.

So much has happened to the side since Hughes died. Brad Haddin, Shane Watson, Chris Rogers and Mitchell Johnson have quit  – and, of course, Clarke retired.  Clarke was closest to Hughes and struggled for months after his death. There is no doubt  Hughes' death played a part in his decision to retire. Clarke was due to commentate in the Adelaide Test for the Nine Network – it was to be his debut  in his new post in life as a former Australian skipper – but fatherhood has intervened.

He was still prepared to fly down for one day and call,  but Nine sports boss Steve Crawley has given Clarke the Test off. The  commentary team will be boosted by Shane Warne, who will be a fixture from this point on, calling Tests and one-dayers for the rest of the summer.

SBW schmoozed

While all the focus has been on Jarryd Hayne, there was a very significant get-together in Double Bay on Thursday night. Gathered at  Sciue Sciue were Nick Politis, David Gyngell and Trent Robinson,  and wives.

They were joined by Khoder Nasser and the guest of honour, Sonny Bill Williams, and their wives.  The power dinner clearly was designed to bring SBW back to the Roosters after he has a crack at the Olympics in rugby sevens.

It won't be an easy thing to do, but the Roosters are better placed than most teams to provide significant third-party support to players.

Walker tightrope

There is plenty going on behind the scenes when it comes to Dylan Walker. Those pushing his cause won't wear the line that he was partying on the night that he overdosed; they say there is no evidence that he was behaving inappropriately.

They are also upset at the script he was given to regurgitate at the hospital when Walker and Aaron Gray  faced the media after being released.  The way that Walker exits Souths is important – he wants a release.

If he is sacked for any reason it will lead to legal issues and may affect the value at which he has to be placed in Manly's cap. Expect a decision from the Souths board this week.

Questions please

Jordan Spieth is the first big name through the doors at the new Rebel Sport in Bondi Junction.

He will be holding a media conference at the venue on Monday. Interesting that only key media have been invited to attend and there is a request that questions be sent to Spieth.

That's unusual in the extreme for visiting sportsmen, especially those who appear to be as media savvy as Spieth.

There will be more stars at the store at a launch on Wednesday including Anthony Minichiello, Jessica Fox, Laura Geitz, Kurt Tippett, Josh Reynolds, Libby Trickett, Trent Merrin, Michael Slater and George Gregan.

Jordan Spieth of the USA poses after winning the 2014 Australian Open. Photo: Getty Images

Sinking feelings

It's been a tough 12 months for  the late-blooming Sea Eagles forward Brenton Lawrence. Not long ago he was touted as an Australian and Queensland forward, but a back injury followed by major surgery has robbed him of momentum and games.

Subsequently he was lumped into the group who may be swept up by Bozo's broom, but he has not been told anything official by the club. To make matters worse he has been dealing with some very different family drama. His partner Casey Devin, a reporter and producer at the Nine News was floored last  week when her mum Rhondda and sister Bree were caught up in a drama at sea.

"They were on board a cruise to Antarctica when a fire broke out in the engine room at 1am," Casey said. "They woke up to smoke filling the entire boat and were all locked in a front room to block off the smoke. The engine wouldn't start, no stabilisers on boat, really rough, no one allowed back to rooms, all they had was cold-weather gear, lifejackets and a mobile phone with limited service. The fire started again four hours later, all passengers had to abandon ship. That's when we lost communication with them and that was a very worrying time for us.

"BJ [Brenton James] was amazing. He knew I was very worried. We ended up hearing from them after they'd been rescued, they spent eight hours on a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean because it was too dangerous for anyone to come and rescue them, there were large three-metre swells.  They were eventually rescued by a sister vessel and had an  eight-hour journey to the mainland, where they were given some donated clothes. They have their passports and that's it. "

Better hurry

Roger Fabri's Speed and Agility school was dealing with Willie Mason and Todd Carney last week.

The clinic has been overrun since his star client Jarryd Hayne took his talents to the NFL  and plenty of athletes hoping to follow the same path as Hayne have been in touch with Fabri.

The respected sprint coach responded by aligning himself with social media phenomenon Tevin Allen aka Gold Feet Global. Allen specialises in footwork drills for all codes.  He has a huge following in the US.

Coupled with Fabri's expertise in linear and multidirectional speed the pair are holding a clinic in Sydney's Centennial Park from December 7 to 12. Fabri  says high-profile clients will be attending the clinic. To register for the clinic go to speedagilityacademy.com and click on "events" to secure your spot.

■ Danny Weidler is a Nine reporter.