I think the purpose of it is to provide a 20 min travel time between Parramatta and Sydney which isn't possible if there are too many stations.
But regardless with 7 stations it'll still be alot faster than the current 2 station express. Newington might be a good location for a stop which can work if they give the area a R4 zoning and allow 100 metre buildings like they do in the area around it like Olympic Park. If there's no uplift in density then a newer station isn't really worth it imo.
I wouldn't be surprised if it was Alex Classens telling him what to do (for the cancellation)