Player contracts

[Guest]

Deeb and Moujalli played a combined 20 minutes of first grade. How can you call them reserve graders based on that ?

Then you go on and list that SKD and Sa belong in the team ? Sa is gone so i don't need to say anything about him, however SKD is pure garbage. There isn't coaching that will fix him. HE doesn't posses basic skills that any kid picks up when he is 15 years of age.
He has size but doesn't use it, i'll add that to the fact that he doesn't have proper tackling technique.
Fanboys will tell me to perservere with him, and to them i will tell you that he will bring you more rocks than diamonds for many years to come. I asked for him to be dropped near the start of the year but the fact that he gets on the board gave him a free pass.
Now we have a winger who is on top of our team in terms of error rate and with the few close finishes we have had this season THAT COST US THE GAME.

Moujalli and Deeb were never going to be first graders. They were only thrown in because of our lack of depth. They aren't even Roosters contracted players.

SKD and Sa, as I said, deserve to be in the squad, but NOT in the team. SKD can score tries, but it is simple fundamental errors that he is making, and I think most are due to attitude. He should be forced to work for his spot by playing for the Jets, and if he has a sook about having to play for them, the way Josh Lewis did, then *punt*.

[Guest]

The reason why I have been reluctant to say buy this guy and that guy and have put so much thought into who i say we should and shouldnt buy is because i dred us going out and purchasing a side and letting the young talent go to waste.

I just don't agree with buying lots of players... we've bought in so many star players (probably have more ex internationals than any team!) but without the right tactics and conditioning, they just under-perform and disappoint the young blokes who wanna be out there blowing a gasket for us.

[Guest]

The reason why I have been reluctant to say buy this guy and that guy and have put so much thought into who i say we should and shouldnt buy is because i dred us going out and purchasing a side and letting the young talent go to waste. The doubters can doubt and harass all they like but I know these youngsters have something special. The side I see taking the field in a few years time looks something like this:
1. Pez
2.
3. Blair
4. Williamson
5. Moeakiola
6. Carney/Miller
7. Pearce
8. Myles
9. Friend
10. JWH
11. Leilua
12. Cordner
13. Maubs

14. Masoe
15. FPN
16. Cherrington/Symonds
17. Jones

As you can see, what we need is a fast and young winger. A few middle aged forwards for experience and to bridge the gap os also perfect. To answer your question footy, the blokes I have included in the side above that havent debuted before I hold in very high esteem including towers. I think towers has the potential to be a really top quality first grader. Just needs some time and coaching.

Every team has good young talent coming through but IMO, we are up there with the best of them. Our junior sides might not have shown it in the past few years but looking closely, a lot of our junior talent make it to the NRLand perform quite admirably. Talents such as Winterstein, Symonds, Waqa, Tamou, Kennedy, Jones, Friend were playing in our NYC team last season and placed second last, but that did not stop them from making the step up into the NRL. Before them was Soliola, Sa, Mitch Aubusson, Michael Lett, Mickey Paea, Mitchell Pearce and Sam Perrett and now we've got Williamson, Towers, Moeakiola, Earl and Blair part of the next group of youngsters about to hit the NRL. We've definitely got the junior talent to be successful, but now we've got to sign some really influential and experienced players to guide them.

That's a very different looking side to the one currently. Although I do agree with what you've said in that we do need a few middle aged forwards with experience, preferably representative, who can show these young guys the way. We need to lock up our younger generation now to long term deals. We've got a good squad of youth and I think we need to follow the Bulldogs approach in recruiting players with qualities to bring to the team off the field and not just on it. A culture change is what is needed and by keeping our younger guys as we have, the next step is freeing up some cash to go out and buy good players that are also good people. That way their maturity, morals and values will create the perfect environment for our young players to thrive in and improve as players as well as people. Bringing Mason was a HUGE mistake, he brought his rubbish off-field antics across and now our most promising young players such as Friend and Pearce are under his guidance and following in his footsteps.

Mack, the problems you have listed are exactly spot on. We have massive problems in recruiting players who can not cut it in first grade. Signing an established first-grader or two will go a long way to plugging in the gaps that we have at the moment. This all ties in with what I mentioned above.

[supermario]

Mack, the problems you have listed are exactly spot on. We have massive problems in recruiting players who can not cut it in first grade. Signing an established first-grader or two will go a long way to plugging in the gaps that we have at the moment. This all ties in with what I mentioned above.

Could it be the fact our coach was not good enough to develop the players to be of firstgrade standard.

[Guest]

Could it be the fact our coach was not good enough to develop the players to be of firstgrade standard.

I think there were plenty of issues behind why we weren't successful this season and that was certainly one of them, but there were bigger problems all along and that was culture and attitude. Also we just did not have 17 NRL standard players taking the paddock each week. Look at the successful teams, they have players of NRL standard playing NSWRL Cup/QLD Cup and once they sustain an injury, their replacements are of first-grade standard and they don't lose anything. We can't even field 17 NRL standard with a full-strength starting line-up so we definitely won't have any first-graders running around at Newtown.

[supermario]

thats exactly right, the culture and attitude is all wrong at the club, basically the buck stops with fittler.

The no nonsense of Smith will see a change to that. We will find that alot of the players we have will find alot of improvement under smith, well at least those that stay.

[Guest]

In an article on another thread, Freddy mentions that there needs to be a new culture. Even he knew what the problem was, and in that situation, an authority figure needed to pull the blokes into line, something Freddy couldn't do.

[Guest]

Honestly, how long has it been since we have signed a decent, middle-level first grader other than James Aubusson?

With us, it seems to be either:

- players completely out of the left field (Albert Hopoate - Mormon mission, Tevita Folau - park footy, Willie Brown - park footy, Sisa Waqa - club rugby, Jordan Tansey - ESL benchie)

- players who can't make first grade anywhere else (Riley Brown - Knights reserve, Daniel Conn - Titans reserve, Charlie Tonga - Bulldogs reserve, Aiden Guerra - Storm reserve, Nick Kouparitsas - Bulldogs reserve)

- old washed up players from Super League (Danny Nutley, Chris Beattie, Brent Grose)

- big name players with question marks over them (Mark O'Meley - fitness, Mason - behavior, Nate Myles - behavior, Todd Carney - behavior)


With every one of those scenarios, there is an issue. O'Sullivan seems to have this temptation to win over the public and prove his worth by signing absolute nobodies from park footy, rugby, or reserve grade footy, and turn them into superstars. I'd rather sign two solid first graders that are NEEDED in our team structure, like, say, Krisnan Inu as a goalkicking strike centre, and Chris Houston as a workhorse backrower for example, as opposed to spending huge money on a superstar in a position we are already adequately covered in (thus shifting established players in the team around to accommodate them), and then throwing whatever little cash we have left at some talented park footy player and expect them to suddenly become a star overnight.

O'Sullivan has done a great job with retention, keeping Cherrington, Jones, Symonds, SKD, Perrett, Pearce, Sa, Nuuausala, M Aubusson, Friend, Masoe, Cordner and Williamson here long term. But I feel that his recruitment is questionable - we don't have the player staff to develop nobodies the way Storm did with Ben Cross, Garrett Crossman, Matt Cross, Sika Manu, Jeff Lima, Jeremy Smith, Steve Turner, etc. He would be better off going for solid first graders appropriate to the positions in which we are lacking.

[Guest]

Honestly, how long has it been since we have signed a decent, middle-level first grader other than James Aubusson?

With us, it seems to be either:

- players completely out of the left field (Albert Hopoate - Mormon mission, Tevita Folau - park footy, Willie Brown - park footy, Sisa Waqa - club rugby, Jordan Tansey - ESL benchie)

- players who can't make first grade anywhere else (Riley Brown - Knights reserve, Daniel Conn - Titans reserve, Charlie Tonga - Bulldogs reserve, Aiden Guerra - Storm reserve, Nick Kouparitsas - Bulldogs reserve)

- old washed up players from Super League (Danny Nutley, Chris Beattie, Brent Grose)

- big name players with question marks over them (Mark O'Meley - fitness, Mason - behavior, Nate Myles - behavior, Todd Carney - behavior)


With every one of those scenarios, there is an issue. O'Sullivan seems to have this temptation to win over the public and prove his worth by signing absolute nobodies from park footy, rugby, or reserve grade footy, and turn them into superstars. I'd rather sign two solid first graders that are NEEDED in our team structure, like, say, Krisnan Inu as a goalkicking strike centre, and Chris Houston as a workhorse backrower for example, as opposed to spending huge money on a superstar in a position we are already adequately covered in (thus shifting established players in the team around to accommodate them), and then throwing whatever little cash we have left at some talented park footy player and expect them to suddenly become a star overnight.

O'Sullivan has done a great job with retention, keeping Cherrington, Jones, Symonds, SKD, Perrett, Pearce, Sa, Nuuausala, M Aubusson, Friend, Masoe, Cordner and Williamson here long term. But I feel that his recruitment is questionable - we don't have the player staff to develop nobodies the way Storm did with Ben Cross, Garrett Crossman, Matt Cross, Sika Manu, Jeff Lima, Jeremy Smith, Steve Turner, etc. He would be better off going for solid first graders appropriate to the positions in which we are lacking.

Exactly my point before. Solid first-graders is what we need. Look how much it does to a team eg Bulldogs. A few key signings and they have turned it all around in one season. It's certainly possible but will be extremely hard.

[Guest]

does anyone no what happened to the other south african we were signing along with jp de plesis???

apparently he is supposed to be 'exceptional'

http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/lhqn...961447664.html

[Guest]

does anyone no what happened to the other south african we were signing along with jp de plesis???

apparently he is supposed to be 'exceptional'

http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/lhqn...961447664.html

Which one?O`Sullivan has signed four of them so far,and is looking at more.

[Guest]

Which one?O`Sullivan has signed four of them so far,and is looking at more.

I thought JP Du Plessis was the only confirmed South African signing. I knew we were after a few more but has that been confirmed?

[Guest]

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/s...-10389,00.html

Springboks fear raids from NRL, Aussie rugby union poachers

FORTHRIGHT World Cup winner John Smit has bluntly warned talent-hungry Australian scouts in the NRL and rugby union to keep their hands off South Africa's budding 'Boks.
The decorated Springboks captain yesterday admitted for the first time he regarded rugby league as a genuine threat through the poaching of South Africa's top schoolboy talent.

"South Africa produces a huge amount of talent at the schools level and the boys are being seen as good assets for rugby league and now even Australian rugby," Smit, 31, said.

"There's been a lot of interest of late. Rugby league is becoming a real threat so we have to be wary of that to keep our very best."

The Sydney Roosters have been the most brazen. They signed muscular centre JP du Plessis, 18, to a three-year deal in June and it is believed the bottom-placed NRL club has swooped on three more South African teenagers to develop through the under-20 Toyota Cup.

Roosters recruitment chief Peter O'Sullivan made a scouting trip to South Africa this season.

A Melbourne Storm scout and player agent Greg Keenan ogled the eye-popping talent at the elite Craven Week schools tournament in East London last month.

"There was some amazing talent on display. I can tell you JP du Plessis won't be the last South African joining the NRL ranks next year," du Plessis' manager Keenan said.

Smit said the talent-stripping alert was on two fronts as his world champion Springboks took aim at a win over the Wallabies at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday to clinch the Tri-Nations.

The NSW Waratahs this week became the first of Australia's four Super 14 sides to zero in on emerging South African talent under the import rules.

The Waratahs swooped on 2m lock Hendrik Roodt, a former Emerging Springbok of 21.

Australian teams are able to contract a developing foreign player yet to represent his country because the bonus down the track is potential Wallabies eligibility.

Dan Vickerman, 1999 World Cup-winner Tiaan Strauss and Clyde Rathbone are all South African-born players who became Wallabies.

[Chookies74]

Dan Vickerman - quality player. No wonder the Tarts and Wobbly's are going backwards this yr. One big, tough unit.

[Guest]

Dan Vickerman - quality player. No wonder the Tarts and Wobbly's are going backwards this yr. One big, tough unit.

?????????? Who???

What about him??