ToiletDuck
Administrator
Lord, please no more Rene Ranger hype...can we at least start one someone new, like Rieko Ioane? He seems to go alright, and he's only 19, that leaves a solid 10-15 years of baseless rumours to look forward to.
Who should we sign? Not sure. I would've thought the priority positions would be prop and backrow. Unless Albert Vete and Sam Lisone really step up, I see us lacking a fair bit of go forward. Guys like Afoa, Papalii, Gubb should provide adequate supporting cast type efforts, but they're not really guys you can pencil in for 60 mins and 130+ meters. Tohu Harris Harris for Ryan Hoffman is a great swap next season, though the backrow is certainly still lacking some punch, especially as Simon will be a year older.
The good or bad part is that our cap is very spine heavy, it really depends on how well Kearney goes this year. The Storm have survived with this mantra for years because their spine is so good, and their game plan so precise, that they basically manufacture a side around a few key players. Essentially we're headed for the same type of scenario, perhaps even a step further, as we try retain a star 1, 6, 7 and 9. Traditionally the Storm have worked on retaining only 3 of the 4. Long story short, this leaves sweet fuck all cash to spend elsewhere. Hence the suggestions that we may be in the race to sign a guy like Jesse Bromwich would seem quite unlikely.
Whether or not an amazing spine is the be all, end all, is another story. The Sharks managed a premiership last year with Barba, Maloney, Chad and Ennis. Certainly at the start of the season those guys were hardly in the superstar category. Barba was playing off the bench, Chad was battling for a place in the side and Ennis was apparently on his last legs on a retirement deal. What they didn't lack was quality and experience across the park in other positions.
In any case, it may seem like an obvious answer, but who we should sign will depend largely on how these guys go this year. RTVS missed almost the entire season in 2016 and Foran hasn't laced up a boot in anger for the Warriors ever. If the spine all stay fit and can get some cohesion and we make the 8, then you'd have to say priority should be given to making sure they stay together whilst re-signing the next tier of important/young players in the forwards. If it all goes tits up yet again, then lets get rid of them all and start looking for Grant Rovelli 2.0 in QLD Cup feeder clubs.
Who should we sign? Not sure. I would've thought the priority positions would be prop and backrow. Unless Albert Vete and Sam Lisone really step up, I see us lacking a fair bit of go forward. Guys like Afoa, Papalii, Gubb should provide adequate supporting cast type efforts, but they're not really guys you can pencil in for 60 mins and 130+ meters. Tohu Harris Harris for Ryan Hoffman is a great swap next season, though the backrow is certainly still lacking some punch, especially as Simon will be a year older.
The good or bad part is that our cap is very spine heavy, it really depends on how well Kearney goes this year. The Storm have survived with this mantra for years because their spine is so good, and their game plan so precise, that they basically manufacture a side around a few key players. Essentially we're headed for the same type of scenario, perhaps even a step further, as we try retain a star 1, 6, 7 and 9. Traditionally the Storm have worked on retaining only 3 of the 4. Long story short, this leaves sweet fuck all cash to spend elsewhere. Hence the suggestions that we may be in the race to sign a guy like Jesse Bromwich would seem quite unlikely.
Whether or not an amazing spine is the be all, end all, is another story. The Sharks managed a premiership last year with Barba, Maloney, Chad and Ennis. Certainly at the start of the season those guys were hardly in the superstar category. Barba was playing off the bench, Chad was battling for a place in the side and Ennis was apparently on his last legs on a retirement deal. What they didn't lack was quality and experience across the park in other positions.
In any case, it may seem like an obvious answer, but who we should sign will depend largely on how these guys go this year. RTVS missed almost the entire season in 2016 and Foran hasn't laced up a boot in anger for the Warriors ever. If the spine all stay fit and can get some cohesion and we make the 8, then you'd have to say priority should be given to making sure they stay together whilst re-signing the next tier of important/young players in the forwards. If it all goes tits up yet again, then lets get rid of them all and start looking for Grant Rovelli 2.0 in QLD Cup feeder clubs.
