Sam Thaiday

[Dennis Papaioannou]

With Ben Hunt coming wondering if its worth throwing a years + contract to Sam Thaiday ? Thoughts

Thaiday will be 33 next year and we have Host, Sele, Lawrie, Kerr, Leilua all lining up to play first grade.
Why would you bother?

 

[Dennis Papaioannou]

OT you beat me to the punch . That is exactly the mentality within our club . Our acceptance of mediocrity runs right through our club from the front office right down to many of our fans . I could understand re-signing Nighty on the cheap for a year to play reserves as a mentor to the young blokes coming through but his first grade days are up ...(.Just like the Beast's with the Warriors ) . Years ago Arthur Beetson and Billy Smith both finished in reserve grade . There is no shame in that . But that would require some sort of vision and forward thinking which Mary has shown he has absolutely none .

I think you underestimate Nightingale.
Put him on the end of a slick backline and he will easily score 15-20 tries a season.
He's already scored 11 this season even though he has been switched to FB a number of times.
Add to that his ability to field bombs, his big game experience and his general running metres gained, and he is very far from a washed up veteran.

 

[Walpole]

Sam Thaiday? Dave Taylor?

Just when you think this forum can't throw up another ludicrous idea...

 

[dragon thomo]

I would try and get Ofahengaue in stead . They are trying to offload Thaiday to keep this bloke

 

[_Johnsy]

This thread just typifies our thinking v the way good clubs think.
Sam's use by date is up and the transition is well under way as he loses his SOO & Australian spots as well as his starting spot at club level.
Some people in here think that a 35 year old Bennett hand me down is a good option whilst they applaud the decision to extend Nighty.
No sentimentality with the good clubs it just gets down to hard nosed business and shows why we just can't get the right mindset.

Hard to argue against this rationale.

 

[Old Timer]

Sam Thaiday? Dave Taylor?

Just when you think this forum can't throw up another ludicrous idea...

Come on Ricky you know you are still faster than both our wingers and centres so how about it?
PS: Don't forget some wanted Gallen as well.

 

[Old Timer]

I think you underestimate Nightingale.
Put him on the end of a slick backline and he will easily score 15-20 tries a season.
He's already scored 11 this season even though he has been switched to FB a number of times.
Add to that his ability to field bombs, his big game experience and his general running metres gained, and he is very far from a washed up veteran.

Finishing tries after the lead up work by others and scoring tries from your own speed, elusiveness etc are 2 completely different matters.
Nighty certainly is a great finisher but in all reality how many of his tries this year would not have been scored by other wingers?
On the other hand how many tries has he scored from speed and elusiveness?
Wingers are supposed to be the Lamborghini's in the backline that streak away and put the icing on the cake not held onto simply for their hit ups out of our end.
Yes he can catch a bomb but he can't run 40m to score a try nor can he catch anyone else who makes a break against us.

 

[JohnnoMcJohnno]

Sam Thaiday? Dave Taylor?

Just when you think this forum can't throw up another ludicrous idea...

Bring back George Rose to replace Packer and Daniel Vidot to replace Nighty. Both cheap, both proven first graders.

 

[ALSGI]

I think you underestimate Nightingale.
Put him on the end of a slick backline and he will easily score 15-20 tries a season.
He's already scored 11 this season even though he has been switched to FB a number of times.
Add to that his ability to field bombs, his big game experience and his general running metres gained, and he is very far from a washed up veteran.

Dennis, I think you overstate Nightys' 2017 ability let alone 2018. Yes put him on the end of a slick backline and he scores more but we haven't had a slick backline for a long time and Nighty should be making up a slick backline. Of his 11 tries this year there's probably one that only a good finisher would score, the rest any winger would score. As for playing FB, well they're supposed to score tries too.
He scored 5 in '15, 6 in '16 and I'm thrilled that he's finally scored his ton to average just over 10 per season. He should also be recognised for the 15 he's scored for NZ in 31 games(not that I give a shit about NZ). He should also be recognised for his try assists, two come to mind this year that were special. His metres gained aren't special for a winger that's played FB as well. His leadership and experience is priceless.
He's too slow for a winger (not too old) and without speed he's also too small for anything else.
If you were defending against him or Cotric (or any number of fast wingers) from anywhere beyond the 20m line who would you honestly fear most?

 

[Dennis Papaioannou]

Finishing tries after the lead up work by others and scoring tries from your own speed, elusiveness etc are 2 completely different matters.
Nighty certainly is a great finisher but in all reality how many of his tries this year would not have been scored by other wingers?
On the other hand how many tries has he scored from speed and elusiveness?
Wingers are supposed to be the Lamborghini's in the backline that streak away and put the icing on the cake not held onto simply for their hit ups out of our end.
Yes he can catch a bomb but he can't run 40m to score a try nor can he catch anyone else who makes a break against us.

I get what you say and I am not saying that Nightingale is the answer to our lack of strike in the back line.
He is however reliable which is why he justifies his selection.
On the other hand, if you take into account that they persist in playing him on the left wing and also avoid other options but immediately select him at FB whenever Dugan gets injured, we are not doing him any favours.
That brings me to recruitment.
Apart from Brett Morris, our wingers in recent time have been ordinary.
Why is it that we cannot recruit a couple of flyers (Fijian maybe) or try some speedsters from the lower grades?
I think the minute there is a better alternative, Nightingale will be replaced.
I just like the guy because even when we are losing he always plays with heart and never gives up.
I also loved the 2 tries he scored in the 2010 GF.

 

[Pro Dragons]

Yes, but only If Bennett released him for 2018 and he came at the right price.

 

[Dragons 09]

Sam Thaiday? Don't we have a no peniscranium policy! No, just no FFS.

 

[Walpole]

Come on Ricky you know you are still faster than both our wingers and centres so how about it?
PS: Don't forget some wanted Gallen as well.

Now if we could clone Ricky Walford and Nathan Blacklock and send them out on the wings then we'd have some teams worried! Hard to believe that a short time ago our 1-5 were Boyd, Morris, Cooper, Gasnier and Nightingale (2010 version). That's one of the best backlines of the last 20 years.

PS. I reckon you're right, the original Walpole, even at 53, laps our current crop.

 

[muzby]

With Ben Hunt coming wondering if its worth throwing a years + contract to Sam Thaiday ? Thoughts