Redneck Redfaces 2

[oikee]

Trent Merrin is a valuable commodity no doubt, as hard hitting ground making forwards go he is right up there with the best, he has all the qualifications. Problem for blokes like him he needs motivation, his job is not hard to learn but he needs to know his team mates are putting in. It's all about competition for places in the team, friendly rivalry and winning. What else can a 'meathead' forward aspire to

Teams that are winning, coached well and have elite spine players have no trouble attracting 'Merrins', they tell blokes like him to just do their job, put up and shut up. His counterparts are the most readily available of all players, Trent is made special because he stands out in the team he now plays for, in the top teams he would be just another important cog

Not saying he shouldn't chase a dollar or players like him are a dime a dozen but if the Dragons start winning regularly, that will only happen when the 9/6/7/1 make a name for themselves as a single entity, Trent will become easily replaceable. Maybe it's a smart move to shout from the tallest treetop, never know when the undergrowth will catch up and the loggers start moving in

Yes, and you really have to laugh , he is being shown up by his replacement. Georgous George Rose. A whole lotta Rosey has replaced Merrin who seems to be more and more off the field than on it.
Rose seems to found another leg.
Just hope he is nowhere near any dealers or Gym's. :lol:

 

[oikee]

Isn't that kind of like poaching?

I poached a egg this morning, nothing wrong with poaching.

 

[sensesmaybenumbed]

I poached a egg this morning, nothing wrong with poaching.

POPEYE is coming for you. He's a hard boiled fanatic.

 

[POPEYE]

Isn't that kind of like poaching?

Only you would think that a bloke who thinks he has to leave where he is has been poached . . . do you think Inglis, Widdop and Folau were poached or just sought better opportunity. If a player leaves only because a bigger dollar is waived at him he has been poached

 

[sensesmaybenumbed]

I disagree. The end result of your fetish is a club with relatively unlimited funds signing up loads of juniors with early talent to keep them away from other clubs.

You think Smith, Slater and Cronk et.al. signed on with the Storm for loyalty? It's money. They signed on to start for money. They stayed for money, some of it outside the permitted cap space. The days of the local boy staying on for life are gone.

 

[POPEYE]

Opinions are great aren't they, that's why 29 year olds don't get shot in Australia for doing something stupid when they were 19

You still have no idea what I regard as poaching. The players you mention I have no doubt were far too comfortable to be poached, all they wanted was to be certain they weren't being underpaid, the result may have been over the top and naïve but to claim they would have left without it is symptomatic of jealousy

No such thing as 'local boys' staying for life, one club NRL players on the other hand is far from finished. Even Menzies poked his head up for a looksee now and again with no real intention of moving on. I have no problem with any player who goes to the highest bidder, trying to secure their future or satisfy their search for glory

What I can't abide is clubs not doing their utmost to sequentially improve the game by introducing as many new champions as possible. Surviving off the endeavours of others is wasting oxygen, the only way to circumvent such laziness is make it difficult to perpetuate, only way to do that is create a comfort level that will not force one club players to jump ship

If you didn't understand the above you might like it more simply put, reward clubs for making the game better than it is by producing more champion NRL players and don't pretend a salary cap as it is does any more than stifle the game. For instance, if Hayne left League for 2 million a season let the Eels pay 2 million to keep him if they so wish, they made him the NRL player he was . . . no other club deserves such extravagance to secure his services

In other words the salary cap as it stands now should be replaced with a cap that includes an incentive scheme that stipulates any club can pay it's one club players 25% more than a poacher

Btw, how can any club stockpile players that haven't yet played NRL when all those players remain ineligible for an incentive scheme until they do . . . that is where I drawn the line, you can draw it in the womb if you wish

 

[oikee]

Opinions are great aren't they, that's why 29 year olds don't get shot in Australia for doing something stupid when they were 19

You still have no idea what I regard as poaching. The players you mention I have no doubt were far too comfortable to be poached, all they wanted was to be certain they weren't being underpaid, the result may have been over the top and naïve but to claim they would have left without it is symptomatic of jealousy

No such thing as 'local boys' staying for life, one club NRL players on the other hand is far from finished. Even Menzies poked his head up for a looksee now and again with no real intention of moving on. I have no problem with any player who goes to the highest bidder, trying to secure their future or satisfy their search for glory

What I can't abide is clubs not doing their utmost to sequentially improve the game by introducing as many new champions as possible. Surviving off the endeavours of others is wasting oxygen, the only way to circumvent such laziness is make it difficult to perpetuate, only way to do that is create a comfort level that will not force one club players to jump ship

If you didn't understand the above you might like it more simply put, reward clubs for making the game better than it is by producing more champion NRL players and don't pretend a salary cap as it is does any more than stifle the game. For instance, if Hayne left League for 2 million a season let the Eels pay 2 million to keep him if they so wish, they made him the NRL player he was . . . no other club deserves such extravagance to secure his services

In other words the salary cap as it stands now should be replaced with a cap that includes an incentive scheme that stipulates any club can pay it's one club players 25% more than a poacher

Btw, how can any club stockpile players that haven't yet played NRL when all those players remain ineligible for an incentive scheme until they do . . . that is where I drawn the line, you can draw it in the womb if you wish

Yes, and that is the problem we will always have in the code with players being paid what they are worth.
I was just reading a little section in the paper today about Adam Reynolds being a bargain buy.
Compare him to Cherry, and you have a huge gap because one is staying loyal, the other is looking for maximan payment.
You cant blame Cherry either. Manly underpaid him for a couple of years.
They will underpay him again if he stays at Manly, their is no way they can match 3 million dollars.
They have Foran as well to hold onto.

The Roosters will be the next lot of players to hit the market. They seem to be buying all the young superstar juniors, so they cant hang onto all their players.

This is the problem with the system we have got, some clubs are hoarding talent while others cant even get a look in.

 

[oikee]

I am all for staying loyal and being able to stay loyal to your club. But under this system we have, no way.
I mean why should a club like the titans or Canberra have to sit back and watch clubs like the Roosters and Dogs attract all the faking talent, while their own club struggles to even buy talent.

Our whole system needs a overhaul, try something different so one club players can stay loyal without being shopped around.
I wouldn't even mind seeing a window for older players to be shopped to superleague. As long as we get full coverage here in Australia, why not grow both comps.
I know players can move to England now, but we need to encourage them to do so.
Superleague needs a markee (marquee) player allowance,.

The NRL does not, we are a exotic code and always will be for overseas players. We should get all the younger UK and France up and coming stars, and send them some of our older markee players.

Such as Sonny Bill, Sam Burgess, Israel Falou and Jarrod Hayne.

Why Hanye is wasting his faking time playing dumbarse NFL is beyond me.

 

[POPEYE]

Too many clubs have a circumspect attitude, now that Melbourne has a street wise administration, I'd hate to see Bellamy decide he wanted to poach Brooks as a #7 and move Cronk to #6, or poach Foran. I'd much rather see Shaun Nona and Ben Hampton given a chance with a decent coach.

Admittedly Hasler is stuck in a place where so many young blokes would rather pump lead than iron but there is nothing stopping him from replicating the way Bellamy finds talent. Melbourne and Boatland are both alien landscapes, hate to imagine it but if the Dogs took a stance against poaching and Melbourne felt they couldn't do without it purple would be a bruise on Rugby League I couldn't abide by

All this is only my opinion, not to be changed mind you, as far as I'm concerned every club would be wise to have a quota of one club players, at least 75%. Where they get them is irrelevant, by definition it must be before they appear in say a required number of NRL games. If these one club players wish to leave they would have to compete for the 25% of places in the merry go round, if they stay and they're any good they're entitled to be paid overs to be kept

If they get the chop it just means survival of the fittest has been exercised, no more than it is now. The key to this working is the quality of the coaching/scouting staff employed by each club, they are the people who should be sacrificed if things go pear shaped.

Interesting that Mary McGregor seems to be attempting to do it the Bellamy way, Widdop was gained because he wanted to try his arm, not extend his pocket. With any luck Merrin can be replaced by a discovery and a culture will grow . . . which would delight me no end

 

[oikee]

Put it this way, i want to see a better and fairer system , and not have the players shopped around like they have now, but gee whiz, i would hate to be working on a new way of doing things. Like Richo has taken on.
Mind you, i think we need change at junior level. And i think our code and players (juniors) can become mature enough to handle that, as long as the NRL controls the whole thing.
If a youngster freaks out, bring him home and let him mature.

Anyhow, as i said, it is a box of worms and i would hate to be trying to sort it out.

 

[POPEYE]

Seems another season of Rugby League ridicule is upon us, Dave Smith will think he's a politician when he looks in the mirror, grey hairs can't be far away now. If anyone is seriously thinking of taking the piss outa Pommy Dave for the job he is trying to do they ought to imagine waking up in his shoes. No job he's had could have been as hard to earn a quid as this one

If Bird and Taylor thought recreational drugs were the next step up from Origin and might help them become immortal, just to steady the nerves mind you, they are seriously lacking the IQ and talent to pull it off. A precedent might have been set but getting caught is not part of it.

Spare a thought for Carty, how well would he have gone with unlimited resources, devoid of all those troublemakers, rehab escapees and malingerers. Henry is now better off than he was in Townsville, well at least for a few years, no babysitting only coaching to concentrate on.

Pommy Dave must be wondering when he can start his job with a clean sheet. Performance drugs are out of the way, recreational drugs is this year's shitfight so can we book in a fairdinkum expose on gambling, excuse the pun, for next year. Makes you wonder how he would have handled the Salary Cap Scandal. The NRL already subsidised Melbourne, Dave could have bought the club outright and found a way to keep the three of the Big Six that were forced to leave

Not only is Dave's job being made harder by imbecilic players he has to contend with a media that is either so naïve about the world outside their pissy little desk floor or don't give a shit about the problems they exacerbate . . . and Dave thought all he had to worry about was bringing the game out of the dark ages

 

[oikee]

Seems another season of Rugby League ridicule is upon us, Dave Smith will think he's a politician when he looks in the mirror, grey hairs can't be far away now. If anyone is seriously thinking of taking the piss outa Pommy Dave for the job he is trying to do they ought to imagine waking up in his shoes. No job he's had could have been as hard to earn a quid as this one

If Bird and Taylor thought recreational drugs were the next step up from Origin and might help them become immortal, just to steady the nerves mind you, they are seriously lacking the IQ and talent to pull it off. A precedent might have been set but getting caught is not part of it.

Spare a thought for Carty, how well would he have gone with unlimited resources, devoid of all those troublemakers, rehab escapees and malingerers. Henry is now better off than he was in Townsville, well at least for a few years, no babysitting only coaching to concentrate on.

Pommy Dave must be wondering when he can start his job with a clean sheet. Performance drugs are out of the way, recreational drugs is this year's shitfight so can we book in a fairdinkum expose on gambling, excuse the pun, for next year. Makes you wonder how he would have handled the Salary Cap Scandal. The NRL already subsidised Melbourne, Dave could have bought the club outright and found a way to keep the three of the Big Six that were forced to leave

Not only is Dave's job being made harder by imbecilic players he has to contend with a media that is either so naïve about the world outside their pissy little desk floor or don't give a shit about the problems they exacerbate . . . and Dave thought all he had to worry about was bringing the game out of the dark ages

This would be character building for Dave Smith, just think, every sports top brass will want smith after his slog with league.
The guy is a faking genious as well.
He is making millions and really setting this code up for the future. Be a sad day when he has to move on, to a bigger salary.
:lol:

As for Carty, screw him, no double screw him. That sucker got a faking dream deal under Searle, and is still on the faking payrole.

Mind you i dont think their is too much wrong with Carty as a coach.
I will never feel sorry for him, i could retire on his faking wage.

 

[POPEYE]

You've got to work on 'there' ol' mate

 

[POPEYE]

How many of you have ever driven through a bush town and pulled up beside a dusty field to watch a game of League. You've got to go a way out, say somewhere like Goodooga past Lightning Ridge, a tidy village that houses mostly Indigenous Australians, 'Goodooga Magpies' in the local 5 team comp.

If you've never ventured that far you probably think Tyrone Peachey is a novelty and he probably was even in Wellington near Dubbo where his uncle David was born, both standout players. The way the Indigenous play fascinates me, they can turn a game as quickly as they can make a split second decision on the run . . . it comes naturally, no training required

Unfortunately, only to those that are not Indigenous, they can lose interest as quickly as they can create, not laziness but definitely 'been there, done that' syndrome. Once an Indigenous player is established as an NRL player he just has to be kept interested, the best way to make him lose interest is take him anywhere near bullshit

Anyway, it's great to see Tyrone has extended with the Panthers, I can't get enough of the way he plays. If you ever venture anywhere that's as far out as Goodooga you'd be forgiven for thinking you were in a League orchard, a field full of exciting players and peaches every one

 

[oikee]

You cant go to far out west Popeye. Some towns dont have enough players.
I pulled up at Texas for a overniter many years ago.
All that you have said and more. The hits, the passion, the small town feel, awesome.

Just reading the report i seen that we have close to 12 percent indigenous players in the NRL.
That is faking huge.
And Dave Smith is sinking more funds into indigenous footy areas like North Queensland and Torres Straight areas as he has set a target of 15% at the top level by 2018.

That is a outstanding effort by Dave Smith and if you had followed his journey so far in our code, you would have noticed one of the first things he did was go to every out of the way place, like the bush and far north Queensland to experience how difficult it was for these areas.

That research is now driving funding to these areas.
The guy is rugby leagues faking white knight.
I have never seen anyone of his class ever in Australia sport.

 

[POPEYE]

Believe it not many many years ago when I was barely in my 20's for a couple of years I played lawn bowls to impress my old man who loved the game. The best thing I liked was we drank a schooner every 2 ends and we played 25 of those . . . unless we got serious and the club went away on a bowling trip where it changed to middies

Bowling trips were not for the faint hearted, old men turned into rapscallions, aeroplanes were clipping the tops of sunflowers trying to get off the ground being overloaded with grog. One such trip had us at a large outback town where the President of the bowling club was also the Mayor and the all powerful foreman at the meatworks. If you didn't keep your job at the meatworks your life was ratshit

Bear with me, this is still the off-season. Anyway, El Presidente never paid for beer, never had to chase his bowls and his 'mates' rarely spoke until he was finished. That weekend I spent every waking minute taking the piss out of the prick, pun intended, and started a two-up game that turned hostile while waiting for a replacement plane out of the joint. The repercussions resulted in me never playing again

Rugby League before Dave Smith has always reminded me of that episode in my life, enough sanctimonious bullshit to make a stomach turn. Jobs for the boys and boys for the jobs, pretentious rubbish that a blue collar was expected to embrace where naivety became a religion . . . and I abhor religion

So, I'm still not as confident as you are oikee but the only thing that will stop Smith from taking League to where it belongs is a rebellion by the Olde Guarde, the 'power for power's sake' brigade and those supporters who revel in mediocrity. The best thing in Smith's report if it came from his mouth is the use of 'rookie' as opposed to 'junior'

 

[oikee]

They will have trouble death-riding him now Popeye,.
It's different if your not making any headway and losing money.
The fact is that Dave Smith knows what he is doing, and he is finding that happy place for our code.

He could see our code was under-valued and not operating right, he simply is applying common sense mentality to our code.

Liked your bowls story. My dad was a keen bowler and chairman of a couple of clubs.

I bought a pushbike instead.

 

[oikee]

Believe it not many many years ago when I was barely in my 20's for a couple of years I played lawn bowls to impress my old man who loved the game. The best thing I liked was we drank a schooner every 2 ends and we played 25 of those . . . unless we got serious and the club went away on a bowling trip where it changed to middies

Bowling trips were not for the faint hearted, old men turned into rapscallions, aeroplanes were clipping the tops of sunflowers trying to get off the ground being overloaded with grog. One such trip had us at a large outback town where the President of the bowling club was also the Mayor and the all powerful foreman at the meatworks. If you didn't keep your job at the meatworks your life was ratshit

Bear with me, this is still the off-season. Anyway, El Presidente never paid for beer, never had to chase his bowls and his 'mates' rarely spoke until he was finished. That weekend I spent every waking minute taking the piss out of the prick, pun intended, and started a two-up game that turned hostile while waiting for a replacement plane out of the joint. The repercussions resulted in me never playing again

Rugby League before Dave Smith has always reminded me of that episode in my life, enough sanctimonious bullshit to make a stomach turn. Jobs for the boys and boys for the jobs, pretentious rubbish that a blue collar was expected to embrace where naivety became a religion . . . and I abhor religion

So, I'm still not as confident as you are oikee but the only thing that will stop Smith from taking League to where it belongs is a rebellion by the Olde Guarde, the 'power for power's sake' brigade and those supporters who revel in mediocrity. The best thing in Smith's report if it came from his mouth is the use of 'rookie' as opposed to 'junior'

That is some heavy shite going on 'there' mate.
Not surprising mind you. It is how things operated back then, still does in some places and areas.

The dinosaurs of rugby league are slowing being weeded out. Searle being a classic example.

Like your thinking on religion as well.
There would be no devil if we had no religion.
Just evil little fakers wanting a piece of diss. :?

 

[POPEYE]

Big area the municipality of Parramatta, heavier populated than most League breeding grounds yet the NRL team is not overflowing with rookies from the district that have metamorphosed into champions and stayed in the joint. Can only imagine what bad boys Manly, Melbourne and the Roosters would have achieved with such resources

Pity that so many Parramatta juniors find their way elsewhere before becoming rookies. Crikey, I should have been smart enough to use 'rookies' years ago in my fight against sheepish League supporters and their incessant bleating over 'juniors'. There you go fellas, every club has equal access to all rookies before they become one

Dare I say it again, Manly should have no trouble keeping DCE and Foran if money is the object, rookie concessions should have discounted that. Then again, just think how well off the Eels would be if they had of invested in a stable coaching group/management and concessions turned their juniors into their rookies. Fmd, the Eels could be contenders without having to poach anyone

Enough of that, I'm even starting to nauseate myself. Brad Arthur was an Eels junior, rejected by both them and the Panthers as a top grade player, turned to coaching and kicked arse everywhere on his way up, except with Parramatta when they preferred Sticky and sent Brad back to Manly. If you feel sorry for Parra being plundered of their juniors over the years don't bother, they put 'ism' on the end of 'f**kwit'

A conceivable scenario would have been that once Brad had proven he was a far better coach than player the Eels could have given him the same opportunity Melbourne did. What we have now if you believe the rags is an Eels junior rejected as player and coach now desperately needed by Manly to keep their rookies at home and now desperately needed by the Eels to snare the Manly rookie they desperately need to win a comp

Over the years it has been a cacophony of bullshit from Parramatta, finally turned to sweet music with the return of Arthur, will it let be soured again by a broken f**king record if the Anderson disquiet is genuine. Imo what should happen is if Anderson wants to coach let him go the Dogs, Hasler should turn back the boat and return to Manly and all teams should have concessions to keep their rookies

 

[MaxPower]

The 18 test,128 game rookie, Kieran Foran.