What's new
The Front Row Forums

Register a free account today to become a member of the world's largest Rugby League discussion forum! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Rugby Australia to target top NRL talent - Lomax case settled

Fangs

Referee
Messages
21,577
This is true for every NRL club.

Correct. But its a long term investment when it comes to Perth.

Sydney/Brisbane juniors are happy to move around clubs for a shot. Many of those clubs local down the road. Perth don't have that footprint yet.

When will Perth have their first local junior in first grade?
 

Dogs Of War

Coach
Messages
13,822
Correct. But its a long term investment when it comes to Perth.

Sydney/Brisbane juniors are happy to move around clubs for a shot. Many of those clubs local down the road. Perth don't have that footprint yet.

When will Perth have their first local junior in first grade?

Depends if they can raid Rugby juniors over there and find someone. And how much the Force want to keep them.
 

Fangs

Referee
Messages
21,577
Depends if they can raid Rugby juniors over there and find someone. And how much the Force want to keep them.

We should go a top 30 with RL players first.

Change the strat once the club is through its first season. The RU boys will drool at the money on offer. And its just a better sport. Won't take them long to come around.
 

Dogs Of War

Coach
Messages
13,822
We should go a top 30 with RL players first.

Change the strat once the club is through its first season. The RU boys will drool at the money on offer. And its just a better sport. Won't take them long to come around.

Oh I mean target juniors playing Rugby in WA. Not established guys. We need to get them in our programs and reprogram them. League juniors dwindled and Rugby has some established pathways. Perth need to get things setup and have it as a purpose to get there own junior program happening fast. It's not like the talent isn't there. We have had WA guys in our comp before.
 

Fangs

Referee
Messages
21,577
Oh I mean target juniors playing Rugby in WA. Not established guys. We need to get them in our programs and reprogram them. League juniors dwindled and Rugby has some established pathways. Perth need to get things setup and have it as a purpose to get there own junior program happening fast. It's not like the talent isn't there. We have had WA guys in our comp before.

Perhaps perhaps.

Just want a functioning club. Tapping into the RU player base will be the cream on top. Its already happening right now and its fantastic to see.
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
75,594
Oh I mean target juniors playing Rugby in WA. Not established guys. We need to get them in our programs and reprogram them. League juniors dwindled and Rugby has some established pathways. Perth need to get things setup and have it as a purpose to get there own junior program happening fast. It's not like the talent isn't there. We have had WA guys in our comp before.
A lot of 'rugby' kids in WA play Union and league. Until now (and since the demise of the Pirates SG ball program) at 15 the best ones stuck with Union and dropped league as there was a direct development pathway for them and moving East at that age isnt for many. We just need to make sure our pathway system in WA (ie not be shipping them off to Sydney or Brisbane to play HM and SG age) is better than the Forces.
 
Last edited:

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
75,594
Correct. But its a long term investment when it comes to Perth.

Sydney/Brisbane juniors are happy to move around clubs for a shot. Many of those clubs local down the road. Perth don't have that footprint yet.

When will Perth have their first local junior in first grade?
Well we've had a sprinkling over the years. If you mean when will see a Perth Jnr come through the Perth Bears pathways to first grade I'd say 6-10 years unless we unearth a 16-18 year old diamond or union convert. The talented 11-14 year olds in NRLWA/WARU now are the ones who hopefully make it as they've had chance to develop though our top tier age group systems. One reason the expanded SHS program will prove so important.
 

Fangs

Referee
Messages
21,577
Well we've had a sprinkling over the years. If you mean when will see a Perth Jnr come through the Perth Bears pathways to first grade I'd say 6-10 years unless we unearth a 16-18 year old diamond or union convert. The talented 11-14 year olds in NRLWA/WARU now are the ones who hopefully make it as they've had chance to develop though our top tier age group systems. One reason the expanded SHS program will prove so important.

Why not year one? On reflection that is.

Perth should absolutely have a home grown local in their top 30 come 2027. Don't you agree?

If you are trying to build an identity then start with the guys already there. The Dolphins had some one I suppose.
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
75,594
Why not year one? On reflection that is.

Perth should absolutely have a home grown local in their top 30 come 2027. Don't you agree?

If you are trying to build an identity then start with the guys already there. The Dolphins had some one I suppose.
Because the NRl was short sighted, lacked a long term expansion strategy and rather than persist with the Pirates SG ball program and introduce a Perth NSWRL cup team 5 years ago we are back starting from scratch.

We have the numbers (our jnr numbers match many NRL catchment regions) but we have lacked the elite coaching and competition to capitilise on them.

I was hoping Jackson Topine was going to be ready for us but Bulldogs broke him. Josh Rogers would have been a great squad player but its a bit late for him. Likewise Royce Hunt.
 
Last edited:

Dogs Of War

Coach
Messages
13,822

Between nrl and french union will there be anybody left ?

For Aus Union, it's probably a good thing. Occasionally some will change allegiance, but most will still end up playing for Australia. So they get forwards trained over there to be beast free of charge. And Aus Union has always been a bit crap in developing that particular position.
 

Gobsmacked

First Grade
Messages
5,926
For Aus Union, it's probably a good thing. Occasionally some will change allegiance, but most will still end up playing for Australia. So they get forwards trained over there to be beast free of charge. And Aus Union has always been a bit crap in developing that particular position.
It's funny how the default position of Union followers is always just a national team.

When Super Rugby is gone and Rugby isn't played on a professional level at all in the Pacific.. it'll probably still be.." how did we do at the world cup?"

Slowly getting hollowed out to just a shell that is trotted out as a novelty every once in a while.

Lomax is actually the testing ground for when Union needs to buy players just to fill out a test team, that's the future. Negotiating the loan of NRL players for a tournament.
 

Dogs Of War

Coach
Messages
13,822
It's funny how the default position of Union followers is always just a national team.

When Super Rugby is gone and Rugby isn't played on a professional level at all in the Pacific.. it'll probably still be.." how did we do at the world cup?"

Slowly getting hollowed out to just a shell that is trotted out as a novelty every once in a while.

Lomax is actually the testing ground for when Union needs to buy players just to fill out a test team, that's the future. Negotiating the loan of NRL players for a tournament.

Oh it isn't great for the game. But Union is not going to disappear totally no matter what no matter how big the NRL gets. They will always have some schools playing Union, and amateur clubs. The French and any other cashed up clubs overseas are always going to be targeting some guys who fit a profile they want. Most of the ones they need aren't the sort of guys who are great in the NRL anyway.

Really the money for Union just isn't there apart from that top level. But if other countries are doing the hard work of developing players, then it will tread water for a long time.
 
Messages
1,940
Looks like Lomax 'dream' aboat playing for the Wallabies lasted 1 week and already wants back into the NRL.
Yeah I had to laugh, deadly silence from the union cheer squad and officials who had been trying not to show their excitement and weeks of headlines like "Less maybe more as Lomax prepares to chase a dream, not money" 🤣 🤣 🤣 and creaming themselves about landing an NRL `star`.
In fact, the only article on him today is a rather spiteful headline in the Herald quoting some union no-name saying " Don`t really care". As if.
 
Top