Rumours and Stuff

[JokerEel]

Drown got dropped because he was playing poorly, not because he was leaving.

Though would be have been dropped if he wasn't leaving?
Wasn't the whole point of playing Joash to prepare him for 5/8 in 2026?

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Matt Burke has been at training all summer. He was one of the best in his day.

Now they're increasing the bench to six players, one of them should be a goalkicker you can sub on and off whenever needed. @T-Boon

 

[Avenger]

And we all thank you for your quality contribution, if some of the content from other posters is so triggering you know you can put everyone on ignore. Just rid youself of that all important hall monitor sash stay in your safe space bubble and set yourself free.......

Nice one. Happy new year, @Gronk.
Hopefully you realise you’re a merkin and change.

 

[Glenneel]

Id love to see us steal mclean by offering a fat stack and also hoping his agent agitates for an early release but seems unlikely. One can dream i suppose

Doubt Panfers can afford to keep both McLean and Tago so one will become available soon and that's when Eels should pounce on one. Obviously McLean the pick of the centres for me.

 

[hineyrulz]

View attachment 108712

3 in a row, you're on a roll Gronkles. It's a new year and somehow i expected more. TBF that's a me problem.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

If R.Penisini has the Aus Fullback,Winger,centres alongside him in the backline plus M.Burton I will let it slide

We need cheap players like Renisini to afford all those rep players ffs! Plus a couple of dodgy Keno TPAs.

 

[Glenneel]

He might look like a dope but I'd say Ryles knows more about rugby league than you mate.

Not sure if this is a Ryles initiative but Eels giving away Eels PJs to sick kids at Westmead Hospital. As they say, get them young, and you have a fan for life. Very good initiative imo.

 

[Timana]

Attila the Hun in his current state is a better option than Tago, tbh.

Genghis to captain.
Attilla and Hannibal the forward leaders

 

[Timana]

Though would be have been dropped if he wasn't leaving?
Wasn't the whole point of playing Joash to prepare him for 5/8 in 2026?

Yeah so are we gonna prepare Richie or Nanva for centre and drop Russell and he becomes first cover for the backline

 

[Lemon Squash]

Doubt Panfers can afford to keep both McLean and Tago so one will become available soon and that's when Eels should pounce on one. Obviously McLean the pick of the centres for me.

I actually think Jesse McLean would be an astute purchase.

Casey is an out and out freak but Jesse is still very young himself and always still been above average coming through the grades.

Much more competition at Penrith for spots and it would have to be deflating being second fiddle to your younger brother. I reckon he would be keen for an opportunity and wouldn’t cost a fortune.

 

[Soren Lorenson]

Yeah so are we gonna prepare Richie or Nanva for centre and drop Russell and he becomes first cover for the backline

No both of those will be behind Kelly. Our centres will be some combination Will and Kelly and Russell, and I can’t see Will being behind the other two whether we like it or not. And then if we need to go further we may even play Simmo at centre and find another winger. Like Tago or Samrani!!!!!

 

[Stevie]

Lomax was very underwhelming last season .

yes , he put his hand up repeatedly for tough carries and that’s what we’ll miss and need to replace probably more collectively than any one person. He also lead the kick chase often , wasn’t too successful in competing for many high balls but the fact he got down there inspired others to chase down there and they’re going to have to keep doing that

I thought he was also close to the worst defensive winger in the comp . There was no real desire from him to be the best winger he could be when it came to that area of the game. Positionally he was bad , he often gambled and lost . He also lacks speed , his goal kicking is inconsistent . He was a long way from the finished product as an NRL quality winger and we know he had no real ambition to become that . What he offered us is replaceable more from a collective I feel . Guys are going to need to add to their game and improve on what they’ve shown in the past but with proper coaching and attention to detail there’s no reason why they can’t hold thier own. I get the feeling many here have spent too long watching the BA era but there seems to be genuine coaching and development happening with this staff and hopefully the players we have and add to our backline really pick up the slack .
You wonf get far in this comp if you continually go to market and pay top dollar to entice guys to your club.

So the answer is to NOT go to market to entice elite players? Our club obviously disagrees as we’ve been trying but unable to get anyone. Your attitude is the same one we’ve had for a long time.

“Shell be right next year”. It’s pathetic.

 

[Stevie]

Simmo should get lomax’s spot if he gets his attitude right and is injury free. He played some decent footy on the wing prior to injuries, making good metres. Isnt the sharpest tool in the shed, just simplify his game and tell him to run for 200m+ each week.
Russel formed a decent combo with the fox and improved last year. Still only young so hopefully improves physically over the off season.
Penisini and the fox will get the other 2 spots. Kelly as backup and Samrani as a utility cover. Richie Penisini was nowhere near first grade level last year, would need a big offseason to change that.

“Just simplify his game and tell him to run 200m+ each week”.

Are you merkins serious? You think it’s that easy?!!! Do you know what sort of players do that?!!!

You merkins are off your head, seriously.

 

[Glenneel]

Who wouldn't want to get coached by them though.
Flanno isn't a coach players would take a pay cut to play for. KK would be on more than the 1.1 to leave Souths to play for him..

I think the 5 years was the reason KK went there. As someone said, overpaying a player past his prime on big money is a disaster (think RCG and Gutho) and that is a real possibility here.

 

[Stevie]

Attila the Hun in his current state is a better option than Tago, tbh.

I think he is contracted to the Broncos.

 

[The Predictor]

Do you think Russell will get a bit of Dylbro treatment and JR moves him around or even plays reggies

I think so, maybe not reggies, but I reckon it will be different circumstances for him this year

 

[Obscene Assassin]

Simmo should get lomax’s spot if he gets his attitude right and is injury free. He played some decent footy on the wing prior to injuries, making good metres. Isnt the sharpest tool in the shed, just simplify his game and tell him to run for 200m+ each week.
Russel formed a decent combo with the fox and improved last year. Still only young so hopefully improves physically over the off season.
Penisini and the fox will get the other 2 spots. Kelly as backup and Samrani as a utility cover. Richie Penisini was nowhere near first grade level last year, would need a big offseason to change that.

From memory Lomax gave us just under 200m per game in 2025. In his 7 games Simonsson offered us 160m per game. So we need to find somewhere to make up 40m per game to offset that loss. Basic logic tells us that we'll need an extra 10m extra per game from Penisini, Russell (or whoever plays left centre), Foxx, and Iongi. If we expand that we could say that a quicker defensive line speed can also make up those metres.

This one is unquantifiable but Lomax had the most errors of all players in 2025, how many of those 7 tackle sets he gave away when just sticking his hand up when contesting the ball negated how many metres he made for us? If we tweak a few things to our overall game plan we'll be able to offset his loss.

What we need to do is replace his position in the top 30. If rumours come to fruition that we'll sign Kelly that means one of he, Simonsson or Russell will be playing reserve grade. There's still more to do on the recruitment side but with Lomax one of Simonsson or Russell was playing reserve grade anyway.

 

[The Predictor]

I think the 5 years was the reason KK went there. As someone said, overpaying a player past his prime on big money is a disaster (think RCG and Gutho) and that is a real possibility here.

RCG was good at Parra and more than decent when he left, he went to shit once signing with GC

 

[JokerEel]

Yeah so are we gonna prepare Richie or Nanva for centre and drop Russell and he becomes first cover for the backline

Depends if we are out of finals contention

 

[Matty Bhoy]

RCG was good at Parra and more than decent when he left, he went to shit once signing with GC

Chopping him early was an excellent decision. It was much decried on here but Ryles got it absolutely spot on.