Bears Confirmed & Rumoured Signings

[Gobsmacked]

The rest of us understood it bruh.

I'm glad someone did

 

[SirPies&Beers]

I'm glad someone did

makes complete sense he even broke down club comparisons. raiders were fading as a squad when it took over. lauries, sticky, clydes were back end of career. mal was late 30's trying to refreshen a team and made some ruthless calls to let mates go/leave and not re-sign them.

he put up winning percentage stats. 53% in his first tilt in an era dominated by broncos is pretty good. and he is right its that last season that stunk.

here is brad arthurs first full 5 seasons coaching (i didnt count his 6 game foray in 2012)


now mal's 5 seasons


ciraldos first 3 seasons


websters first 3 seasons


mcguires first 5 seasons are very good (minus 2016) and he won a prem


now look at mcguires last 5 (full) seasons are average and he won a prem.


so is Mal REALLY that bad a club coach? @Red&BlackBear is right. Stats dont back that narrative out.

he also never said mal made those origin players, he said he got them up for the games. this is after losses in 03-05 with a lucky draw in 02. he also said those players werent known stars when mal took over. qld in 2006 had a real whats up team. mogg, bell plus the champions now were only 2/3 years into their careers. hindsight is what makes it look like a killer side, at the time they were rank outsiders.

you question his man-management skills. rep teams are all about management (as opposed to coaching).

The rest of us understood it bruh.

i knows right but gobthroat struggles to tie his shoes. not surprising cob.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

article on James McDonnell

Brother Bear: Harry's role in bringing Leeds 'bodyguard' to Perth

Bears recruit James McDonnell says a couple of pieces of fateful happenstance - involving Leeds team-mate Harry Newman and girlfriend Olivia - have led him to be starting a new life in Perth.

www.nrl.com

 

[Gobsmacked]

makes complete sense he even broke down club comparisons. raiders were fading as a squad when it took over. lauries, sticky, clydes were back end of career. mal was late 30's trying to refreshen a team and made some ruthless calls to let mates go/leave and not re-sign them.

he put up winning percentage stats. 53% in his first tilt in an era dominated by broncos is pretty good. and he is right its that last season that stunk.

here is brad arthurs first full 5 seasons coaching (i didnt count his 6 game foray in 2012)
View attachment 109051

now mal's 5 seasons
View attachment 109053

ciraldos first 3 seasons
View attachment 109054

websters first 3 seasons
View attachment 109055

mcguires first 5 seasons are very good (minus 2016) and he won a prem
View attachment 109056

now look at mcguires last 5 (full) seasons are average and he won a prem.
View attachment 109058

so is Mal REALLY that bad a club coach? @Red&BlackBear is right. Stats dont back that narrative out.

he also never said mal made those origin players, he said he got them up for the games. this is after losses in 03-05 with a lucky draw in 02. he also said those players werent known stars when mal took over. qld in 2006 had a real whats up team. mogg, bell plus the champions now were only 2/3 years into their careers. hindsight is what makes it look like a killer side, at the time they were rank outsiders.

you question his man-management skills. rep teams are all about management (as opposed to coaching).


i knows right but gobthroat struggles to tie his shoes. not surprising cob.

Yeah..nah.
As much as I enjoy watching you boys twist yourselves into knots.
Mal saw no success at the Raiders.
The players Mal had the privilege of coaching at QLD were once in a generation superstars that Mal had very little hand creating.

He is the coach of Perth, as much as any other coach in the NRL. If he wishes to outsource any of those responsibilities, that's on him as coach, as it is with every other coach.

He hasn't coached in decades and decades ago had no success.


Have you ever considered having your own opinion?

 

[Ashburn]

Some ppl are happy to have a surface level opinion I guess. Others like to analyse deeper.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Yeah..nah.
As much as I enjoy watching you boys twist yourselves into knots.
Mal saw no success at the Raiders.
The players Mal had the privilege of coaching at QLD were once in a generation superstars that Mal had very little hand creating.

He is the coach of Perth, as much as any other coach in the NRL. If he wishes to outsource any of those responsibilities, that's on him as coach, as it is with every other coach.

He hasn't coached in decades and decades ago had no success.


Have you ever considered having your own opinion?

what knots? you get stats and blatantly ignore them. you get context and blatantly ignore it. lol its funny and it's making ya look even more moronic. poor trolleyboy gobthroat, cant take a clue. not very smart is ya.

whats your issue with facts? do they interfere with ya shit takes lol. every time ya challenged the one poster in the know with the bears stuff he keeps crushing ya and making ya look stupid. it's hilarious.

poor gobthroat, just cant take a hint,

Some ppl are happy to have a surface level opinion I guess. Others like to analyse deeper.

helps when people actually lived through it. you can tells who wasnt watching footy back then.
its clear that gobthroat is just jealous, he wishes he was involved in the game but he is too busy buying sticks with his trolley boy wage.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

‘See what’s out there’: Super League star on radar of multiple NRL clubs — Whispers​

Ethan Lee Chalk from Fox Sports
January 19th, 2026 11:56 am

Super League hooker Jarrod O’Connor could potentially find himself becoming the latest Leeds Rhinos player to make the switch to the NRL, with the 24-year-old finding himself in hot demand.
According to rugbyleaguehub.com, the young dummy-half has attracted the interest of two clubs down under.

While the two teams have not yet been named, there are growing whispers that one of these clubs could be the Perth Bears who have already secured two of his current teammates in Harry Newman and James McDonnell.

“It’d always be interesting to listen and see what’s out there. There’s obviously different lifestyles over here and all different competition, which would be interesting, but I’m not pushing for it,” he told Serious About Rugby League.

“It’s always interesting, like it is with anyone who’s out of contracts, any clubs coming in, even if it’s over here, it’s someone to listen to, but I’m hopefully close to getting something sorted soon.”

As O’Connor contemplates his next move, English international Owen Trout has decided against a potential switch to the NRL and is set to re-sign with the Leigh Leopards on a multi-year contract, according to LoveRugbyLeague.

The Bears are reportedly circling UK dummy-half Jarrod O’Connor.Source: FOX SPORTS

A member of England’s 2025 Ashes Series squad against Australia, Trout has established himself as one of the brightest forwards in the Super League competition and is entering the prime of his career.

Although he has extended with the Leopards, it is understood that clauses in his contract would still allow him to move down under at certain points and he has already commanded interest from NRL clubs.

“I’d love to go over there (to Australia) and have a crack,” Trout said at the backend of last year.

“I don’t really have a vision (for my career), but I want to keep playing for my country and have a nice, long career.
“I want to be able to make some good investments and some good money to sort out that things will look after themselves later on in life.

“I want to make sure I work hard enough in this part of my life to be able to relax a little bit more in later life.”

Wallabies flyer’s big NRL switch tease; painful ‘waiting game’ on Tino — Transfer Whispers

Wallabies flyer’s big NRL switch tease; painful ‘waiting game’ on Tino — Transfer Whispers

www.foxsports.com.au

 

[Gobsmacked]

what knots? you get stats and blatantly ignore them. you get context and blatantly ignore it. lol its funny and it's making ya look even more moronic. poor trolleyboy gobthroat, cant take a clue. not very smart is ya.

whats your issue with facts? do they interfere with ya shit takes lol. every time ya challenged the one poster in the know with the bears stuff he keeps crushing ya and making ya look stupid. it's hilarious.

poor gobthroat, just cant take a hint,

helps when people actually lived through it. you can tells who wasnt watching footy back then.
its clear that gobthroat is just jealous, he wishes he was involved in the game but he is too busy buying sticks with his trolley boy wage.

Such dedication to trash talk lol

Love it, keep em coming.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Such dedication to trash talk lol

Love it, keep em coming.

well the more clueless stupid shit with no truths that you post, the more i'll highlight it.
so it'll keep coming for as long as you keep posting gobthroat the trolleyboy

 

[Gobsmacked]

Some ppl are happy to have a surface level opinion I guess. Others like to analyse deeper.

Mine is a deep opinion based on a broad overview.
Mal was in charge of an established NRL franchise for years that was meh..for years, final year was less than Meh..
That was 2 decades ago. The game is a far tougher beast today than it was then and the task is twice as great.

That in mind, it could be argued that he has no real record at all , not in the modern game, the speed, the professionalism, the rule changes.. the tackling technique alone has evolved incredibly.
And
Rep coaches coaching NRL have a poor record and vis versa. Actually, the better you are at one usually points to being even worse at the other, I'm sure there will be outliers.

I would have preferred a coach with hands on experience in the modern game with some record of success doing it. I thought Arthur would have been better suited, he has coached a team to a GF, he has overseen to development of players from rookie to modern stars .
He's one example, I'm sure there's others.

I hope I'm wrong, I hope Perth get up.
But if you look at this with both eyes, objectively, it paints are far different picture than the one the Bears faithful are preaching.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Mine is a deep opinion based on a broad overview.
Mal was in charge of an established NRL franchise for years that was meh..for years, final year was less than Meh..
That was 2 decades ago. The game is a far tougher beast today than it was then and the task is twice as great.

That in mind, it could be argued that he has no real record at all , not in the modern game, the speed, the professionalism, the rule changes.. the tackling technique alone has evolved incredibly.
And
Rep coaches coaching NRL have a poor record and vis versa. Actually, the better you are at one usually points to being even worse at the other, I'm sure there will be outliers.

I would have preferred a coach with hands on experience in the modern game with some record of success doing it. I thought Arthur would have been better suited, he has coached a team to a GF, he has overseen to development of players from rookie to modern stars .
He's one example, I'm sure there's others.

I hope I'm wrong, I hope Perth get up.
But if you look at this with both eyes, objectively, it paints are far different picture than the one the Bears faithful are preaching.

absolute rubbish post with 0 facts. broad overview lol
you boast arthur as an example yet quickly brushed away his own record when provided with the like for like stats with no thought that he was up and down lol.

again for fair comparison cause ya turned blind eye.

here is brad arthurs first full 5 seasons coaching (i didnt count his 6 game foray in 2012)

now mal's 5 seasons

no stats back ya up, no context gives your rubbish opinion substance lol
again ya brush aside the facts that mal coaches a raiders side that was in transitional change lol

gobthroat the trolley boy thinking he knows alot but evident he knows nothing.
ya keeping getting owned trolleyboy gobthroat.

 

[Gobsmacked]

absolute rubbish post with 0 facts. broad overview lol
you boast arthur as an example yet quickly brushed away his own record when provided with the like for like stats with no thought that he was up and down lol.

again for fair comparison cause ya turned blind eye.

here is brad arthurs first full 5 seasons coaching (i didnt count his 6 game foray in 2012)

now mal's 5 seasons

no stats back ya up, no context gives your rubbish opinion substance lol
again ya brush aside the facts that mal coaches a raiders side that was in transitional change lol

gobthroat the trolley boy thinking he knows alot but evident he knows nothing.
ya keeping getting owned trolleyboy gobthroat.

His resume isn't 20 years old , I thought I made the importance of that clear.

Trolleyboy gobthroat?

Still better than " sirPies&beers".. what on earth were you thinking?

 

[SirPies&Beers]

His resume isn't 20 years old , I thought I made the importance of that clear.

Trolleyboy gobthroat?

Still better than " sirPies&beers".. what on earth were you thinking?

youre a 32 year old trolley boy.
you gob things down ya throat with no shame.

so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

 

[Gobsmacked]

youre a 32 year old trolley boy.
you gob things down ya throat with no shame.

so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

Your insults are getting kinda desperate.
Got anything else?

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Your insults are getting kinda desperate.
Got anything else?

dont need to

youve proven what a hack you are by again side stepping something.

i can just repeat the below lol
so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

 

[Gobsmacked]

dont need to

youve proven what a hack you are by again side stepping something.

i can just repeat the below lol
so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

Knowing that you go to the effort to manually type trolleyboy gobthroat each time is hilarious.
Get a life.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Knowing that you go to the effort to manually type trolleyboy gobthroat each time is hilarious.
Get a life.

knowing ya still side stepping this

so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

is hilarious.
get an education trollyboy gobthroat lol

 

[SirPies&Beers]

He also has Jesse Colqhuoun on that list.
I said in this very thread ages ago that JC isn't leaving the Sharks, and he isn't.
Have a look at that Telegraph list of players and notice that JC's name isn't on it, for very good reason, they all know where he is continuing his career.
R and B would surely know that Colqhoun has rejected Perths offer. Its pretty well known now in the Cronulla circles.

I also wrote at the end of my wish list post
I’d be surprised if even half those players are nabbed, there will be more English contingent coming which I didn’t list.

It’s a personal wish list, nothing more. Jess would be a good get but if it isn’t to be, it isn’t to be.

jesse extends for sharkies for 4 years.

good call gents. i think bears were reserved they werent getting him for a while but ya can hope.
good retention @bad boy bubby

 

[Gobsmacked]

knowing ya still side stepping this

so now ya want to highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

is hilarious.
get an education trollyboy gobthroat lol

Still going, what a loser.

 

[SirPies&Beers]

Still going, what a loser.

poor gobthroat,
he can take the time to reply but still cant explain why he wants to
highlight context in ya post while clearly brushing context aside in others posters posts? lol
sure, ok. whatever ya think trolleyboy gobthroat.

he tries to make fun of people when they provide stats, facts and context. but then gets offended when people call him out on his incorrect posts with no facts and cries when people attack his lacking context.

poor gobthroat,