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What a Roster, Great Position to be in .

VodkaSaint

Juniors
Messages
1,449
Its been a long time since Ive seen our Dragons so strong with depth across the park, lets hope the roster can be managed well and the right players kept on long term deals.
with such a roster you can have problems, lets say one player is favored rather than been the right player for his position , you can bet someone wants a release , there might in house bitterness in the team etc,
Also Saints need to act fast this year and make the right decision on who to keep/upgrade , its a good position to be in if the Coach can handle it and make the right decisions thats for sure,
will Norman fire, if not will Field be given a chance.
Is Gareth going to make the number 1 his own Or is Dufty the right person.
Marsters, Dufty Lomax, all can play full back.
Pearson, Ravalawa , Saab , Pereira all fighting for a wing spot.
Lomax, Aitken, Lafai, centers.
Hunt, Field, Saillor, Widdop , Nicholls Norman , Halves.
With Widdop, Latimore finishing at the end of year, we can retain the likes of field lawrie , timm.
Im also hoping Graham stays on as the Forwards coach.
And look at the depth on the forwards, Going to be an interesting year.
Im looking forward to a big year from our saints, this could be the year or one to build on for the next ten years , Hope its managed correctly and not blown up in our faces .
 

possm

Coach
Messages
15,587
Its been a long time since Ive seen our Dragons so strong with depth across the park, lets hope the roster can be managed well and the right players kept on long term deals.
with such a roster you can have problems, lets say one player is favored rather than been the right player for his position , you can bet someone wants a release , there might in house bitterness in the team etc,
Also Saints need to act fast this year and make the right decision on who to keep/upgrade , its a good position to be in if the Coach can handle it and make the right decisions thats for sure,
will Norman fire, if not will Field be given a chance.
Is Gareth going to make the number 1 his own Or is Dufty the right person.
Marsters, Dufty Lomax, all can play full back.
Pearson, Ravalawa , Saab , Pereira all fighting for a wing spot.
Lomax, Aitken, Lafai, centers.
Hunt, Field, Saillor, Widdop , Nicholls Norman , Halves.
With Widdop, Latimore finishing at the end of year, we can retain the likes of field lawrie , timm.
Im also hoping Graham stays on as the Forwards coach.
And look at the depth on the forwards, Going to be an interesting year.
Im looking forward to a big year from our saints, this could be the year or one to build on for the next ten years , Hope its managed correctly and not blown up in our faces .

Millward has been given the job of pathways, recruitment and retention matters. He will have the final say but may or may not listen to Mary. I'd say that the contract extension of Robson and Lomax should be our first priority at this stage.

Fullback
I was pleased with the way Dufty played yesterday, it appears Dufty has done some work to improve his defence of the off-season. I was not happy with the way Widdop played however, it may be that his shoulder is not quite right as yet. At the moment I think thsed two players are the only ones under consideration for fullback. I hold the view that if Widdop is not fit enough to play fullback, he won't be fit enough to play five-eighth.

Wingers
Pereira put is best foot forward and Ravalawa did a great job in his first hit out in first grade for the Club. Hopefully, we will see Pearson in action in the Charity Shield Game. So it is still too early to tell however, I believe with another good hit out in the Charity Shield Game, Ravalawa would be the front runner for the right wing left vacant by Nightingale and McDonald. At this stage Pearson would have to do something really special to win the left wing spot.

Centres
Neither Aitken, Lafai or Lomax performed well during the game against Newcastle. Aitken was absolutely awful while Lafai seemed disinterested to me. It was not Lomax's best performance however, I seen enough to confirm my preference of Lomax over Aitken. It would not surprise me at all to see a Lomax / Masters or a Lomax / Pearson centre combination by mid season.

Halves
The Hunt / Norman combination did not click during the game against Newcastle. Hunt seemed to have the majority control of play while Norman was content to just go through the process. I sincerely hope that this combination shows more in the up-coming Charity Shield Game. On the other hand Field showed the benefit of work put in during the off-season with body shaping and confidence in defence.
 

rednwhites

Juniors
Messages
1,303
I know that was just a trial against a pretty meh outfit but law of averages tells us that at least one or two of those new name/first grade virgins are going to have big seasons and make a name for themselves.

2019 should be a big year for the Dragons. A premiership year.
 

Drag Queen

Bench
Messages
2,981
Millward has been given the job of pathways, recruitment and retention matters. He will have the final say but may or may not listen to Mary. I'd say that the contract extension of Robson and Lomax should be our first priority at this stage.

Fullback
I was pleased with the way Dufty played yesterday, it appears Dufty has done some work to improve his defence of the off-season. I was not happy with the way Widdop played however, it may be that his shoulder is not quite right as yet. At the moment I think thsed two players are the only ones under consideration for fullback. I hold the view that if Widdop is not fit enough to play fullback, he won't be fit enough to play five-eighth.

Wingers
Pereira put is best foot forward and Ravalawa did a great job in his first hit out in first grade for the Club. Hopefully, we will see Pearson in action in the Charity Shield Game. So it is still too early to tell however, I believe with another good hit out in the Charity Shield Game, Ravalawa would be the front runner for the right wing left vacant by Nightingale and McDonald. At this stage Pearson would have to do something really special to win the left wing spot.

Centres
Neither Aitken, Lafai or Lomax performed well during the game against Newcastle. Aitken was absolutely awful while Lafai seemed disinterested to me. It was not Lomax's best performance however, I seen enough to confirm my preference of Lomax over Aitken. It would not surprise me at all to see a Lomax / Masters or a Lomax / Pearson centre combination by mid season.

Halves
The Hunt / Norman combination did not click during the game against Newcastle. Hunt seemed to have the majority control of play while Norman was content to just go through the process. I sincerely hope that this combination shows more in the up-coming Charity Shield Game. On the other hand Field showed the benefit of work put in during the off-season with body shaping and confidence in defence.
I could wax lyrical about this trial. I think you're spot on regarding the centres though. I haven't seen much of Lomax to form an opinion. A lot of hype and he failed to deliver. Aitken was worse. Widdop looked fit to me. I would have preferred him at 5/8 but he didn't disappoint at FB either.
 

LINESPEED

Juniors
Messages
1,551
Millward has been given the job of pathways, recruitment and retention matters. He will have the final say but may or may not listen to Mary. I'd say that the contract extension of Robson and Lomax should be our first priority at this stage.

Fullback
I was pleased with the way Dufty played yesterday, it appears Dufty has done some work to improve his defence of the off-season. I was not happy with the way Widdop played however, it may be that his shoulder is not quite right as yet. At the moment I think thsed two players are the only ones under consideration for fullback. I hold the view that if Widdop is not fit enough to play fullback, he won't be fit enough to play five-eighth.

Wingers
Pereira put is best foot forward and Ravalawa did a great job in his first hit out in first grade for the Club. Hopefully, we will see Pearson in action in the Charity Shield Game. So it is still too early to tell however, I believe with another good hit out in the Charity Shield Game, Ravalawa would be the front runner for the right wing left vacant by Nightingale and McDonald. At this stage Pearson would have to do something really special to win the left wing spot.

Centres
Neither Aitken, Lafai or Lomax performed well during the game against Newcastle. Aitken was absolutely awful while Lafai seemed disinterested to me. It was not Lomax's best performance however, I seen enough to confirm my preference of Lomax over Aitken. It would not surprise me at all to see a Lomax / Masters or a Lomax / Pearson centre combination by mid season.

Halves
The Hunt / Norman combination did not click during the game against Newcastle. Hunt seemed to have the majority control of play while Norman was content to just go through the process. I sincerely hope that this combination shows more in the up-coming Charity Shield Game. On the other hand Field showed the benefit of work put in during the off-season with body shaping and confidence in defence.

The PAL
(Pereira,Aitken,Lafai,Latimore) factor will be all over the Rd1 teamsheet.

Which will certainly cast a pall over our season if continued as per previous seasons.

So I don’t expect good selections.

Only forced changes will be likely

If Dufty,Field,Lomax,Robson & a brace of young forwards spend significant time in ISP without rotation then expect to lose some real talent.

Waterboy can’t & won’t change his ways - and it’s just a matter of how much damage he inflicts on our potential IMO

Some boneless ham for lunch actually
 
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Old Timer

Coach
Messages
16,914
What a load of twaddle re Lomax not delivering yesterday.
He made a couple of errors as did almost everyone but he also did some little things very nicely as well and his defence is 1st class and streets ahead of another centre on display from our side.
The game never really cracked open in the 1st half because our halves were woeful, yes that is the correct word woeful, so anyone in the outside backs had limited chances especially Lomax outside the "cold spoon" (thank you to the poster who coined that).
What did everyone expect from him a game breaking / winning semi final performance FMD wake up and give him a chance?
Hunt and Norman were far more of a worry yesterday considering all the hype surrounding there respective signings.
Norman catch and pass on sweep plays and that was about it and Hunt failing to take on the line and abysmal in defence.
All the hype around other 2nd half performances need to be balanced on the basis of what the strength of the opposite side was and TBH it wasn't very good.
IMO our roster has some holes in it and that is because our beloved 2019 coach will go conservative in the event of injuries and the likes of Field, Kerr, Timms, Masters will rot in ISP whilst Allgood, Nicholls
etc will be elevated and if you don't believe that have a look at who was the 1st interchange player yesterday, yep good old Jeremy Latimore how f**king imaginative of us to come up with that.
Maranta will see 1st grade before the young players who at least have speed and imagination.
So well may you say our roster has depth (not in the centres that's for sure) it will be amazing to what depths Mc Fookknuckle will go to have his older statesmen make the team.
 

getsmarty

Immortal
Messages
33,485
What a load of twaddle re Lomax not delivering yesterday.
He made a couple of errors as did almost everyone but he also did some little things very nicely as well and his defence is 1st class and streets ahead of another centre on display from our side.
The game never really cracked open in the 1st half because our halves were woeful, yes that is the correct word woeful, so anyone in the outside backs had limited chances especially Lomax outside the "cold spoon" (thank you to the poster who coined that).
What did everyone expect from him a game breaking / winning semi final performance FMD wake up and give him a chance?
Hunt and Norman were far more of a worry yesterday considering all the hype surrounding there respective signings.
Norman catch and pass on sweep plays and that was about it and Hunt failing to take on the line and abysmal in defence.
All the hype around other 2nd half performances need to be balanced on the basis of what the strength of the opposite side was and TBH it wasn't very good.
IMO our roster has some holes in it and that is because our beloved 2019 coach will go conservative in the event of injuries and the likes of Field, Kerr, Timms, Masters will rot in ISP whilst Allgood, Nicholls
etc will be elevated and if you don't believe that have a look at who was the 1st interchange player yesterday, yep good old Jeremy Latimore how f**king imaginative of us to come up with that.
Maranta will see 1st grade before the young players who at least have speed and imagination.
So well may you say our roster has depth (not in the centres that's for sure) it will be amazing to what depths Mc Fookknuckle will go to have his older statesmen make the team.

Correct...which may lead to guys like Kerr/Timm/Field and others looking for a 1st grade spot elsewhere...Lomax has far more upside than Aitken as a centre....I'd play Lomax and Norman in the centres and drop both Aitken & Lafai...
 

LINESPEED

Juniors
Messages
1,551
What a load of twaddle re Lomax not delivering yesterday.
He made a couple of errors as did almost everyone but he also did some little things very nicely as well and his defence is 1st class and streets ahead of another centre on display from our side.
The game never really cracked open in the 1st half because our halves were woeful, yes that is the correct word woeful, so anyone in the outside backs had limited chances especially Lomax outside the "cold spoon" (thank you to the poster who coined that).
What did everyone expect from him a game breaking / winning semi final performance FMD wake up and give him a chance?
Hunt and Norman were far more of a worry yesterday considering all the hype surrounding there respective signings.
Norman catch and pass on sweep plays and that was about it and Hunt failing to take on the line and abysmal in defence.
All the hype around other 2nd half performances need to be balanced on the basis of what the strength of the opposite side was and TBH it wasn't very good.
IMO our roster has some holes in it and that is because our beloved 2019 coach will go conservative in the event of injuries and the likes of Field, Kerr, Timms, Masters will rot in ISP whilst Allgood, Nicholls
etc will be elevated and if you don't believe that have a look at who was the 1st interchange player yesterday, yep good old Jeremy Latimore how f**king imaginative of us to come up with that.
Maranta will see 1st grade before the young players who at least have speed and imagination.
So well may you say our roster has depth (not in the centres that's for sure) it will be amazing to what depths Mc Fookknuckle will go to have his older statesmen make the team.


Agree with everything you say OT.
Just watching a replay of the Parra flogging - and our backs were so sh*t ordinary - esp the bog ordinary lazy & talentless outside backs
- the PALs esp.

I see journeyman Allgood’s getting a run in the media -preparatory no doubt to being moved up Waterboy’s bench pecking order.

If Hunt goes walkabout again (Bennett had to drop him to snap him out of his torpor), then Field, not Nichols, should replace him.

Were/Are Hunt, Widdop & Norman such great buys anyway?

I mean, where’s the trophy?

Had Field been properly groomed at 5/8, & Bird & Cook retained, we’d won the trophy last year despite the elephant in the coaching box.

Apologies, but I remain biased towards juniors & genuine pathways
 
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Carlton

Juniors
Messages
1,223
The first half saw both sides rollout their big guns and the Dragons were more than holding their own. The second half saw both sides roll out ISP teams, all that can really be taken from the second half was that we look good for ISP.

In the second half Field, Timms, Kerr, Dufty, Robson looked dangerous but it was not first grade quality opposition.

The amount of nonsense regarding Hunt and Norman after their first 40 minutes together is ridiculous. Hunt made a break, Norman was directing players the entire first half and put in a beautiful left foot bomb that Widdop almost regathered. The biggest problem in the first half was the centres.
 

Crush

Coach
Messages
10,411
Millward has been given the job of pathways, recruitment and retention matters. He will have the final say but may or may not listen to Mary. I'd say that the contract extension of Robson and Lomax should be our first priority at this stage.

Fullback
I was pleased with the way Dufty played yesterday, it appears Dufty has done some work to improve his defence of the off-season. I was not happy with the way Widdop played however, it may be that his shoulder is not quite right as yet. At the moment I think thsed two players are the only ones under consideration for fullback. I hold the view that if Widdop is not fit enough to play fullback, he won't be fit enough to play five-eighth.

Wingers
Pereira put is best foot forward and Ravalawa did a great job in his first hit out in first grade for the Club. Hopefully, we will see Pearson in action in the Charity Shield Game. So it is still too early to tell however, I believe with another good hit out in the Charity Shield Game, Ravalawa would be the front runner for the right wing left vacant by Nightingale and McDonald. At this stage Pearson would have to do something really special to win the left wing spot.

Centres
Neither Aitken, Lafai or Lomax performed well during the game against Newcastle. Aitken was absolutely awful while Lafai seemed disinterested to me. It was not Lomax's best performance however, I seen enough to confirm my preference of Lomax over Aitken. It would not surprise me at all to see a Lomax / Masters or a Lomax / Pearson centre combination by mid season.

Halves
The Hunt / Norman combination did not click during the game against Newcastle. Hunt seemed to have the majority control of play while Norman was content to just go through the process. I sincerely hope that this combination shows more in the up-coming Charity Shield Game. On the other hand Field showed the benefit of work put in during the off-season with body shaping and confidence in defence.
It's time to make some big changes to the backs. We have the best forward pack in the comp and one of the weakest backlines.
Enough is enough is Lafai and Aitken. They are letting this team down and you will not win a comp with these guys.
My backline to play charity shield.
1. Dufty
2. Saab
3. Lomax
4. Ravalawa
5. Pearson
See how they go. Sink or swim.
 

getsmarty

Immortal
Messages
33,485
I have been saying that I think we have the second best roster in the comp. Now we look to have a quite a bit of depth this year too.. I really believe that we have a roster that can challenge for a premiership over the next 2 seasons. I don't have confidence in Mary selecting the right players.

I don't have confidence in Mary..FULLSTOP.
 

possm

Coach
Messages
15,587
It's time to make some big changes to the backs. We have the best forward pack in the comp and one of the weakest backlines.
Enough is enough is Lafai and Aitken. They are letting this team down and you will not win a comp with these guys.
My backline to play charity shield.
1. Dufty
2. Saab
3. Lomax
4. Ravalawa
5. Pearson
See how they go. Sink or swim.

Not bad, I'd go for:
1. Widdop or Dufty
2. Saab
3. Lomax
4. Pearson
5. Ravalawa
6. Norman
7. Hunt
 

giboz71

First Grade
Messages
8,895
The problem with having great depth is that only 17 get to run out every week.

Balancing the roster, selecting on form, and keeping everyone fresh and motivated is more key this year than ever.

It will take a good coach to work all that out. Unfortunately, our current coach has shown no ability to do this in the past.

I just hope he’s learnt something the last 2 years especially.
 

LINESPEED

Juniors
Messages
1,551
It's time to make some big changes to the backs. We have the best forward pack in the comp and one of the weakest backlines.
Enough is enough is Lafai and Aitken. They are letting this team down and you will not win a comp with these guys.
My backline to play charity shield.
1. Dufty
2. Saab
3. Lomax
4. Ravalawa
5. Pearson
See how they go. Sink or swim.

Anyone (although preferably some juniors) EXCEPT the
CHOSEN ONES
 

Drag Queen

Bench
Messages
2,981
Agree with everything you say OT.
Just watching a replay of the Parra flogging - and our backs were so sh*t ordinary - esp the bog ordinary lazy & talentless outside backs
- the PALs esp.

I see journeyman Allgood’s getting a run in the media -preparatory no doubt to being moved up Waterboy’s bench pecking order.

If Hunt goes walkabout again (Bennett had to drop him to snap him out of his torpor), then Field, not Nichols, should replace him.

Were/Are Hunt, Widdop & Norman such great buys anyway?

I mean, where’s the trophy?

Had Field been properly groomed at 5/8, & Bird & Cook retained, we’d won the trophy last year despite the elephant in the coaching box.

Apologies, but I’m remain biased towards juniors & genuine pathways
Bird and Cook have long left the nest. Ancient history. Field was a bit of a revelation to me yesterday. We paid overs for Hunt and I hope like hell he delivers this season. You answered your own question re: the elephant in the coaching box. With the bald one at the helm we have Buckley's and none of lifting any trophy soon.
 

Saint_JimmyG

First Grade
Messages
5,067
Gloss it up as much as you want, but Saints are extremely light on the wing and halfback.

Regarding Rawalawa, it must be remembered that he played against a mediocre side and that he won’t get the luxury of such poor defence in first grade. Lomax and Pierera will be McGregor’s first preference and barring injury, this will remain resolute throughout the season.

Likewise, if Hunt gets injured, Darren Nicolls will play his second ever NRL game (aged 30).

Not good enough.

I would’ve also liked to have seen another established prop recruited externally. Hopefully, Josh Kerr can break his shackles.
 
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