I'll post the full article because it's an interesting read into the future for the club.
Foundation Work: original blueprint vital guide in restoring castle to former glory
Brian Smith
17/08/07
Part of the plan for the Knights in season 2007 was to prepare for LAA (Life After Andrew).
We got there a whole heap earlier than anyone anticipated or wanted.
Adjusting the timing of that plan was necessary because there was no choice - it just had to be done.
The part that required immediate reaction has been met with some mixed results, but until a couple of weeks back our boys had battled pretty well to keep us in the hunt for a play-off spot.
Another part of the Knights plan was to assess the junior talent within the Hunter Region and look at ways to best maximise that base.
It is where we all hope the future Knights players are, and giving them a high-quality program to develop their talents will become near to the top of our priorities for next season and beyond.
The way most other NRL clubs trawl the pool of footy talent these days means that counting on your own kids for your club without building a great relationship with them from a young age leaves them wide open to being hooked out of their home club.
The Knights, in the early phase of their proud 20-year history, had a remarkable production rate.
So many young talents of the highest order made their way all the way to the top at the Knights and eventually to a couple of premiership victories.
Today there are quite a few of those who have slipped through the net and are now using those talents at other NRL clubs - too many to mention here.
That's not a knock on anyone - it just shows how times have changed and how we must take account of those fierce opponents we have in the recruitment stakes.
Getting better at identifying talent and showing our own kids that we are the best way for them to make it to the top is a big part of what we must do.
Looking back can sometimes` provide answers for the best way to a prosperous future, and in this case I have the benefit of some inside knowledge.
That era where so many high-quality players were identified, produced and retained had a systemised approach.
The Head coach was at the helm of not only the big boys' program at NRL level, but also he ensured that all players and coaches down to Harold Matthews Cup(under 16's) were on the same page, learning how to prepare and play Knights style.
When you look back on the names of the coaches and other associated staff driving that program to huge successes, it makes for impressive reading.
Daivid Waite, Peter Sharp and Keith Onslow, for starters, have gone on to make big names for themselves in coaching ,administration and talent identification and development in footy at the Knights and beyond.That's where we are headed in 2008.
I spent every day of July, August and September of 2006 in my home office watching every Premier League ,Jersey Flegg, SG Ball and Harold Matthews Cup game that the Knights played last season to familiarise myself with the players and the styles each team were playing.
I have spent plenty of time doing likewise this season from an insider's perspective and have a strong feel now on the way forward.
It won't be too different to what worked back in the Knights early days , although it will need to be a bit more intense and tightly planned because the competition is tougher.
We are starting to put staff and structures into place that will pull us together from top to bottom in all aspects of preparation - coaches, trainers, strength and speed specialists, etc.
And we are looking for the very best of Newcastle's qualified personnel in developing talented youngsters.
If you know of someone who has the necessary skills and is looking for the opportunity, right now would be a good time for you to tell them to contact me at the Knights ASAP.
The bus is about to pull out for the building of the knights future.
