Do the Knights spend up to their Cap

[Smith Machine]

With the knights in obvious financial trouble, and the players they field on the park, i want to know is the players the knights have signed do they spend up to the $4M they are allowed too?

We never make any huge name purchases and i wonder is it because we can't afford it or is it because other clubs are more attractive to play at? Everytime i hear of a player movement i never hear the knights in the hunt for a particular player? What can we do to attract decent players to the club. I think the knights are probably a few quality players short of a great team.

The knights to change their recruitment policy. We need some decent players because we have a good core of players. Come on Knights management do something about it. I don't want to be a team that is in the competition to make up the numbers i want us to be a competitive team year in year out with a genuine threat to the title.

 

[perverse]

a fit ben cross and dan tolar would make a big difference to our side at the moment. we have lost the plot completely up the middle.

 

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

we have just came out of a long period of single big name players (Kennedy, Johns, Bedsy).
The focus has now become to pick players who can develop with us over time & clear out a few overpaids (Renoldson).
... but your right newcastle never seems to be in the hunt for an existing big name. Maybe Cross was the last, but do a search for old topics if you want to see what people think about that.

 

[Newie is God's Country]

Another clean out in 2010 is what will proabably save this club. We need a marquee half, Centre, hooker and prop. Build the rest with juniors. The old way we did it. NO contracts for Wicks, Cross, Simmo and man do I wish some of them had get out clauses to go with Smith. Get Jennings at any cost as he apparently has a get out clause. Would give him 400K a season in a blink. A match turner like Hayne. Anyone who can't see that these players are spineless without Smith will watch this side get belted for at least two more years. Cream always floats to the top. As parra, Manly and Roosters have shown us.

 

[Nuffy]

Impossible to believe that they do based on the cattle, but unfortunately I'll bet we do.

Looking at the roster, its hard to see where the money actually goes.

 

[Alex28]

I hope we aren't - otherwise we are wasting plenty of cash we don't really have at the moment.

I think it is pretty clear that we need two marque halves - we have one already and it has not worked all year. We have a very good (most of the time) 1, 6 and 9 - we need a 3/4, a 7 and an 8/10 and then build the team around them.

 

[Nuffy]

Alex

I don't disagree but I might add that we seem to have dreadful luck as well.

Look at Cross as an example, he was brought to be the enforcer and hes missed huge chunks of both seasons he's been here.

We've had sh*tty luck for about 6-7 seasons with injuries, particularly to key players, and we all know why for many of those reasons but we just seem to chew up enormous amounts of players each year.

I haven't done a exhaustive study so don't shoot me down if I'm wrong, but the successful teams this year........ and every year are stable teams with minimal injuries.

When was the last time we had our full team available at the end of the season?

I reckon it was 2001.

 

[Alex28]

Luck is two or three seasons in a row. Is luck seven or eight seasons?

Is it luck or is something seriously wrong happening?

 

[Nuffy]

Mate, I just don't know but every season we get so many injuries, usually to key players.

 

[Karmawave]

Mate, I just don't know but every season we get so many injuries, usually to key players.

Cross was injury prone when he was signed. He's been injury prone after he was signed. He was also signed as an injury prone 28 year old.

His injuries needn't be a shock really.

Even when he's been fit for the Knights he has only played half a dozen quality games to bother mentioning.

 

[Joker's Wild]

Another clean out in 2010 is what will proabably save this club. We need a marquee half, Centre, hooker and prop. Build the rest with juniors. The old way we did it. NO contracts for Wicks, Cross, Simmo and man do I wish some of them had get out clauses to go with Smith. Get Jennings at any cost as he apparently has a get out clause. Would give him 400K a season in a blink. A match turner like Hayne. Anyone who can't see that these players are spineless without Smith will watch this side get belted for at least two more years. Cream always floats to the top. As parra, Manly and Roosters have shown us.

De Gois not good enough for you?

 

[Karmawave]

De Gois not good enough for you?

He's gone backwards real fast the last 8 weeks.

Possibly an overachiever like the team itself?

 

[otori]

He's gone backwards real fast the last 8 weeks.

Possibly an overachiever like the team itself?

That's a pretty big stretch. Gidley has been playing poorly as well. The entire team's gone backwards over the last 8 weeks and DeGois hasn't been the worst of them.

 

[Newie is God's Country]

De Gois not good enough for you?

Have you watched him lately? He has been rubbish. Given we paid a fair packet for him then to answer your question, NO. Pretty pedestrian form dummyhalf as well. I comment on players form, not their reputations. If he kills it next year then I will say as much.

 

[Alex28]

De Gois at least had a dig yesterday. Can't say the same for a few others out there...

 

[Karmawave]

That's a pretty big stretch. Gidley has been playing poorly as well. The entire team's gone backwards over the last 8 weeks and DeGois hasn't been the worst of them.

At least when Gidley plays ' poorly ' and the Knights get beaten, he is still just about the best on ground based on effort alone.

 

[Alex28]

Didn't see Gidley's first half yesterday Karma? Nothing short of pathetic. His "effort" to stop the Inu try was deplorable.

 

[Karmawave]

Didn't see Gidley's first half yesterday Karma? Nothing short of pathetic. His "effort" to stop the Inu try was deplorable.

Oh I agree.

It was a disgrace.

I guess unlike other players, blokes like Gidley have earnt the right to the occasional ' pass ' because of what they've done over many years.

 

[Joker's Wild]

Have you watched him lately? He has been rubbish. Given we paid a fair packet for him then to answer your question, NO. Pretty pedestrian form dummyhalf as well. I comment on players form, not their reputations. If he kills it next year then I will say as much.

f**k me mate open your eyes. The whole team has been rubbish, bloody hard for any of our boys to put their best foot forward when the blokes around them are backstroking. He has been one of the few in the last 3 games to actually look like they want to play.

Isaac has been one of our best all season and has been talked up by many an opposition fan as a smokey for the NSW #9 leading up to and during the SOO period. You dont get that sort of praise from non-Newie fans by being useless.

If you think that there is a better current non-rep hooker out there then you need to give yourself 1000 upper cuts champ.

 

[macavity]

I guess unlike other players, blokes like Gidley have earnt the right to the occasional ' pass ' because of what they've done over many years.

effort has always been there, but are we forgetting he was rubbish until he moved to fullback in 07?