I still cannot believe how underrated Thaiday is despite the signs that if he was genuinely fit he would be one of the 10 most dangerous players in the competition.
It's not often you get a player with his speed and agility who also has genuine ballplaying skills. Especially considering how little he will be getting paid, and assuming fitness is up to scratch, I hope Smith seriously considers him to be an option in our best 17.
It's a little out of left field, but I have a feeling that a 6. Mullen 7. Thaiday halves combinatjion would work a lot better than Bailey/Mullen.
Plenty of clubs will have worse halfacks going around than Thaiday if he trained hard at it. And Mullen and Kidley would both be playing where they belong.
Also, in my opinion the argument for how bad Kidley is at 5/8th (which I agree with to a point), only applies if compared with a genuine playmaker. We all know he's not a great organiser, but his overall kicking/passing/directing skills still match up well against Bailey, who is a makeshift option and probably no better than Rudder was.
Having said all that, in round 1 at least I would go with Mullen/Dureau
