New recruits for 2023

[Auntie.Gerald]

Does anyone know much about Jett Liu ?

T&T player ?

Canberra Junior?

Training Gallery: January 10

The full squad gets put through their paces at the University of Wollongong.

www.dragons.com.au

 

[SGMax]

OT, I would take Luke Thompson any time, he was the Bulldogs most dominant forward every time I watched one of their games.
I would take Taupau cos there isn't anyone better atm. Experienced but not at his peak.

I wouldn't take Frizell in principle. He rejected a good offer from us and thought Knights were a better outfit.
I am sure he is a top bloke and a great family man as everyone says, but he made his choice.

 

[denis preston]

Just say we were able to get Thompson, Tapau & Friz on 2 year contracts at reasonable $$$ would that be to our advantage?

Would that make us a chance for the 8?

Would they be blocking anyone coming through?

In fact would they be beneficial as we try to bring Coric etc through?

Well it doesn’t appear that anyone is knocking on the door demanding first 17 And as forwards still on the young side. Dont know why we are not after at least 2 of the 3 You mentioned. Is our plan being interpreted by recruitment as running dead ?

 

[Old Timer]

Well it doesn’t appear that anyone is knocking on the door demanding first 17 And as forwards still on the young side. Dont know why we are not after at least 2 of the 3 You mentioned. Is our plan being interpreted by recruitment as running dead ?

Well no one else seems to be beating a path to those players doors so just maybe we might be in some form of negotiations but then again maybe Luke & Tyson are settled at their clubs for 2023 and it's only Marty out on a limb trying to get a contract.

 

[Slippery Morris]

Is Nathan Brown (Ex-Saints) still at Parra? If not I am surprised why Saints have not hired the guy yet as head of retention/recruitment. His eye for talent is second to none. He built a pretty good side prior to Bennett taking them to the next level. And hope he has all the say in recruitment and none from Griffin.

George Burgess, Woods, Burns and Maguire. That is more than enough of bad choices in regards to giving Griffin any say in forward recruitment. Let's save the dollars for 2024 when the guy is gone and a proper coach is on board. Let these young guys try and earn a spot and build on their NRL experience for now. Saints fans have seen enough of these has-beens play since Griffin arrived whilst he got rid of Sims our only decent forward that bled red and white.

 

[kit66]

Just say we were able to get Thompson, Tapau & Friz on 2 year contracts at reasonable $$$ would that be to our advantage?

Would that make us a chance for the 8?

Would they be blocking anyone coming through?

In fact would they be beneficial as we try to bring Coric etc through?

If we could sign 2 really good forwards, say like D.Fifita to partner Su'a and a really reliable, defensively good prop - like Kamikamica / Keppie / Paulo type, then yes, I believe we're a chance to make the 8. Fifita alone would lift our chances through the roof. If Coric or other young forwards (are there others knocking at the door ?) are good enough then they'll force their way in to firsts no matter who we have, I mean the competition isn't that great is it.

 

[Crush]

I hate to sound like gitano, but I could’ve scored 30 out of those 37 tries.

Yeah you may well have scored 30 of those random but no way Moga scores 20 of them.

 

[shazam]

You ca

Is Nathan Brown (Ex-Saints) still at Parra? If not I am surprised why Saints have not hired the guy yet as head of retention/recruitment. His eye for talent is second to none. He built a pretty good side prior to Bennett taking them to the next level. And hope he has all the say in recruitment and none from Griffin.

George Burgess, Woods, Burns and Maguire. That is more than enough of bad choices in regards to giving Griffin any say in forward recruitment. Let's save the dollars for 2024 when the guy is gone and a proper coach is on board. Let these young guys try and earn a spot and build on their NRL experience for now. Saints fans have seen enough of these has-beens play since Griffin arrived whilst he got rid of Sims our only decent forward that bled red and

 

[Gareth67]

If we could sign 2 really good forwards, say like D.Fifita to partner Su'a and a really reliable, defensively good prop - like Kamikamica / Keppie / Paulo type, then yes, I believe we're a chance to make the 8. Fifita alone would lift our chances through the roof. If Coric or other young forwards (are there others knocking at the door ?) are good enough then they'll force their way in to firsts no matter who we have, I mean the competition isn't that great is it.

According to the media Mr. Fifita is off to to Canberra , close to finalising the deal .

 

[saints4ever]

From what I heard we were never really in the hunt

 

[Parko1310]

From what I heard we were never really in the hunt

We seemed to be one of the first to show public interest, and then just dropped off completely. What happened? I'd say we're just now coming around a corner where our salary cap will be back in order for the first time in years as we only have three players contracted after 2024. But surely before having serious discussions and having it put out in the media someone would've realised we weren't going to do this deal because of that reason. Were the club looking for a positive story after all the drama of the presentation night and the release requests? Or did they realise they'd strayed too far from their plan to promote juniors by bringing in Fifita? It's all a bit odd.

Still, I know there isn't much available on the market but we desperately need a second rower. I would love Fifita, but obviously he's probably off to Canberra and that's not for this season anyway. We need to be looking really hard, even if it's a bit of a stop gap. We can't go into a season with Fui or Burns as a full time starting second rower. That's spoon material that.

 

[Centralcoastdragon2]

I believe Fifitas girlfriend was playing with us but signed with Raiders for 2023.

 

[Gareth67]

We seemed to be one of the first to show public interest, and then just dropped off completely. What happened? I'd say we're just now coming around a corner where our salary cap will be back in order for the first time in years as we only have three players contracted after 2024. But surely before having serious discussions and having it put out in the media someone would've realised we weren't going to do this deal because of that reason. Were the club looking for a positive story after all the drama of the presentation night and the release requests? Or did they realise they'd strayed too far from their plan to promote juniors by bringing in Fifita? It's all a bit odd.

Still, I know there isn't much available on the market but we desperately need a second rower. I would love Fifita, but obviously he's probably off to Canberra and that's not for this season anyway. We need to be looking really hard, even if it's a bit of a stop gap. We can't go into a season with Fui or Burns as a full time starting second rower. That's spoon material that.

Parko , on having the salary cap back in order come 2024 I do hope that is indeed the case .

If our powers to be and recruitment finally have their thinking caps on straight , then there is no reason why the Dragons should not be able to sign a few top - line players that will be the back bone of our team for a number of seasons .

The coaches will need to sit down and work on just who to target and exactly what that individual will bring to the club . Of course in saying this the Dragons must get their man early and put forward an appropriate offer
comparable to their skills , plus a bit more to get them down to the ‘ Gong .

 

[bad boy bubby]

I was at my sisters in Werri Beach this week. Turns out her next door neighbour is the young fella you've brought through, Dylan Egan.
Big lad. I've never seen him play, can anyone here give an insight into how he goes? Ta.

 

[randomdragon]

I was at my sisters in Werri Beach this week. Turns out her next door neighbour is the young fella you've brought through, Dylan Egan.
Big lad. I've never seen him play, can anyone here give an insight into how he goes? Ta.

hes training with the first grade squad, i believe hes signed a 3 year contract with us, only played SG Ball last year.

 

[redandwhite4evr]

Most people forget Sloan isn't a natural fullback, he's a work in progress one. His position is wing, where catching bombs and tackling seem a little less of a focus.the year the youngsters won the SGB grand final, Sloan played wing and Stewart eas the fullback. Not saying Treigh should be even considered as a 1st grade player, but to have criticism of a player who's playi g out of position is a tad harsh.
I still have doubts over Rava even getting through games atm, so it wouldn't surprise to see Sloan on the wing with probably MBYE AT fullback.
Just my thoughts.

If we start Mbye in any spine position, imo we are waving the white flag and effectively conceding that the club can only offer its fans medocrity. That is why as soon as it became obvious we were going to be two quality backs down in 2023, I thought we should have proactively approached the NRL about seeking leave for a replacement player and approached Souths about Taafe or even the Sharks about Lachie Miller (now going to the Knights I believe).

 

[redandwhite4evr]

The Amone debacle has caused more of an issue than it's been made out to be in my opinion. Remembering the de Belin saga, numerous former players have spoken on podcasts, etc. about how it effected the team at the time through divides in the playing group, people at the top of the club, etc, etc. No doubt this could cause a divide in the ranks. People like Sullivan and Sloan especially could be affected greatly in a mental capacity, which will then translate into their on field performance. This is a delicate situation.

The further issue it has caused is the impact on our squad depth, particularly in the spine. Sullivan is your natural selection to take over number 6 (should Amone be stood down, which you'd imagine he would be). Sullivan unfortunately has a bit of a track record with injuries. Hamstring injuries particularly can be challenging to manage over the course of a career (Tom Trbojevic a key example). If Sullivan goes down I suppose Mbye goes into 6, which I actually believe is his best position. But then, who's the 14? Maybe Haele Finau or Mullheison? Don't mind it, but they're both rookies and it's a big ask for them to keep momentum going or try to turn the tide of a game through the middle of the field with no experience in the top grade.

Then there's Sloan. I have my doubts Ramsey will be playing in 2023. It's a huge ask for someone as small in stature as Sloan currently is to play out a full season at the back in the top grade. He's going to get tired, and his quality of football may suffer and his potential for injury increases significantly. So, what if Sullivan gets injured and so does Sloan? Your option is probably Mbye to the back, Bird to 6 and then de belin to 13. Front row and spine is in shambles in this scenario.

A lot of luck will have to go our way in 2023 if we're to make anything of it. The more I look at our squad and likely best team list, the more concerning it gets. With basically nothing on the market either I think we're in a real tight spot and this Amone issue is exactly what the club didn't need. I suppose looking glass half full, wasn't Sullivan supposed to get the 6 jersey last year in all likelihood, but injury meant Amone had a clear path? If Sullivan can stay injury free, then this year should be outstanding for his development. If Sloan can do the same, likewise. In this case, whilst the squad looks thin, 2023 will be a good year in the progression of young talent. There's just a lot of if's, buts and maybe's in there.

Agree with most of your observations except those relating to Mbye- I rated him highly when he was at the Bulldogs in his younger days but he hasn't aged well. No more than a stop gap and not a starting anything in my opinion.

 

[Phantom V]

I believe Fifitas girlfriend was playing with us but signed with Raiders for 2023.

Well if this is the way it’s heading let’s sign Tommy Turbos missus

 

[Draginzaaar]

If we start Mbye in any spine position, imo we are waving the white flag and effectively conceding that the club can only offer its fans medocrity. That is why as soon as it became obvious we were going to be two quality backs down in 2023, I thought we should have proactively approached the NRL about seeking leave for a replacement player and approached Souths about Taafe or even the Sharks about Lachie Miller (now going to the Knights I believe).

Miller has signed with the Knights.

 

[possm]

There have been a lot of negative posts from members about our squad, myself included. but to be fair let's take a look at a positive.

Turn your minds back to round 17 in 2022 when the Dragons notched up a 30-nil lead in the first half against South Sydney, a grand finalist in the previous season.

A fantastic display of what our players are capable of!

In this match, we had Ransey at fullback, Bird on the left edge, De Belin at prop, and wait for it, Sims at lock. What a different style of play the team showed us!

So look ahead to this season and what has changed. Yes, we let go of Sims who did not want to leave and replaced him with Ben Murdoch-Masila, now was that the right move or not? Only time will tell. But Sims, Ramsey, Matt Feagai, Sulie, Hunt, Amone, Lomax, Ravalawa, and Bird all had blinders. In fact, after seeing that performance, I'd be reluctant to move any of these players on.

The problem is that this performance was not repeated all season and so this is why I have been so vocal about moving hook on now and bringing in an experienced coach like Hasler. I doubt that a rooky coach like Dean Young could bring out the best in these players.