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Rumoured & Confirmed Signings - Part 5

Blues Riff

Bench
Messages
3,325
Yeo, Luai and Edwards also across the next 12 months need deals
Some players have managers working for them. Others are working for their manager. The intelligent ones see the big picture and can imagine a life beyond football, the dumb ones see a fist-full of dollars. I believe these 3 and Bizza are in the former category.
 

Munky

Coach
Messages
10,193
IMO we need to have turnover in the squad.

Manly kept a bunch of guys from their glory days and they all cracked the shits once their broken down mates stopped being given new contracts for younger guys to get upgraded.

That said, keeping the core is important but no outside back or backrower ever got faster with age.
 

Iamback

Coach
Messages
16,988
IMO we need to have turnover in the squad.

Manly kept a bunch of guys from their glory days and they all cracked the shits once their broken down mates stopped being given new contracts for younger guys to get upgraded.

That said, keeping the core is important but no outside back or backrower ever got faster with age.

I posed this question the other day, Who in our squad would you say has peaked?

That will become an issue as players hit their late 20's
 

Munky

Coach
Messages
10,193
I posed this question the other day, Who in our squad would you say has peaked?

That will become an issue as players hit their late 20's

It's the contracts after the next ones that are the problem.

All the guys are probably worth a good contract next go around. The club can't make commitments about a players future after that in current negotiations. I think this will be the biggest contract of To'o's career (in terms of cap percentage) since the way he plays will destroy his body. His management probably knows this and will push for a longer term.

We have a freakishly young squad but the wear and tear will still apply since they all started so early. After all availability is the best ability to have in any career.

Need to go ghe Bill Walsh methodology on player retention:

39) Steve Young: Bill was not sentimental at all -- he knew he couldn't be as a coach. He was ruthless about it. He always said, "I want to end peoples' careers a year before they do." Sometimes it was four years ahead.
40) Marvin Lewis: He had an ability to move a guy on before he faded away. I tell this to our coaches: "What great 49er played his last game as a 49er?" Joe Montana didn't finish there. Jerry Rice didn't finish there. He felt they would move on to the next player before he got trapped with a declining player.
41) Steve Young: He did it in a very public way -- the top third of [the] roster. And I think Bill knew, for younger players, that was an incentive. Don't show me the end is coming. Older players never wanted to show any sign the end was coming. Bill was not beloved. Everybody left mad. But he was beloved a few years later.
42) Andy Reid: Now that I've seen the whole thing progress, having to step away from Joe Montana, as close as he was to him, that was his quarterback and a Hall of Famer -- there's a point you have to be honest with them. You've got to maintain that mutual respect. You're going to have to make a big-boy decision in there. If you're too close, it could cost the team, because you can't make those decisions. I had a young quarterback at the time in Donovan [McNabb], he went through all of that. That was helpful, for any position

From https://www.nfl.com/news/bill-walsh-the-forward-thinker-0ap3000000629001
 

Iamback

Coach
Messages
16,988
It's the contracts after the next ones that are the problem.

All the guys are probably worth a good contract next go around. The club can't make commitments about a players future after that in current negotiations. I think this will be the biggest contract of To'o's career (in terms of cap percentage) since the way he plays will destroy his body. His management probably knows this and will push for a longer term.

We have a freakishly young squad but the wear and tear will still apply since they all started so early. After all availability is the best ability to have in any career.

Need to go ghe Bill Walsh methodology on player retention:

39) Steve Young: Bill was not sentimental at all -- he knew he couldn't be as a coach. He was ruthless about it. He always said, "I want to end peoples' careers a year before they do." Sometimes it was four years ahead.
40) Marvin Lewis: He had an ability to move a guy on before he faded away. I tell this to our coaches: "What great 49er played his last game as a 49er?" Joe Montana didn't finish there. Jerry Rice didn't finish there. He felt they would move on to the next player before he got trapped with a declining player.
41) Steve Young: He did it in a very public way -- the top third of [the] roster. And I think Bill knew, for younger players, that was an incentive. Don't show me the end is coming. Older players never wanted to show any sign the end was coming. Bill was not beloved. Everybody left mad. But he was beloved a few years later.
42) Andy Reid: Now that I've seen the whole thing progress, having to step away from Joe Montana, as close as he was to him, that was his quarterback and a Hall of Famer -- there's a point you have to be honest with them. You've got to maintain that mutual respect. You're going to have to make a big-boy decision in there. If you're too close, it could cost the team, because you can't make those decisions. I had a young quarterback at the time in Donovan [McNabb], he went through all of that. That was helpful, for any position

From https://www.nfl.com/news/bill-walsh-the-forward-thinker-0ap3000000629001

Yeah 3 years takes To'o up to 28. That would put Jesse McLean and others in SG Ball as 22 and ready to take up.

Just need the kids underneath to keep coming
 

maple_69

Bench
Messages
4,420
I think Luai, Yeo and Edwards are not going to be too complicated. All still undoubtedly have 3-4 good years ahead and are critical. We’ll be planning cap space specifically for them and on their side they can be a critical part of one of the most legendary cores in history. It’s all the other guys we’ll lose because we can’t budge on upping our offer because it would impinge on the money kept aside for the core.

Id say Leota is the first guy we’ll encounter negotiating a contract with the question of whether he’s past his prime. Three years for Yeo, Edwards & Luai are safe bets. Main decision I think we have next off season would be whether a Ryley Smith or another young hooker could command more cap space at the expense of turning over Luai/Edwards for a cheaper alternative.
 

Murraymob1

Juniors
Messages
924
Who do we think we lose for 24
At this point there seems to more chance of Crighton leaving than staying
Lenui has been very quit from all fronts
 

Kilkenny

Coach
Messages
13,135
Who do we think we lose for 24
At this point there seems to more chance of Crighton leaving than staying
Lenui has been very quit from all fronts
It doesn’t bother me as much when we are unable to retain players whom we recruited to our club in the first place ie Kurt Capewell but it does peev me off losing players who we have developed thru our junior ranks.

I hope the Crichton deal is sorted sooner rather than later, I’m sick of reading about it and it’s inevitability.

I hope we can hang onto Spencer Lenui I just think he is a wrecking ball who is going to improve leaps and bounds in the seasons ahead and I don’t want to see him reach his potential with the Bulldogs, in particular, or any other club.
 

Kilkenny

Coach
Messages
13,135
I posed this question the other day, Who in our squad would you say has peaked?

That will become an issue as players hit their late 20's
You could probably argue a lot of our more senior players have already reached there optimum performance levels . They hopefully continue to play at the high performance levels they have already achieved, but unlikely to exceed those levels.

May, Tago, Martin will get better, can Nathan get better or will he just maintain his consistent high levels of performance.

The likes of Fish, Leota, Luai, Edwards, Yeo im not sure they can exceed what they have al ready delivered, they just need to maintain there outstanding form.
 
Messages
3,615
I posed this question the other day, Who in our squad would you say has peaked?

That will become an issue as players hit their late 20's
Fish. He is the only current contract I question. I also think three years suggested in the media for To’o is too long; his style is going to get worn down quickly and he won’t have knees by the end of 24.

Both great Panthers so don’t begrudge them anything, but if we were being truly ruthless we would make different decisions.
 

Iamback

Coach
Messages
16,988
Fish. He is the only current contract I question. I also think three years suggested in the media for To’o is too long; his style is going to get worn down quickly and he won’t have knees by the end of 24.

Both great Panthers so don’t begrudge them anything, but if we were being truly ruthless we would make different decisions.

To'o strength is power, No winger has averaged as many metres across such a sample size.

Fish is in the top 3 props in the game, His next deal is the decline one
 

Iamback

Coach
Messages
16,988
You could probably argue a lot of our more senior players have already reached there optimum performance levels . They hopefully continue to play at the high performance levels they have already achieved, but unlikely to exceed those levels.

May, Tago, Martin will get better, can Nathan get better or will he just maintain his consistent high levels of performance.

The likes of Fish, Leota, Luai, Edwards, Yeo im not sure they can exceed what they have al ready delivered, they just need to maintain there outstanding form.

Edwards still has plenty to go, Attack especially. He has kicked field goals yet doesn't kick in general play.

Luai again we started to see it in the WC but can do more than he does or has to do. 28 is the age most halves especially mature.

The scary thing is we are 3 years from that stage
 

Pantherjim.

Referee
Messages
21,447
Fair play the Bulldogs is that what your saying?

I don’t get it!

As I’ve said before I’m rather over it.

I just don’t see how the recruitment is possible.

I look at there already locked in roster for 2023 and they are still in the market competing for Crichton, Moses and Lenui.

give me a break here it just isn’t possible on any sphere.

45495E27-1988-49B8-8305-BAC841B62138.jpeg
 

Original Name

Juniors
Messages
1,286
Fish. He is the only current contract I question. I also think three years suggested in the media for To’o is too long; his style is going to get worn down quickly and he won’t have knees by the end of 24.

Both great Panthers so don’t begrudge them anything, but if we were being truly ruthless we would make different decisions.
Nah no way. Fish has played too much edge for that. Go a lot in him left in him. Would have needed to have played his entire career in the middle to do this and started his first grade career in his teens.
 
Last edited:
Messages
3,615
I hope not but I can see Fish being only the third best prop at Penrith by the end of next year, let alone top 3 across the comp.

Hope I am wrong.
 

Munky

Coach
Messages
10,193
JFH's best attribute is his line speed and work in the middle defending.

He pushes so hard coming off the line. In an early game with us Sorro (v Tigers during2021 Origin) got caught out in defence because he didn't trust the inside man to fill the gap. The inside man was Fish who killed himself to get into the gap and Sorro looked foolish.

Happy to say Sorro never did that again but it goes to show ay that point in his Panthers career that a seasoned first grader like Sorro thought that gap wasn't going to be filled.
 

Iamback

Coach
Messages
16,988
JFH's best attribute is his line speed and work in the middle defending.

He pushes so hard coming off the line. In an early game with us Sorro (v Tigers during2021 Origin) got caught out in defence because he didn't trust the inside man to fill the gap. The inside man was Fish who killed himself to get into the gap and Sorro looked foolish.

Happy to say Sorro never did that again but it goes to show ay that point in his Panthers career that a seasoned first grader like Sorro thought that gap wasn't going to be filled.

Nailed it, On actual skill we have some players that aren't elite however due to things like line speed. They get to the top
 

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