Rumoured Targets 3

[Johns Magic]

LOL, when will people realise the Knights have nothing to offer quality players who have other options. Not even more money. If a big club wants Ponga they will leverage TPAs and ship off a few scrubs to us or the ESL in order to get him.

LOL at you

 

[Glendale]

How good did missing out on Greg Turd turn out to be!! Merci Le Catalans.

 

[Tom155]

Five burning questions on the Knights’ mammoth bid to lure Kalyn Ponga to Newcastle

WHAT ROLE WILL HE PLAY AT KNIGHTS?

He’ll be their starting fullback but just as, if not more importantly, his potential move to the Knights will kick start the club’s rebuild.

This is Nathan Brown’s biggest signing since taking the reins as coach and a clear indication of the direction he wants the team to take.

The plan is for the Knights to take their young spine of Ponga, Brock Lamb, Jack Cogger and Danny Levi and develop them over a five-year period.

Unofficially, Ponga will become the face of the new era. That will essentially spell the end for the likes of stalwart half Jarrod Mullen.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...ocial&utm_medium=Facebook&utm_campaign=FoxNRL

+

 

[Chicken_Hunter]

The merkins won't release him this year tho

 

[perverse]

The merkins won't release him this year tho

I wouldn't be so sure just yet. You would expect the Cowboys to say what they're saying until there's no chance of a backflip.

 

[Haffa]

I doubt they'll block it, they'll push for an exchange of some kind.

 

[slotmachine]

The Knights have all summer to work on the Cowboys. I'd say 50/50 he is here in 2017.

Hopefully Mooney can wave his magic wand and make Mullen and Hodko disappear in 2018.

 

[elyod138]

Why would the Cowboys release him for 2017? It's up to the Knights to offer the Cowboys something they want (a good prop) if they want an early release.

 

[perverse]

The Knights have all summer to work on the Cowboys. I'd say 50/50 he is here in 2017.

Hopefully Mooney can wave his magic wand and make Mullen and Hodko disappear in 2018.

I think this will be the case. Cogger and Lamb will see more first grade this year with Mullos hammys and Hodkos knees, with the handover to happen 2017 -> 2018. Brown will still be expecting Levi to be his guy at this point. I think we now know what our spine will look like over the next 5 years. It's taken a couple of years, and we knew it would, but the new era really kicks off in honest in 2018. 2016 was finding the cattle, 2017 will have more of that but a shift in focus to building combinations of the ones we know will be here.

 

[perverse]

Why would the Cowboys release him for 2017? It's up to the Knights to offer the Cowboys something they want (a good prop) if they want an early release.

It will be Stockwell if Mooney is feeling really mean. Korbin Sims a possibility. Either way, expect the Knights to offer something. I think Korbin Sims market value and perception is well above his output at the moment, so it won't surprise me to see us ship him.

The Cowboys can forget the Saifitis. We'll wait the year before letting either go.

 

[Chicken_Hunter]

Yeah it will be korbs stockwell or mataora, out of those mataora would be the biggest loss on this years form. But couldn't care less who they offload from our prop stocks except obviously the saifitis.

 

[Knight76]

The Cowboys can forget the Saifitis. We'll wait the year before letting either go.

I'm sure that's their thinking with Ponga. Hopefully we can get him for 2017. Ponga has asked for a formal release from the club, usually clubs tend to let players go who don't want to be there anymore.

 

[NoSchitSherlock]

usually clubs tend to let players go who don't want to be there anymore.

Yeah.Makes a bit of a mockery with regards to contracts but you don't want someone there who wants to be elsewhere.
They are undecided as to if and where he will play in NRL (wing likely).
If Thurston has taken Ponga under his wing then there's no long term benefit continuing to do so.
No long term benefit for them playing him regularly with his level of experience..
If they were grooming him would be a different story.As would just bringing him in now and then.
Ponga will need a dose of NRL regular reality.
They need a prop and we can offer them something we don't want. Win-win.

 

[Glendale]

If we let go Korbin or Mataora then it makes our already paper thin forward stocks even worse. We'd be silly to give away either.

Brown hates Paea. But he's not that bad. We should propose a 2 for 1 deal, Stockwell and Paea for Ponga. That might get the Cows interested.

 

[Burwood]

After we picked up Tariq from the cowboys, the least we can do is return the favour and let them have Korbin.

 

[Caped Crusader]

I wonder how many people here advocating signing this very talented kid off 2 games were the same people saying Stuart was stupid for paying what he did for Joey Tapine after 20 odd.

There's a fair bit of difference paying big $ for a spine player as opposed to paying big $ for a bench backrower

 

[macavity]

Surely we ship Stockwell.

We cover his salary, they cover Ponga's (or we cover both to get it over the line) and it's gotta be somewhat appealing for them.

 

[Bring it home Knights]

Sims was pathetic this year and he did genuinely appear uninterested in footy. Very occasionally he'd do something awesome, like a massive tackle or charging run, but after that he'd go MIA for the rest of the match. I do feel that people have short memories though... He absolutely killed it in 2015 and pretty much carried our pack. He's still young as well so I'd be gutted if he left. I'd be more inclined to let Stockwell or Mataora leave before Sims.

 

[Johns Magic]

Sims was pathetic this year and he did genuinely appear uninterested in footy. Very occasionally he'd do something awesome, like a massive tackle or charging run, but after that he'd go MIA for the rest of the match. I do feel that people have short memories though... He absolutely killed it in 2015 and pretty much carried our pack. He's still young as well so I'd be gutted if he left. I'd be more inclined to let Stockwell or Mataora leave before Sims.

Was Sims that good in 2015? I don't remember that

 

[Spot On]

Sims looked as though he would develop into a very good prop looking at his 2015 season then.................. bust.

He puts a big hit on someone, they spill the ball, we get a scrum and Korbin has a hit up and ............... drops the ball.

That was basically his 2016 season.