Rumoured Targets 3

[The Axe of Druss]

What we need is a ball playing lock

Its a pity the NSW cup has been shut down for so long. Id be looking at a hooker on the larger size to recruit in the mind to turn them into a lock and backup hooker. Right now we only have Brailey and Randall on the books.

Either that or we look at coaching Jack johns up for the role. Big body, ex 5/8 whos currently in the backrow

 

[Yosh]

I do want to see some more Jack Johns. He seemed pretty good in the limited time he had. Also, maybe a better utility than Watson with a little less dynamism.

 

[macavity]

What we need is a ball playing lock

Its a pity the NSW cup has been shut down for so long. Id be looking at a hooker on the larger size to recruit in the mind to turn them into a lock and backup hooker. Right now we only have Brailey and Randall on the books.

Either that or we look at coaching Jack johns up for the role. Big body, ex 5/8 whos currently in the backrow

Apparently they are considering Phoenix for that role

different skill set ball playing in close to out wide.

 

[macavity]

You're making a bigger deal of this Watson thing than it is. The 300k they had earmarked for him buys you sweet f**k all.

changes how you shape your squad.

we had banked on playing him at 13 and Barney wide.

we are now looking for a different shape. Would possibly have spent that (plus more) on a back rower if we knew.

 

[The Axe of Druss]

Apparently they are considering Phoenix for that role

different skill set ball playing in close to out wide.

Guess it explains why they went for Clune then

Crossland is a very good defender these days so I guess that tracks.

 

[macavity]

Guess it explains why they went for Clune then

Crossland is a very good defender these days so I guess that tracks.

going to get a taste of it this week with him in the 14. Hope he goes well.

 

[Old dog]

Crossland will go ok, won’t let us down especially filling the gaps, 6, 7 or 9 but he needs time to develop his organising skills and become the playmaker

 

[alexwilliams_66692007]

Fitzy officially signs for 2 more years

Lachlan Fitzgibbon inks new Knights contract

The nib Newcastle Knights are delighted to announce the retention of Lachlan Fitzgibbon on a two-year contract extension.

www.newcastleknights.com.au

 

[Yosh]

Fitzy officially signs for 2 more years

Lachlan Fitzgibbon inks new Knights contract

The nib Newcastle Knights are delighted to announce the retention of Lachlan Fitzgibbon on a two-year contract extension.

www.newcastleknights.com.au

I request admin to delete this post because it must be considered TROLLING. TROLLING by the club that is.

 

[Tom155]

I know its a release from the club so they have to pump him up but some of that is laughably false

A hard running edge forward who gets through plenty of work Fitzgibbon will continue to provide skill to an impressive Knights pack.

With the ability to punch through holes and hit as hard as most, the South Newcastle junior adds an extra dimension to the Knights attack and has formed formidable combinations with both Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga.

 

[Zoidberg]

Given he’s hardly played this year and we haven’t missed him is telling.

 

[Yosh]

I know its a release from the club so they have to pump him up but some of that is laughably false

A hard running edge forward who gets through plenty of work Fitzgibbon will continue to provide skill to an impressive Knights pack.

With the ability to punch through holes and hit as hard as most, the South Newcastle junior adds an extra dimension to the Knights attack and has formed formidable combinations with both Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga.

A hard TRYING edge forward who gets through plenty of MISTAKES Fitzgibbon will continue to provide frustration to an impressive Knights Pack.

With the ability to poke through holes (rarely) and hit as hard as most wet tissues, the South Newcastle junior adds an extra dimension of mistakes to the Knights attack and has formed laughable combinations with both Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga.

I think I fixed the errors.

 

[aqua_duck]

A hard TRYING edge forward who gets through plenty of MISTAKES Fitzgibbon will continue to provide frustration to an impressive Knights Pack.

With the ability to poke through holes (rarely) and hit as hard as most wet tissues, the South Newcastle junior adds an extra dimension of mistakes to the Knights attack and has formed laughable combinations with both Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga.

I think I fixed the errors.

You forgot to add that the south Newcastle junior also comes with a 6 figure major sponsorship

 

[Jono078]

I know its a release from the club so they have to pump him up but some of that is laughably false

A hard running edge forward who gets through plenty of work Fitzgibbon will continue to provide skill to an impressive Knights pack.

With the ability to punch through holes and hit as hard as most, the South Newcastle junior adds an extra dimension to the Knights attack and has formed formidable combinations with both Mitchell Pearce and Kalyn Ponga.

I was going to post the same. I couldn't read it with a straight face.

Also this;

“I’ve been with the Club now since 2013, I’m a Novocastrian boy and I couldn’t see myself playing in any other colours,” Fitzgibbon said.

I bet 15 NRL clubs also couldn't see him in any other colours.

He's a fine depth player and even maybe bench player but he is not starting calibre, we've had 8 years to realise this.

 

[Old dog]

Think we are all being hard on Fitz basically because of his Dads connection.
Ok he is a maybe first grade second rower who has come through the grades, he plays to his ability but is not a super player like say Frizell.
We loved him when playing left side and running onto Ponga passes and scoring tries.
Not a worse player now, yes had injuries 2021, but we want better for this side than a maybe first grader. We don’t have to knock his ability or Dad connection but enhance the fact that if he plays reserves we have a strong firsts.
I hope he plays strong and hard for the two years and makes the likes of Frizell, Barnett and Jones earn there spot

 

[Jono078]

Think we are all being hard on Fitz basically because of his Dads connection.
Ok he is a maybe first grade second rower who has come through the grades, he plays to his ability but is not a super player like say Frizell.
We loved him when playing left side and running onto Ponga passes and scoring tries.
Not a worse player now, yes had injuries 2021, but we want better for this side than a maybe first grader. We don’t have to knock his ability or Dad connection but enhance the fact that if he plays reserves we have a strong firsts.
I hope he plays strong and hard for the two years and makes the likes of Frizell, Barnett and Jones earn there spot

I've not mentioned his Dad's connection in a long time, because yeah that's not fair. Everything I've critiqued is him as a player.

I think he shies away from the tough runs. I think he can be a bit lazy. His body language is something that drives me nuts - he looks defeated and gone after 5 minutes. Barney and Frizzel look like animals from the first minute to the last, even if they're not feeling that way.

I think his runs are quite soft, although yes he can run a good line - but that hasn't worked for him very well for a couple of years now.

Above probably sounds harsh but as I said, I'm ok if he's here for depth or bench at best. Otherwise he should be an experiment we've moved on from. In 8 years he's had 2 solid seasons and he hasn't had a good season since maybe '18 or '19.

 

[Old dog]

Jono, wasn’t having a go at you was just a general thing where we seem to dump over heavily on anyone who falls out of favour, one day your ok then comments are made and we all jump on the band wagon.

 

[Jono078]

Jono, wasn’t having a go at you was just a general thing where we seem to dump over heavily on anyone who falls out of favour, one day your ok then comments are made and we all jump on the band wagon.

No all good I didn’t take it as you having a goat me! Just wanted to justify my comments further.

It’s part of riding the wave I guess. I was a big fan of Fitz in his early days but for quite some time now I felt we should have moved on from him.

 

[alexwilliams_66692007]

Think we are all being hard on Fitz basically because of his Dads connection.
Ok he is a maybe first grade second rower who has come through the grades, he plays to his ability but is not a super player like say Frizell.
We loved him when playing left side and running onto Ponga passes and scoring tries.
Not a worse player now, yes had injuries 2021, but we want better for this side than a maybe first grader. We don’t have to knock his ability or Dad connection but enhance the fact that if he plays reserves we have a strong firsts.
I hope he plays strong and hard for the two years and makes the likes of Frizell, Barnett and Jones earn there spot

That's a stretch

 

[Woosh]

Out-of-favour Newcastle Knights centre Gehamat Shibasaki is poised to quit the club and switch codes to sign a lucrative contract with a Japanese rugby club. The deal is expected to be finalised within the next few days and will see the 23-year-old link up with former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika at Japanese Top League club NEC Green Rockets. Shibasaki, who has Japanese heritage through his great-great-grandfather, is contracted to the Knights for next season but the club won't stand in his way and is expected to formally grant him a release within days. After debuting with Newcastle last season, Shibasaki has played 14 NRL games with the club but just three this year after struggling for form earlier in the season. He had a horror night with his handling, playing on the wing in an upset loss to the Wests Tigers in round three at McDonald Jones Stadium and was dumped from the side a fortnight later after the Knights suffered a crushing 42-16 loss to the Gold Coast Titans. He hasn't featured since then and was considered so far off the pace and out of favour when the competition moved to Queensland in mid-July, he failed to even win a place in the Knights' 29-man squad that relocated to the Sunshine Coast. READ MORE: Knights coach Adam O'Brien refused to discuss Shibasaki's future and pending move to Japan when contacted by the Newcastle Herald but said the decision to leave him behind in Newcastle and not take him to Queensland was made to "balance the squad". "Gehm missed out on coming up because we thought we already had enough cover in the backs and decided to take an extra forward," O'Brien said. "There was nothing more to it than that. He had some things to work on after those games earlier in the season and wasn't able to force his way back in but he never had a line put through him." A Townsville junior, Shibasaki was first signed by the Broncos as a 15-year-old but after a stellar junior career that included Queensland representative honours, his career at senior level hasn't kicked on as expected. While the Knights salary cap position will get a significant boost for next season following Shibasaki's departure, the move has been in the pipeline for some time and it's believed a chunk of his money may have already been spent elsewhere.

Knights centre Shibasaki in Japanese code switch

Shibasaki has played 14 NRL games with the club but just three this year.

www.newcastleherald.com.au