Rumoured Targets 3

[perverse]

If those dollar amounts are accurate, by the time you consider that he’s getting paid peanuts this year and turned down an upgrade for 2025, he’s not really getting too much extra money by signing with another club for 2026 and beyond.

That's worth noting, yeah. We could have bumped his pay for 2025, and i'm sure it was a part of the offer, yet it still wasn't good enough (in either dollars or just... Leo wasn't that keen to stay).

Not good. You would think with an extra year to sweeten the deal we could have got to about the same offer overall for a reasonable price (around 600k a year would have been a number i'd certainly be interested in having him on).

 

[TooheysNew]

750k seems okay for the Raiders. Wonder how much we offered. 600k?

Still worried we not making any signings while losing half our cap in 2026.

And to think you wanted to throw the farm at him a few months ago

 

[Rod]

Apparently his partner being from Canberra has factored into his decision also..

 

[Woody90]

I actually still think 750k (if that’s at all accurate) is overs for Leo (Knights and Dogs apparently felt the same and didn’t complete $$$ wise from a few articles today).

It’s a good deal for him. Highest bidder and less traveling back and forth with his partner.

Does highlight the game is pretty f**ked though when one club can literally fill 1/3 of its top 30 by poaching from one single club. Tapine was the only one I was genuinely pissed about but still. Should get some kind of financial compensation.

 

[Yosh]

And to think you wanted to throw the farm at him a few months ago

I did? Didn't know! But good on you.

 

[TooheysNew]

I did? Didn't know! But good on you.

 

[slotmachine]

Yeah if that Raiders deal is true it's a bit strange tbh, bumping Leo to say $625k next year and the four years after would have him only $200k better off leaving.

Sort of feels a bit like Upton, they can trot out the family stuff excuse but I get the feeling both her and Leo just didn't want to be here for whatever reason.

 

[HarVeeGee]

Seems like something like that hey.

Maybe his missus doesn’t get on with the other Knights WAGs? It sounds silly but it can have a real influence. Sincerely think it’s part of why Jacko is so overtly keen to make it work with us, whereas previously he’s been a bit “stuff you” when things aren’t going exactly how he wants at a club. His lady is happy in Newy.

 

[Mr_Knightside]

Meh not much point in speculating. He’s leaving and that’s it.

Unfortunately the optics around some of the recent player movements aren’t good for us. Even going back to Watson leaving a couple of years ago, then Dom, now Leo. We’ve also missed out on Pezet. Sorta gives the vibes that the Newcastle Knights isn’t a desirable club to play for for whatever reason.

 

[ryan.a87]

Meh not much point in speculating. He’s leaving and that’s it.

Unfortunately the optics around some of the recent player movements aren’t good for us. Even going back to Watson leaving a couple of years ago, then Dom, now Leo. We’ve also missed out on Pezet. Sorta gives the vibes that the Newcastle Knights isn’t a desirable club to play for for whatever reason.

In that period of time we resigned ponga and best

so it’s not all doom and gloom

 

[Nuke]

The consensus of opinion among NRL players is that Newcastle is a basketcase of a club. I've spoken with an NRL player or two in recent years, and that was their feedback. I've read others either on here or the other forum, the Knights one, say the same thing.

I don't know how or who it will take to turn that around. Regardless of people's opinions of Gus Gould, I'd love to see what he could do for us if given the chance.

 

[Woody90]

The consensus of opinion among NRL players is that Newcastle is a basketcase of a club.

At the end of the day in the last decade we’ve had 3 consecutive wooden spoons, owner went bankrupt and taken over by the NRL. Even if the club were starting to head in the right direction it’s going to take years and years before the basket case reputation dies (and tbh might never).

 

[Nuke]

Yeah, I agree.

I live in a suburb of Perth that has a bad reputation, a stigma about it, but it was all cleaned up about 30 or 40yrs ago. The questionable characters have mostly gone, but the stink remains.

It will take a few successful years in a row for that mindset of the rest of the comp to change, I reckon.

 

[Mr_Knightside]

Thing is, the Tigers have been more of a basket case than us and more recently too. But they’ve arguably just put together the best recruitment drive of any team.

 

[Knight Tales]

The consensus of opinion among NRL players is that Newcastle is a basketcase of a club. I've spoken with an NRL player or two in recent years, and that was their feedback. I've read others either on here or the other forum, the Knights one, say the same thing.

I don't know how or who it will take to turn that around. Regardless of people's opinions of Gus Gould, I'd love to see what he could do for us if given the chance.

Four finals in five years and we are a basket case! Imagine if we were not! It’s not the players who have this attitude. It is all the parasites around them. They are not necessarily well educated types and that is where the game lets them all down by not helping fix it.

 

[HarVeeGee]

Thing is, the Tigers have been more of a basket case than us and more recently too. But they’ve arguably just put together the best recruitment drive of any team.

Sounds like excuse making, but it’s not: it actually helps with recruitment to be a club located not that far away from where you’re trying to sign a player. Luai, Api, IPap & Turuva have not had to move house to move clubs.

This is part of why every Raiders fan I know is so excited about nabbing Luai - they literally never sign the hottest free agents, because people don’t want to live in Canberra. It almost doesn’t matter who it actually is that they picked up. It’s also why there’s a little bit of a Knights to Raiders and vice versa pipeline in recruitment - we’re competing for the pool of players who prefer to live or don’t mind living in regional areas with less nightlife.

Think about how many players have moved between:

Broncos and Dolphins.
Eels, Tigers, Bulldogs and Panthers.
Roosters, Bulldogs, Sea Eagles and Rabbitohs.
Sharks and Dragons.

 

[Rod]

Four finals in five years and we are a basket case! Imagine if we were not! It’s not the players who have this attitude. It is all the parasites around them. They are not necessarily well educated types and that is where the game lets them all down by not helping fix it.

Yeah I know we have our issues but are we really that much more of a basket case than at least 10 other clubs...Most struggle with recruitment/retention unless you are the Storm, Broncos or Roosters.

 

[Haffa]

Making a few finals and winning one won’t change that perception. It doesn’t help when there isn’t a player under 27 who can really remember when we were a successful club.

 

[macavity]

Meh not much point in speculating. He’s leaving and that’s it.

Unfortunately the optics around some of the recent player movements aren’t good for us. Even going back to Watson leaving a couple of years ago, then Dom, now Leo. We’ve also missed out on Pezet. Sorta gives the vibes that the Newcastle Knights isn’t a desirable club to play for for whatever reason.

Penrith turned it around pretty quick by developing their own. We have no choice but do the same. A few generational talents all the same age should do the trick.

 

[slotmachine]

Shame we don't have a huge pasifika community in the hunter.