Rumoured Targets 3

[Apey]

Jason taumololo is on a 10 year, 1 mil a year contract

problem with his deal, is when they signed him, he was by far the best forward in the game, and the deal was a great idea……but then nrl changed the rules and forwards like him weren’t as effective

That's just it though, besides the obvious injury and form concerns, 10 years is a very long time - the game itself changes a lot too.

I can’t think of any other half you would want to sign for a 10 year deal anyway

even if Hughes, Cleary and Hynes all became available, they are probably too old for that length of deal (Cleary is borderline)

only other halves I can think of is Walker and Katoa, but feel Brown has shown more promise than them

We must be watching a different player.

But I wouldn't give a 10 year deal to anyone honestly. It's a such long time to cripple your cap. There is always going to be more risk than reward there to me.

 

[ryan.a87]

Also to note that the cap is only going to go up

5 years ago only the most elite of elite players got million dollar contracts, now every club has at least 2 players on a mil

in 5-10 years time, 1.3 might be a pretty standard contract for the average half

 

[PhilGould]

Toohey's News

- Talks up Fletcher Hunt who arrived at the club this time last year as a fringe SG Ball squad member and has quickly risen through the ranks. Says Will Pryce is still expected to be the backup fullback to start the year but Hunt has put himself in the frame for down the track.

- Once again denies that Brailey is going anywhere early, nor that he wants to.

- Adam Elliott expected to be available for round 1 after missing both trials. Toohey says Frizell is certain to be the starting lock so Elliott will be competing with Croker & Jones for bench spots.

- Matt Arthur badly rolled his ankle in the NSW Cup trial on the weekend and isn’t expected to be fit for round 1. There were fears it was a more severe injury but not the case.

- Mat Croker could be in line for a contract extension soon.

- SG Ball winger Aidan Gow has 9 tries in 4 games to start the season.

 

[Knight Tales]

With the roster we have emerging now the club should be going all in to cement the spine for a decade. So the what ifs are irrelevant. Cos it will be Storm and Penrith with the Broncs and Rorters at their heels for the next decade. We won’t get close unless we do.

 

[Mr_Knightside]

We currently have a generational talent at the club for the first time since the mid 2000s when Mullen was coming through. We failed to put a team together that could do anything around him and Mullo didn’t turn into what we all hoped.

We can’t keep waiting for the right crop of players to arrive in a few years from now, we’ve been saying it for a decade now ever since the 2016 rebuild started.

Dylan Brown (and other players of his calibre) are essential for winning a comp and if we can line him up next to KP on our roster then we become a threat.

I would hate to sit here in a few years and regret that we didn’t go hard enough to get Brown to the club. If we miss out on him then who else of that calibre is on the horizon who is likely to be off contract soon?

 

[HarVeeGee]

You would absolutely give Walker or Katoa the godfather 10 year offer over Brown if they were available, but they're not.

Haha yeah I'd cut off a nut to get a guaranteed 10 years of Katoa at Newy.

 

[Burwood]

Jason taumololo is on a 10 year, 1 mil a year contract

problem with his deal, is when they signed him, he was by far the best forward in the game, and the deal was a great idea……but then nrl changed the rules and forwards like him weren’t as effective

Another problem with long term deals (especially forwards) is that you need to very closely manage the player’s workload. JT had a huge engine, but Payten couldn’t afford to have him playing 80 minutes and running 200m every week- he would have been burned out in a couple of years.

There was pressure on the coach to play his marquee player as much as possible, but also to make sure that his body would last the 10 years. The two things are not compatible, and now the cowboys are paying $1m for a guy who is playing off the bench every second week just so they can get him through to the end of his contract.

Clubs would have to feel much safer flogging a player for 2-3 years and then renewing the contract if they’re still physically up to it.