Rumoured targets thread

[Rod]

Exactly, can't believe people still use age as a sole reason to dismiss a player. Smith is quality.

 

[aqua_duck]

Age is irrelevant to dulling your class, if you are a top level player. In case people forget Doogs was killing it at 36. Menzies is 39 this year and is on fire at Le Catalan , albeit in the ESL. Petero is still a handful at 36. Oh and let's not forget a certain W Mason. We may just get three great years out of Smith. Better than Stagg.

Those are the the exceptions to the rule, and whilst they all provided quality service were still a mere shadow of their former selves, they just didn't decline as much as guys like Ben Hornby, Matt Orford, Nathan Hindmarsh, Luke Burt, Scott Prince, Lote Tuqiri, Shaun Berrigan, Rhys Wesser, etc

 

[RABK]

Can't say i am a raging fan of Smith - at any age. He's a tougher version of House with a smaller motor - basically a guy who doesn't bend the line. Not exactly what we need. We need ballplaying and line breaking in the forwards.

But meh if Bennett turns us into drilled robots then he'll fit in ala Dragons 2010.

 

[RABK]

Scott
Houston
Smith

It's a backrow that'll rack up 100-120 tough tackles a game between them but will be lucky to score or set up 5 tries all year between them.

As much as i dislike Creagh - he did provide the 'attacking' backrower the Dragons needed to have at leats some threat outwide. He could decoy, ball play, cut inside and break the line hence drew defenders and allowed Boyd, Cooper and Morris to tear it up.

 

[RABK]

And why did/does Sau cop so much flack for not been able to pass yet Houston escape any similar flack? Sure a centre probably should possess a better passing game than any backrower but Houston has nothing, absolutely nothing in regards to ball playing.
Houston would run the ball with a 5 on 1 outside him.

He shouldn't be anywhere near the fringes.

 

[Yosh]

Look some of you probably respect me when it comes to news and rumours in regards to recruitment because i have often had spot on mail and have a couple of good sources.

I'll say it once - Twitter recruitment rumours are 90% garbage. Wouldn't be suprised if most of them are started by guys like Yosh going "Falou > Knights"

lol.. I don't even use twitter...

So Falous coming to the knights!~!~???:crazy::lol:

 

[RHCP]

He shouldn't be anywhere near the fringes.

Yep. It's lock or bust for House imo.

Stagg would be disappointing, I don't feel like he has anything to offer that we need that House couldn't provide for less cash, or that Smith could provide much better, albeit with a slightly larger pay packet.

 

[voltron]

i would be happy with smith on a 2 year deal
anything more is too risky

romelo, as hooker? we are looking for a long term prospect to replace buderus after we missed out on cameron king.
i wouldnt mind the ottoman
but dont care if we miss him either

stagg, i feel like that guy hasnt progressed, he came down to the dogs and he well for a bit
but now you dont hear about him.
meh, we have house, why do we need another one?

 

[CJG 182]

Signing any of them reeks of signings for signings sake. Romelo can rot in reserve grade where he belongs.

The other two really don't bolster the pack that much if at all.

If we want someone in the Stagg mould target Elijah Taylor the second he's off contract. A younger, better, more skillful, more all-round forward than Stagg who still has his best days ahead of him.

 

[Perth Knights]

NRL on Fox has confirmed that Luke Lewis has narrowed his choice of clubs to two ... Sharks and Tigers. The knights were never a realistic option ... oh well, was nice to dream!

 

[Nuffy]

Cronulla are morals, Lewis looking at shire properties today on nine news and his missus is tight with Lee Furlong who is based in the Shire with Shane Watson.

We were never in the hunt, but it may deliver Smith, I do hope it's two year contract max and we get a discount, don't suppose Bennett is used to paying overs.

Forget Stagg unless he's coming with a massive payout, or straight swap for Edwards.

 

[K-Man]

Scott
Houston
Smith

It's a backrow that'll rack up 100-120 tough tackles a game between them but will be lucky to score or set up 5 tries all year between them.

As much as i dislike Creagh - he did provide the 'attacking' backrower the Dragons needed to have at leats some threat outwide. He could decoy, ball play, cut inside and break the line hence drew defenders and allowed Boyd, Cooper and Morris to tear it up.

This is exactly what I've been worried about for awhile. Individually I can't knock anyone in our potential back-row, but as a group I really don't like the balance at all.

When you think Sharks could have Gallen, Graham, Lewis and Bukuya there is so much variety, skill and strike power there. I fear that we can't step up to the top teams in big games without a really top class second-rower that breaks the line, and I'm not sure Jeremy is it.

I've got little doubt Smith would come to Newcastle and do well. I'm not suggesting he will have a 'poor' season, and probably nor will Houston or Scott. But it wouldn't surprise me at all if the overriding sentiment at the end of the season is that our back-row tried hard and tackled their guts out, but we finish seventh and get brushed aside from there.

 

[K-Man]

And why did/does Sau cop so much flack for not been able to pass yet Houston escape any similar flack? Sure a centre probably should possess a better passing game than any backrower but Houston has nothing, absolutely nothing in regards to ball playing.
Houston would run the ball with a 5 on 1 outside him.

He shouldn't be anywhere near the fringes.

And again, another massive bugbear of mine. He's such a modern-day 13, I don't understand why he has even been allowed anywhere near the edges of a football field.

Houston will cruel the potential of Gagai/Uate if he stays there, but then again I'm not convinced Scott won't do the same.

It's such a crucial position to have attacking spark because so many of our set plays - that we rely on to score points - involve the perceived threat of the second rower. And at the moment those 'threats' are Joel Edwards and Chris Houston. It's amazing Boyd, Mullen, Roberts, Gagai, Tahu have been doing as well as they have in recent weeks really.

 

[K-Man]

Yep. It's lock or bust for House imo.

Stagg would be disappointing, I don't feel like he has anything to offer that we need that House couldn't provide for less cash, or that Smith could provide much better, albeit with a slightly larger pay packet.

Even Ethan Cook. I'd throw Cook a debut before even considering a contract for a well-passed-it Stagg.

 

[Newie is God's Country]

Just on Lewis it was always going to be very hard to get him out of Sydney. Building a house for one. I also don't think he will ever totally settle at his new club. He is Penrith to the end. Sharks should get this one over the line. I also couldn't see Wayne paying the money he wants or even close to it really. With the talent up for grabs for 2014 I think this could be a blessing in disguise.

 

[Frances the Mute]

Cronulla are morals, Lewis looking at shire properties today on nine news and his missus is tight with Lee Furlong who is based in the Shire with Shane Watson.

We were never in the hunt, but it may deliver Smith, I do hope it's two year contract max and we get a discount, don't suppose Bennett is used to paying overs.

Forget Stagg unless he's coming with a massive payout, or straight swap for Edwards.

Wouldn't suprise me if they are topping up his contract by $50k-$100k or so to free up $250k to go for Lewis, if so good gear.

 

[IanG]

Seems we can't fit him under our salary cap. So we're all but out of the race.

 

[Rod]

I also couldn't see Wayne paying the money he wants or even close to it really. With the talent up for grabs for 2014 I think this could be a blessing in disguise.

Yeah it seems like Wayne perhaps doesn't like to get into bidding wars. Didn't we pull out of the race for Waerea-Hargreaves and Kasiano because other clubs bumped their offers up? Seems like Wayne probably has a 'here's our offer, take it or leave it' mentality.

Also agree about the second point, if we had signed Lewis as great as it would have been, we would have had quite a bit of money tied up in longer-term contracts, meaning we possibly couldn't have a crack at what's on offer next year. Plus Uate needs a big payrise end of next year .

 

[Frances the Mute]

I have to admit even Uates not worth more then $300k even with the rise in the salary cap.

No winger is.

 

[AusKnightRKO]

Uate is worth atleast 400