The Cleanout That Needs to Happen

[RABK]

I'm with CWB - terrible atittude of failure and ineptness lingers about the place. Time to get out the broom.



Release Newton, Perry, Woolnough, Tanner, Carmont, Thaiday, Seage, MacDougall, Franze etc etc.

Free up $1,500,000 - $1,750,000 and make some god damn signings. Smith changed the roster at Parra by 95% in three years - he needs to do that here.

Ling, Natusch, Big H, Larry Taufua - these blokes belong in first grade a hell of a lot more then the powderpuffs out there today.

 

[RABK]

It's very despressing when people throw up the likes of Sargent and Davico as saviours. No slight on you guys, more so i think it highlights how far down sh*t creek we are.

 

[keeney]

Sargent could very well be a decent player we could use with our current problems. Davico of 04 could have been the same, he's well and truly past it now though.

 

[Misanthrope]

Release Newton, Perry, Woolnough, Tanner, Carmont, Thaiday, Seage, MacDougall, Franze etc etc.

Seems a little unfair to Franze, who has been trying his ass off in Premier League by all reports. He wouldn't be on a great deal, anyway. Agree 100% on the others, though, unless Thaiday miraculously learns how to defend this year so his attack can be used without costing us games.

It's very despressing when people throw up the likes of Sargent and Davico as saviours. No slight on you guys, more so i think it highlights how far down sh*t creek we are.

Until his suspension, Sargent was a great player. Not an Origin player, but a more than capable starter. It bemuses me that he's still not found a place in the side. Davico was an Origin quality player, and will probably go down as someone who was wildly unlucky not to do so.

 

[RABK]

It not so much the player - it's the fact you guys are highlighting a prop.

Only one prop i've seen would have made a difference out there but he currently sits on TFS's panel.

 

[Alex28]

The club has an ingrained culture where players believe they are owed positions in first grade rather than having to earn them. Brad Tighe is the perfect example of a guy who would deadset not get a run at any other club, yet we signed him last year on a PROMISE that he'd get a start in 2007. Unbelievable.

We have made the wrong decision with a number of juniors coming through the club. Guys that management have thought would be genuine first graders in the future simply aren't. I mean if Stephen Gordon is the second best fullback in the club then we are up for ALOT of pain for the next year. His performance today was nothing short of pathetic.

Clubs like Melbourne and St George manage to develop some great juniors year after year - how can Melbourne produce Greg Inglis one year, then Israel Falou...and we produce Stephen Gordon? What are we doing wrong?

We stared down a club record for the biggest loss ever and not one of the players out there for the last 20 minutes gave a damn. There was no pride in the jersey. It was disgusting.

It will take 3 years to clear the rubbish out of the club and build a team that can threaten to win a premiership. It is a great shame that a club legend in Danny Buderus has to play out the remainder of his career with some guys that will never ever show as much heart for the club that he has.

 

[roopy]

johns, buderus, kidley, simpson - that is half our salary cap right there.

 

[Alex28]

Other clubs have to cope with such problems Roopy and can develop decent juniors. From 2008 there is no excuse because we dont have Johns taking up nearly one-sixth of our salary cap. Lucky we have a coach who knows what he is doing...

 

[Serc]

We stared down a club record for the biggest loss ever and not one of the players out there for the last 20 minutes gave a damn. There was no pride in the jersey. It was disgusting.

Very well said, couldn't have put it any better. I would go so far as to say when they came out of the sheds after half time they were in that mindset as well...

I remarked to a few people today that a good $1.5mill of our $3.6mill cap was on the sidelines or retired. It is certainly no excuse for the lack of backbone on display this afternoon. In fact I woke up this morning and had almost forgotten it was game day for the first time in aaaaaaaaaages. Must not have been a good sign!

 

[Frederick]

Remind me why we're still paying for Johns? :?

 

[Alex28]

We really aren't - insurance has paid him out and we have $220K to use in this years salary can apparently. I've heard that they are looking at transferring 2008 salaries into this year to have more funds to recruit next year - but we may need to look at other players this year unless we are happy to write it off now.

 

[Misanthrope]

Obviously it was hard to judge in a 71-6 drubbing, but how did Cooper Vuna look in his first hit out. Warriors fans seemed to lament his departure, and I've certainly heard some good things about him. With the right influence, could he be a long term backline prospect?

 

[Alex28]

I thought he looked OK in attack but his defence looked pretty ordinary - but he wasn't alone there...

It's hard to judge - we only had one playmaker out there for the majority of the match (and none at all for the last 20) so he didn't get alot of quality ball.

 

[CJKnight]

If the Naiqama/Mad Pup rumors are true, at least we are taking some steps with our backline. Cooper Vuna looked dangerous in his dummy-half runs but just couldn't make the break.

Mullen needs support in the kicking game area too. Tighe was the only other player to put in a half decent kick that only just missed out on another repeat set for us (by one roll of the ball).

We NEED Sargent in the side. The signs look good for Snowden, Tuafua, and Patterson, they just need more time.

 

[mean_maori_mean]

Again Whatuira should be targeted by you guys - he is best defensive centre available for sure. cool calm and collective - no doubt. will compliment a young backline and will maybe make Tighe or Carmont into a better player.

 

[macavity]

I didnt watch the game, but my Mrs rang me in tears about 10mins into the second half.

by the sounds of it, there really was no pride on show.

what is the answer? I dont know that we have one, for this year at least. we also have to think about how attractive this place is right now - we are humiliation central, we have a coach who (although im glad he is here) is constantly rated the coach players least like to play under, and we really have nothing to offer players besides nice beaches, a laid back lifestyle, and not much competition for a FG spot - sounds like the perfect retirement....

Certainly having our 3 best out of the side makes a hell of a difference, but as someone else said - that is an excuse for a loss - not a humiliation.

 

[Misanthrope]

Again Whatuira should be targeted by you guys - he is best defensive centre available for sure. cool calm and collective - no doubt. will compliment a young backline and will maybe make Tighe or Carmont into a better player.

I'd love to see us look at him. He's never let his side(s) down and could teach our young guys a lot about defence.

 

[fred_knight]

CWB, I tend to agree with you 100%, it needs to be done and done soon, players in the side are taking there position for granted, especially Perry, Tighe and Macdougall.Perry gives away the most stupidest penalties and always at crucial times, how many times have we seen him lay on a player WAY too long on or near the last tackle, give away a penalty, then he just gets up and casually walks back to the line like everything is ok.I for one am sick of him giving away these stupid penalties, they hurt us, but he keeps doing it week in week out.Tighe, enough has been said about him, does not deserve his spot and the same for Macdougall, no idea why we got him back. We need mongrel, especially in the forwards, a Crocker, Webb, Peulatua, Pritchard, Mason, Payten, Ross.You get the message, all teams have em but us, an enforcer like Harragon was, or Geyer, Tallis, Spud Carroll, Webcke. We need someone tough up front.Plus a few quality backs, a cemented fullback would be good, if its Gidley or whoever, someone who is gonna be there every week, Hunt, Wesser, Hodgson, Burt, Peachey, Bowen, etc all fullbacks only, wings and centres can do with an overhaul as well, i dont have the answers but then again im not getting paid the big bucks to make the decision but if i was i would be out there scouting and cleaning out the deadwood. I can only trust what i read on the board about reserve graders like Uate etc, as i live in Penrith and dont get to many Knights home games, but if they are potential good player then bring em on, show Tighe and Perry etc that they have to fight for their spot, not just read the teams on Wednesday and say "yeah im in the side again another bludge weekend for me"..Wheres the heart and passion in that.

 

[Luke Hatherley]

Perry gives away the most stupidest penalties and always at crucial times, how many times have we seen him lay on a player WAY too long on or near the last tackle, give away a penalty, then he just gets up and casually walks back to the line like everything is ok.I for one am sick of him giving away these stupid penalties, they hurt us, but he keeps doing it week in week out.

He does it week in, week out and it is ill-disciplined and down-right lazy. Newton used to do it but it seems to have slipped out of his game.

The lack of penetration by the forwards yesterday was embarrasing. The just don't look like the are going to punch through. Reynoldson's run in the first half is the only time I can remember us breaking the advantage line from a hit-up. How many sets were completed 30 meteres out from our own line?

 

[AdamT]

Don't make assumptions as to my state of mind. My passion for the Knights and rugby league in general has been at an all time low of late

That should be our motto. We have the best junior nursery in the country, yet we have won the competition just once this decade. We've not made the grand final since, we've missed the eight, and we've finished last. When we've made the finals, we've crashed out of them without much fanfare. If you're satisfied to accept 'good enough', then power to you, but I've seen the side slump further and further from where it should be every year since 2001. I used to think it was solely Hagan's fault, but judging by this year, I'm beginning to think it's a culture thing that Smith will be hard pressed to root out.

Whatever helps you sleep at night. I'm sure you'll get to use that gem a few times over the next few seasons.

Well Said Oswin.... You just need to look at the time his post was made? Yes just four hours after a record defeat. It would have taken CWB four hours to draft up his essay on the subject.

OK we won in 1997 and 2001 and we made the final about every year in between. Thats winning 2 GF's in 9 years out of 16 players. Cronulla have never won ONE in some 40 years. You and Nick Politis will do well to expect to not just make grand finals but win them every year. I am proud of how we have done in the past 9 years - Some years not as good as others like last year. Mate we are coming 7th from 16 which aint too bad and if we improve and make the top 4 we will have a chance to get to a GF which is better than the last 4 years showed us. It would be nice if shallow fans like you got behind their team not bagged them out.

So stop the panic CWB and try to sleep at night mate without being so low on the game of Rugby league. Maybe you like Politis expect too much and have been spoilt for too long son.