The Rumours Thread

[JohnnoMcJohnno]

I assume you mean Hunt, and doesn't ever play ? Because if that is the case then I do want him to play against us and get carved up by our halves no matter who they might be.

Be careful what you wish for. I remember Hunt's first game for us. It was against the Broncos and Ben Hunt had a blinder. Tore them apart. He could easily do the same against us.

 

[Dragons4me]

Be careful what you wish for. I remember Hunt's first game for us. It was against the Broncos and Ben Hunt had a blinder. Tore them apart. He could easily do the same against us.

I'll bet he will. It always hapens when ex Dragons play their first game against us.

 

[Parko1310]

what is the key roster move?

It's hilarious and one of the poorest excuses for "journalism" I've ever seen. The bloke who wrote it has somehow linked the Titans letting go of Treymain Spry to them trying to land Ben Hunt. The story has zero legs. How does releasing Spry suddenly mean they have room in their cap for a 900k player? How dumb do these people think the average fan is to buy into that?

 

[blacksafake]

I assume you mean Hunt, and doesn't ever play ? Because if that is the case then I do want him to play against us and get carved up by our halves no matter who they might be.

Be careful what you wish for. I remember Hunt's first game for us. It was against the Broncos and Ben Hunt had a blinder. Tore them apart. He could easily do the same against us.

And he’d probably kick his first field goal against us too.

 

[FlickFlano]

Go the Dragons

 

[getsmarty]

Forgive me getsmarty but excuse my ignorance, could you please let me know who MS is?

No problem Suli ..was given option to look around...things may have changed since then...

As I stated earlier, flanno will not be signing players for the sake of it...2025 will be the big roster rebuild.

 

[getsmarty]

'They could do a bit of interchanging': Flanagan's plans for Lomax and Sloan | Dragons

Shane Flanagan has ruled out making any rash signings as he focuses on building the strongest possible roster for 2025, while revealing he was considering Zac Lomax and Tyrell Sloan in a dual fullback role.

www.dragons.com.au

 

[thebigredv]

'They could do a bit of interchanging': Flanagan's plans for Lomax and Sloan | Dragons

Shane Flanagan has ruled out making any rash signings as he focuses on building the strongest possible roster for 2025, while revealing he was considering Zac Lomax and Tyrell Sloan in a dual fullback role.

www.dragons.com.au

No rash signings okay but how about a few clever signings that would strengthen our team and then can be reinforced in 2025? Curran, Tracey, Fonua- Blake (assuming he was available right away) just for example, would have been excellent going into 2024 and any one of these could play on in 2025 as a vital squad member. I don't feel as if a couple of these players would have been asking too much with our enormous salary cap freedom.

Correct me if I am wrong but didn't Shane say there would be 4 or 5 signings before Christmas or is that something I am making up?

I am wary of a coach talking up the likes of Sloan and Lomax who, despite having great potential, have let us down time and again. If we are hanging our hopes on the same players expecting them to reincarnate as rep-level players that is one thing, but it's another to make it out as such simply because we can't get anyone else over to the joint. Yep, easy for me to sit on the couch and be critical but don't make out as if the fans were all born yesterday. Give it straight.

Sorry but thrice bitten, ten times shy for me. Very wary of coaches that are only ever talking about the future. Remember Mary with his "I finally have the squad I want" rhetoric. Same deal. Puzzle pieces need to fall now for me to buy in to this. I will back Flanagan over Hook in terms identifying strengths and weaknesses but our go forward can't be solely based on improving the players we already have for the 2024. It will be ugly and render us even less attractive a destination. The current players are not up to it most of them.

Every off season I am bleating on about improving the roster and shot down, only to be a couple months in when everyone realises "we don't have the cattle". Can't have this play out again and keep my sanity.

Over and out.

 

[justadragon]

Be careful what you wish for. I remember Hunt's first game for us. It was against the Broncos and Ben Hunt had a blinder. Tore them apart. He could easily do the same against us.

Yeah maybe JMJ, but he was a bit younger then and 6 - 7 million dollars poorer, and not much has happened since then, in one of the only few games that we made the finals he failed miserably in getting us over the line and managing the game out. I'm quite confident that if we ever play against him there will be enough angst to take care of business. I'm just looking forward to his lap of honour when he leaves and the multitude of thanks he will get from the adoring Dragons fans as one of the best Dragons captains ever !!!

 

[Phantom V]

No rash signings okay but how about a few clever signings that would strengthen our team and then can be reinforced in 2025? Curran, Tracey, Fonua- Blake (assuming he was available right away) just for example, would have been excellent going into 2024 and any one of these could play on in 2025 as a vital squad member. I don't feel as if a couple of these players would have been asking too much with our enormous salary cap freedom.

Correct me if I am wrong but didn't Shane say there would be 4 or 5 signings before Christmas or is that something I am making up?

I am wary of a coach talking up the likes of Sloan and Lomax who, despite having great potential, have let us down time and again. If we are hanging our hopes on the same players expecting them to reincarnate as rep-level players that is one thing, but it's another to make it out as such simply because we can't get anyone else over to the joint. Yep, easy for me to sit on the couch and be critical but don't make out as if the fans were all born yesterday. Give it straight.

Sorry but thrice bitten, ten times shy for me. Very wary of coaches that are only ever talking about the future. Remember Mary with his "I finally have the squad I want" rhetoric. Same deal. Puzzle pieces need to fall now for me to buy in to this. I will back Flanagan over Hook in terms identifying strengths and weaknesses but our go forward can't be solely based on improving the players we already have for the 2024. It will be ugly and render us even less attractive a destination. The current players are not up to it most of them.

Every off season I am bleating on about improving the roster and shot down, only to be a couple months in when everyone realises "we don't have the cattle". Can't have this play out again and keep my sanity.

Over and out.

I like so many others on this forum share in your frustrations mate. I come on every day in the hope that we’ve signed up a new player only to be met with no news. On top of that, when we are interested in someone, other clubs seem to be able to snatch them from under our noses. Why there isn’t an investigation into the Bulldogs cap I’ll never know!! (Bas$&rds)
I agree with our new coach that he shouldn’t be signing players just for the sake of it but
I think Flanno himself believed he would have had a couple of more quality signings by now and he’s been forced to go to plan b which is to work with what we’ve got. It can’t be underestimated how much damage our captain has inflicted with his comments and the fiasco he created last year as we seem to be the last option for players on the market.
I see us being a better team in 2024 but still middle of the ladder at best as others have been smarter with their recruitment.

 

[FlickFlano]

Go the Dragons

 

[Dragon David]

No rash signings okay but how about a few clever signings that would strengthen our team and then can be reinforced in 2025? Curran, Tracey, Fonua- Blake (assuming he was available right away) just for example, would have been excellent going into 2024 and any one of these could play on in 2025 as a vital squad member. I don't feel as if a couple of these players would have been asking too much with our enormous salary cap freedom.

Correct me if I am wrong but didn't Shane say there would be 4 or 5 signings before Christmas or is that something I am making up?

I am wary of a coach talking up the likes of Sloan and Lomax who, despite having great potential, have let us down time and again. If we are hanging our hopes on the same players expecting them to reincarnate as rep-level players that is one thing, but it's another to make it out as such simply because we can't get anyone else over to the joint. Yep, easy for me to sit on the couch and be critical but don't make out as if the fans were all born yesterday. Give it straight.

Sorry but thrice bitten, ten times shy for me. Very wary of coaches that are only ever talking about the future. Remember Mary with his "I finally have the squad I want" rhetoric. Same deal. Puzzle pieces need to fall now for me to buy in to this. I will back Flanagan over Hook in terms identifying strengths and weaknesses but our go forward can't be solely based on improving the players we already have for the 2024. It will be ugly and render us even less attractive a destination. The current players are not up to it most of them.

Every off season I am bleating on about improving the roster and shot down, only to be a couple months in when everyone realises "we don't have the cattle". Can't have this play out again and keep my sanity.

Over and out.

"Every off season I am bleating on about improving the roster and shot down, only to be a couple months in when everyone realises "we don't have the cattle". Can't have this play out again and keep my sanity."

I see exactly what you are saying Big Red V. Without any major signings for 2024, it will require the current crop plus the few extras that we will get to play at least 50-60% better in all areas of the game to shine. Could our trainers and conditioners get that much more effort into the players? Will our new coaches get many more wins needed to see us at least in 9th or 10th position at years end? Will the club in fact get the biggies for 2025 that would then help us get into say 5th-6th position in that year? Will those youngsters that Flanno has mentioned come good for 2025?

The spiel coming from our coaches has been generally the same for each year. Of course they want to sound positive and give us hope.

My hope is that this new head coach can deliver and not let us down like all of the others for the past 12 years.

 

[FlickFlano]

Go the Dragons

 

[justadragon]

What do you mean justadragon ... are you pointing to the fact that a halfback scored more field goals in that game than hunt has in his entire career?

Even if that halfback had only scored 1 FG it would have been more than Hunt's entire career .

 

[FlickFlano]

Even if that halfback had only scored 1 FG it would have been more than Hunt's entire career .

at that point in time absolutely correct. Our lord and saviour the next season did manage to kick his first one in a 22-9 loss to the scum. A game that Kyle Flanagan outplayed him.

 

[Hound of Dracula]

It irks me little how Flanno has changed the narrative around Ben Hunt.
“He’s sick of losing” – It deflects from the influence Hunt had creating the losing culture that he is so sick of.
Endorsing old player mates, endorsing Griffin to the bitter end, endorsing a Hunt-based one-dimensional attack, refusing to play in another position for the betterment of the team, rarely supporting/nurturing Juniors and, despite being “well regarded” at representative level, doesn’t appear to attract those peers to play alongside him at the Dragons.
Remind me what a winning side we were when he re-signed?

Individually Ben Hunt is a great player, and I can understand why many believe we can’t lose him for 2024.

From my 42 years in the workforce, I have never seen a talented individual spit the dummy at his employers, mediate, then return to work with the same commitment, and respect, as before. No matter what, there will always be a bitter under-current and he won’t be immune to the negative sentiments expressed in these forums nor from the fans at the game. It will affect his game.

I doubt it will happen however, if a Deardon/Hunt swap became an option for 2024, then it should be immediately accepted for the good of all parties.

 

[Mojo]

IMO Hook was the worst thing that has happened at StG in my approx. 60 years as a supporter. Hunt was central to Hook's disastrous influence.

 

[thebigredv]

Will the club in fact get the biggies for 2025 that would then help us get into say 5th-6th position in that year? Will those youngsters that Flanno has mentioned come good for 2025?

It’s a lot of uncertainty heading into a new season. If we can’t land the likes of Tracey then the biggies coming here looks less likely.

Every coach will talk up his current players. Nothing new there.

Facts are we have freed a few squad spots, signed the son of the coach and a Souths reject who was a better player when he left us. Not congruent with what Shane had promised upon signing.

I can only comment on the facts these days because depending on the hope and the false hope has left me broken.

 

[JubileeJeffro]

Any interest in Klemmer? Could become available if WT somehow land Luai..
Still think he goes well and is 29

 

[thebigredv]

Any interest in Klemmer? Could become available if WT somehow land Luai..
Still think he goes well and is 29

Upgrade on Aaron Woods to fill a similar role for a few years. I would be fine for the right price.
Not necessarily a culture-builder though.