The Rumours Thread

[Pomoz]

Saints are building for the future in house as the Jersey Flegg won the GF and some will hopefully come through to FG in 2026 / 2027. They just need a few to fill in the gaps.

Sometimes you don't need to go all out and buy a heap of players as that just blocks juniors coming through like Saints have done in the past. Rava for Saab is a good example. At the time was a good move but now looking back, if only Saints looked at speed more than power.

With Flanno I feel Saints will keep the good juniors and give them more of a crack.

This is absolutely the way to build your team. The new franchises are going to make it even harder to sign players from elsewhere. You will have to tolerate the losses so you can build for the future, it will be impossible to buy success with current player market and the new teams starting up.

People forget the five years leading to the current Panthers dynasty. It was two steps forward one step back as the young players were given game time, assisted by old heads like Soward, Maloney and Merrin. They lost plenty of games but improved as they got experience. We also wanted big signings and we never got them.

Once the team started to get consistent, the steady flow of juniors into the team continued. Some of it planned, some of it down to the salary cap. Just this year Henry, Geyer, McLean, Iongi, Toleau, Sommerton, Cole and Patea were all given decent time in first grade to give them experience. Some were excellent like Henry, McLean and Cole and some took time to settle in like Geyer and Toleau. I expect most of them will get even more time next year.

Patience is required and a bit of luck with injuries. You never know if the gun Flegg player can make the step up or if they let the fame go to their head and waste their talent. Sometimes their bodies just don't cope. Not everybody can be an NRL warrior.

 

[BigRedVee]

Our development pathways have improved and we will be better positioned to develop the next crop of players with proper coaching and systems in place. These kids understanding what is required on and off the field from a young age is something that Bud, Amone and Sloan never had. Not to mention the Covid bubble which meant they went from flegg to firsts which is a huge step for young kids.

The Panther’s system shows that the next man up fits straight in to the system and does their job because they have trained at a high level and is mentally and physically ready from a young age. Plus the mentorship of a generational player like Cleary is something we can’t compete with.

We have a long way to go, but it’s good to see the club value junior development after years of Mary and Hook shenanigans.

 

[redandwhite4evr]

We didn't win fleg. We won the SG ball under 19s

Yes- the Flegg GF is next Sunday and we're not in it.

 

[Dragon David]

Yes- the Flegg GF is next Sunday and we're not in it.

Who are redandwhite4evr?

 

[Number of the Beath]

Does anyone know if there's any truth in the rumour that we have secured a major sponsorship from Jax Tyres going forward.
A spokesperson from Jax said "It's a perfect partnership. Jax and the Dragons are both famous brands who know a lot about blow-outs."

 

[Desperate Dragon]

Who are redandwhite4evr?

Sharks v Bulldogs.

 

[justadragon]

Does anyone know if there's any truth in the rumour that we have secured a major sponsorship from Jax Tyres going forward.
A spokesperson from Jax said "It's a perfect partnership. Jax and the Dragons are both famous brands who know a lot about blow-outs."

Wouldn't be the first time the Dragons and Jax joined forces.

 

[qld redvee]

Wouldn't be the first time the Dragons and Jax joined forces.

Just,
Didnt johnny raper do some TV ads for them way back

 

[Dragsters]

Just,
Didnt johnny raper do some TV ads for them way back

Jax'n'rippertyres'n'withthedeals...

 

[qld redvee]

Jax'n'rippertyres'n'withthedeals...

Both showing our age

 

[_Johnsy]

This is absolutely the way to build your team. .

Melbourne disagree.

 

[Dragon David]

Sharks v Bulldogs.

Thanks Desperate!

 

[Nich]

Sharks v Bulldogs.

Taj Ford the 5/8 for the sharks is qaulity player. Was in the steelers system but is now at the Sharks.

 

[possm]

Didnt mean to come off disrespectful to Possm, i know he is a valued member. Its more realistic to pick a team based on who we have signed up and then put the pieces together as more signings come. I dont care who takes his place but Feagai is a backup/reserve grader at best. Seeing Feagais name had me seeing red haha

No offense taken. We all have a view and that view often changes with time. I remember posting the inclusion of Holmes in our squad. This seemed a complicated signing at the time, but it eventually came to fruition.

 

[justadragon]

Just,
Didnt johnny raper do some TV ads for them way back

Sure did mate, as I said in the nostalgia thread, I used to hassle my old man to Jax to get tyres because of Raper.

 

[jak]

Sure did mate, as I said in the nostalgia thread, I used to hassle my old man to Jax to get tyres because of Raper.

did he need tyres at the time?

 

[justadragon]

did he need tyres at the time?

Probably not Jak, but it still used to piss him off because I wanted the stickers you could get from Jax anyway

 

[Pomoz]

Melbourne disagree.

I get your point, Melbourne often sign no-names and turn them into good players. But they still have a core of players that they have debuted though. Papenhuyzen is a classic example. He was signed when he was a junior at Wests Tigers. The Storm trained him and debuted him two years after signing him. That is no different from using your own juniors. You have to identify the talent and then coach and build them into an NRL player. Three of the Storm spine were developed by the club. The fourth, Hughes, was signed after playing one game for the Titans. One game!

As for signing clubs cast offs like Meaney, Blore and Josh King, my point is we now have the Dolphins as an extra team and a new NRL franchise coming soon. Relying on other teams cast offs will be much harder to do. At least Flanagan knows what a good player looks like and will sign quality if he gets the chance. You know he will sign tough, "never say die" warriors if he can find them.

Anyway, if you get the junior development process right, you only need to find a handful of players to top up your team. Creating juniors is not the answer if you don't have the development in place to make them NRL quality.

Two years ago the Panthers rested 10 of their NRL players in the final round of the competition against the Cowboys. NSW Cup players played instead. That week the NSW Cup team had to play a semifinal, so the jersey Flegg team had to supply players for the NSW Cup team. The Flegg team also had a semifinal that week so they needed players from Harold Matthews. Fans were horrified because we were in the running to compete in all three grades in the finals and had devastated the squads. Cleary's answer was something like"the Junior Grades are their to help create and build NRL players, not to win titles. Titles are nice to have, but if the teams can't create NRL quality players then the system has failed".

In the team that got beaten 38 - 8 that day was Turuva, Henry, Cole, Smith, Hopgood, Jenkins and Geyer was 18th man. We got thrashed, but all of them have since played first grade.

Before Gus changed our development process, we would drop first graders into NSW Cup towards the end of the season to try and win reserve grade or Flegg. We had a massive junior league and for ten years couldn't make the semi's and our single rep player was Jennings. Patience and a plan, that's what you need. The Dragon's will rise again.

 

[jak]

Probably not Jak, but it still used to piss him off because I wanted the stickers you could get from Jax anyway

some dads had more to put up with than others, bless them all

 

[Gareth67]

I use to buy them often , usually every 2 years . Come rego time I would always have a full service done to tip the ‘ scales of road-worthiness ‘ in my favour and a set of Jax tyres - always put a smile on the mechanics face .