I'll say that I'm looking forward to the next couple of years, and a big part of that is because of what happened last year. I was dreading the year after we won the spoon because there was nothing that looked promising about it - but it does look like we've got our heads up and might surprise a lot of people this year and it's exciting stuff.
Concerning our activity in transfers this year, it's just new ground for us. It's a tricky one. I do like the idea of having a team full of local juniors, makes me very proud to support a young fellow through the ranks, and I was always a bit skeptical about the idea of filling a team with 'mercenaries'. I'm starting to think though that while the nurturing of local talent has its obvious benefits, particularly with regards to club culture, the way we were going wasn't sustainable.
When the club is forced to blood juniors in a manner akin to sending them over the top to meet a wall of gunfire, some of them are bound to get cut down prematurely. I would still like to think that this recent flurry of signings is ultimately a short term thing and that it sets us up well enough in the next few years, allowing us to get the local guys out there in better circumstances.
The biggest practical problem I have the surge of new talent is that I hope Smith has enough sense to look at his pets objectively (that'll make a few Parra fans laugh). They bring a lot of enthusiasm, we're sounding very determined in the offseason and it all looks good on paper, but if we're stuck with a few lemons we might be very frustrated at some selections this year.
With the Jets, there's no problem that I can see. Every year it seems to be Con speaks up about the Jets in reference to us, for better or worse, and in this case I'm thrilled they're doing so well at the moment. The Jets crowds seem much louder than the Knights obviously and that much is a shame for the latter, but it's no surprise when you look at the Squadron because they've done a remarkable job. Just sometimes wish the Jets would just take their success on its own merit and not make a cross-code issue of it (for the record, I'm a fan of both).
Basically I'd take all the Telegraph type tabloid stuff with grain of salt on standby. Whether we're up or down they report things to extremes - while last year was fun with all the feuds and walkouts, it's what happens on the field that should count this year, and they might actually start to like us again...
) and more subdued - grannies knitting, older men sinking beers...... the amount of times I have been told to sit down and shut up at a Knights game is absolutely ridiculous - and would never happen at a Jets game.
