Is our playing roster up to NRL level ?

[Vicious]

There is always many theories on why we have now collected 2 consecutive wooden spoons, potentially a 3rd on the way, but the bottom line is our playing roster is not good enough.
Yes we brought in some quality players for 2023 and Api aside they didn’t set the world on fire, but regardless we no doubt have the worst playing roster in the NRL when you factor in inconsistent and injury prone players as well as the obvious lack of NRL quality depth.
It’s a very hard fix as every decent player is hesitant about joining a club that has been unsuccessful for so long.
The hope leading into the 2024 season is good young players always improve with age, experience and maturity. We have thrown plenty of young players in the deep end playing NRL before they were ready this season, therefore some will be much hungrier and more ready in 2024 along with the young talent we have recruited.
If we are realistic it will be near impossible to be much better in 2024 with the playing roster we currently have. I’m sure all involved know that and will be doing everything within their power to offload and recruit at least another handful of players to improve the 2024 roster if possible.
It’s a big hole the club is currently in and very hard to get out of. Bulldogs and Dragons both in a similar predicament and they have more top class players than we do, but lack of NRL depth will hold them back in the short term also.

 

[Jolls]

There is always many theories on why we have now collected 2 consecutive wooden spoons, potentially a 3rd on the way, but the bottom line is our playing roster is not good enough.
Yes we brought in some quality players for 2023 and Api aside they didn’t set the world on fire, but regardless we no doubt have the worst playing roster in the NRL when you factor in inconsistent and injury prone players as well as the obvious lack of NRL quality depth.
It’s a very hard fix as every decent player is hesitant about joining a club that has been unsuccessful for so long.
The hope leading into the 2024 season is good young players always improve with age, experience and maturity. We have thrown plenty of young players in the deep end playing NRL before they were ready this season, therefore some will be much hungrier and more ready in 2024 along with the young talent we have recruited.
If we are realistic it will be near impossible to be much better in 2024 with the playing roster we currently have. I’m sure all involved know that and will be doing everything within their power to offload and recruit at least another handful of players to improve the 2024 roster if possible.
It’s a big hole the club is currently in and very hard to get out of. Bulldogs and Dragons both in a similar predicament and they have more top class players than we do, but lack of NRL depth will hold them back in the short term also.

You are 100% on the money. I just wrote pretty much the same evaluation in the live game thread.

"A full season in Cup/Flegg with a steady roster is what is required to develop our young guns. Until we have Flegg putting performance pressure on a KOE team putting performance pressure on our FG team we will never have the depth to compete for the lollies at the end of the season."

We need to shore up the glaring deficiencies in our backline with some grit and strike but need to put as much effort into developing a quaity Cup and Flegg team as we do into FG. Until we have that we can never achieve the next man up capability that the quality teams have.

 

[Tucker]

I started a thread in January about squad depth and we all agreed we were very thin.
Our top 17 looked shaky but that was nothing compared with the 13 blokes behind them. Three key positions I posed as depth weaknesses was the front row, halves and centres. Happily, the middles did surprise me this year and mostly held up. The halves and centres though were every bit the weakness we thought they’d be.

I agree with your assessment of the lower grades. The wishy washy way they are run does nothing to aid first grade. Blokes chopping and changing positions, coming in and out of the teams regularly…it is very poor preparation for what awaits them once they step up.

 

[Vicious]

I started a thread in January about squad depth and we all agreed we were very thin.
Our top 17 looked shaky but that was nothing compared with the 13 blokes behind them. Three key positions I posed as depth weaknesses was the front row, halves and centres. Happily, the middles did surprise me this year and mostly held up. The halves and centres though were every bit the weakness we thought they’d be.

I agree with your assessment of the lower grades. The wishy washy way they are run does nothing to aid first grade. Blokes chopping and changing positions, coming in and out of the teams regularly…it is very poor preparation for what awaits them once they step up.

In the back half of the season we were playing journeyman in their mid to late 20’s to play in our NSW Cup team instead of developing our best young players against men.

 

[Tucker]

In the back half of the season we were playing journeyman in their mid to late 20’s to play in our NSW Cup team instead of developing our best young players against men.

Surely this comes back on Betsey? Lambkin and Kenna have not had good years.
Maybe the fact Sheens was Head Coach and Head of the Football department meant people went unchecked in their roles as he was spread too thin?

 

[Vicious]

Surely this comes back on Betsey? Lambkin and Kenna have not had good years.
Maybe the fact Sheens was Head Coach and Head of the Football department meant people went unchecked in their roles as he was spread too thin?

I think Sheens allowed Lambkin to select the team of his choice, not what’s best for the clubs future.
Either way it didn’t work and reserve grade coaches should have the difficult job of coaching the team given to them by the NRL coach.

 

[Alex Seyfarth's #1 Fan]

Last night's team played like a Flegg side. Leaky middle with holes everywhere. DCE clowned on us last night. If they had Turbo we could well have seen 70-80 points put on us.

 

[jadtiger]

Last night's team played like a Flegg side. Leaky middle with holes everywhere. DCE clowned on us last night. If they had Turbo we could well have seen 70-80 points put on us.

We have already got the "award" for biggest loss ever in the NRL this year (Thanks Sheens) but if Turbo had played i am sure we would have beaten our own "award"

 

[Tiger_Yoshi]

I started a thread in January about squad depth and we all agreed we were very thin.
Our top 17 looked shaky but that was nothing compared with the 13 blokes behind them. Three key positions I posed as depth weaknesses was the front row, halves and centres. Happily, the middles did surprise me this year and mostly held up. The halves and centres though were every bit the weakness we thought they’d be.

I agree with your assessment of the lower grades. The wishy washy way they are run does nothing to aid first grade. Blokes chopping and changing positions, coming in and out of the teams regularly…it is very poor preparation for what awaits them once they step up.

And the issue is the coaches… looking for quick fixes which actually sets us back even further than if we were patient in our development… look at the Storm, when they promote their players look NRL ready.

 

[earl]

It's always been the roster but we have no choice but to promote juniors early. If they are good enough they'll handle it.

 

[Magpie_Magic]

Roster isn't good enough and lacks depth.

But the coaching staff budgeted on a Brooks AD halves combo and Staines, Naden Noff and To'a mostly in the side. That's a whole backline.

Most gone all year....game over..

For next year I reckon Benji wants to get Fainu in early......perhaps with Sezer and maybe Sullivan on the bench.

But we need at least another 2 quality backs and the young guys for development and depth.

 

[The Chad]

As Tucker rightly pointed out- depth is a massive problem. Our absolute TOP squad probably competes over the course of the year. But once you rely on some of the kids to get you through- it shows the difference.

Is our squad NRL level?

Yes.

Why? Because Morgan Harper still plays 1st grade elsewhere. Other clubs have Tigers-level players. They just ALSO have Cherry-Evans type guys to cover for it.

But our depth is low level & our starters are mostly "in the mix" at other clubs instead of 'genuine stars'. We just need to upgrade the ceiling & the floor. We have the middle ground covered.

 

[Flippedy]

As Tucker rightly pointed out- depth is a massive problem. Our absolute TOP squad probably competes over the course of the year. But once you rely on some of the kids to get you through- it shows the difference.

Is our squad NRL level?

Yes.

Why? Because Morgan Harper still plays 1st grade elsewhere. Other clubs have Tigers-level players. They just ALSO have Cherry-Evans type guys to cover for it.

But our depth is low level & our starters are mostly "in the mix" at other clubs instead of 'genuine stars'. We just need to upgrade the ceiling & the floor. We have the middle ground covered.

Spot on good post 👍

 

[426Tlgerland]

Not at this years level , we were down on First graders by probably 3 players with talent
our depth was non existent , although I feel Reilly should have got a crack way earlier , I called for him to be playing and kept in first grade for the last 7 weeks to see the results from him , he got 2 and was good in both , wasted opportunity with him .
injuries again hurt with no player of position to cover injured player
Eg , Brooks out , we had nothing , no one of quality in lower grade to take the challenge .