Signings, Suggestions & Rumours Discussion

[Tigerdazz2]

Wayne Bennett sure makes astute signings. (Bennett's fingerprints are all over it) We've all seen what he has done since the lead up to the Dolphin's debut season and in the time since.

He's starting to put together a his squad for season 2025 and he's just signed this young blokes who is currently at the Storm. He looks a real goer, he'd of looked good in a Tigers jersey!

 

[colinbh]

Wayne Bennett sure makes astute signings. (Bennett's fingerprints are all over it) We've all seen what he has done since the lead up to the Dolphin's debut season and in the time since.

He's starting to put together a his squad for season 2025 and he's just signed this young blokes who is currently at the Storm. He looks a real goer, he'd of looked good in a Tigers jersey!

No good. According to some on this forum he would be crap as soon as he gets here.

 

[Tom Shines]

This gets said a lot but it doesn't really stand up to scrutiny. Most players who have left the Tigers have absolutely not set the world on fire. Going through the list: Aloiai is worse than he was here, Hastings is exactly the same, Peachey never came back to first grade and Daine Laurie hasn't done so far, Gildart vanished without trace, so did Maumalo, Madden is a nuffie, Liddle is no better than he was at the Tigers, Ofahengaue is a bench player at absolute best, Musgrove is out of the comp, Luciano Leilua has got worse, Matterson had one good season and is now chronically meh, Garner is a fringe first grader at best, Mbye carried on his downward trajectory, Marsters and Lolohea vanished without trace. Even Brooks is basically the same as he was at the Tigers just with DCE alongside him and on a smaller contract.

The problem isn't that players magically become better when they leave the Tigers; the problem is that we've had too many bad players in first grade.

You list some but don’t mention others … there are a lot of players that have left the Tigers this past decade .. so all boxes will be ticked by several at their new club ..bad, the same and improved …

Aloiai looks better to me , along with Brooks … Joe is ok… but I actually rated him when he was here ..too early with Liddle ..some were terrible when they were here and were terrible at their new club like Mbye and Musgrove ..and I’m betting you can add AJ to that list … of course Teddy and Moses went on to be superstars .. Madden was crap when he was here … how could he not be better getting picked for first grade at the Broncos? but off the top of my head I could also mention the likes of Brown, Taupau and Lodge who arguably were better at their next club ..if there is a list let me know and I’ll pick out others Im sure ..

. I am gobsmacked with Talau … I laughed at my Manly supporting friends when they bought him … I didn’t think he was an NRL first grader … Im not laughing now ..

no good player seems to get worse at their next club after leaving here… unlike a lot we sign

 

[WestsTigers4VR]

well well well…. Johnny Morris as the defence coach…. To be honest I didn’t think much of it till I googled but during his reign at the sharks during the 2019-2021 seasons his final two seasons saw his team top the list of most missed tackles. While equally having to make the least amount of total tackles in the comp for one of them and not so far off for the other. Thoughts?

 

[stephen]

Is Api as good as prime Farah - No
Is Luai as good as prime Scott Prince - No
Is Galvin as good as Benji - No
Is Bula as good as Hodgson - No

Prime Api better than prime Farah in my opinion, mate.

 

[Buttface]

well well well…. Johnny Morris as the defence coach…. To be honest I didn’t think much of it till I googled but during his reign at the sharks during the 2019-2021 seasons his final two seasons saw his team top the list of most missed tackles. While equally having to make the least amount of total tackles in the comp for one of them and not so far off for the other. Thoughts?

Stats don’t tell the whole story, so they say.
We should have been patient and signed a more experienced head coach and Benji stay on as assistant, but fruit pascals and Pee Bagypants were more worried about getting likes on their socmed.

 

[Todd Packer]

Prime Api better than prime Farah in my opinion, mate.

Picking a team to play to save your life I'd have Farah at hooker every time.
Time fades how good Robbie was.
Time also fades how much better than either of them Benny was.

 

[Tucker]

well well well…. Johnny Morris as the defence coach…. To be honest I didn’t think much of it till I googled but during his reign at the sharks during the 2019-2021 seasons his final two seasons saw his team top the list of most missed tackles. While equally having to make the least amount of total tackles in the comp for one of them and not so far off for the other. Thoughts?

He has been a disaster.
We’ve focused our training and preparation on defence. All off season, up until now….we’re the worst in the comp….almost 30 points per game.
He needs to be removed from his position.

 

[2041]

You list some but don’t mention others … there are a lot of players that have left the Tigers this past decade .. so all boxes will be ticked by several at their new club ..bad, the same and improved …

Aloiai looks better to me , along with Brooks … Joe is ok… but I actually rated him when he was here ..too early with Liddle ..some were terrible when they were here and were terrible at their new club like Mbye and Musgrove ..and I’m betting you can add AJ to that list … of course Teddy and Moses went on to be superstars .. Madden was crap when he was here … how could he not be better getting picked for first grade at the Broncos? but off the top of my head I could also mention the likes of Brown, Taupau and Lodge who arguably were better at their next club ..if there is a list let me know and I’ll pick out others Im sure ..

. I am gobsmacked with Talau … I laughed at my Manly supporting friends when they bought him … I didn’t think he was an NRL first grader … Im not laughing now ..

no good player seems to get worse at their next club after leaving here… unlike a lot we sign

I actually went through the list of Wests Tigers players on Wikipedia and I thought I'd picked out more or less everyone who left for another club rather than just disappearing from the comp. I didn't include Tedesco, Moses or Taupau as these were players the Tigers were keen to keep and who even the clowns running the joint at the time knew were going to be excellent. Lodge was sacked because he threatened to kill some people in New York - I'm not sure the same rules apply.

Otherwise, if you think Aloai and Brooks are a bit better now and I think they're either about the same or worse, we're probably talking about not much improvement either way. Again, I'm just not seeing a lot of players we let go because we thought they weren't any good who have gone on to be stars.

Mainly, when players leave and go ok it's because they're in better situations not because they have suddenly developed superpowers. Brooks is much more comfortable as a second-line half who doesn't have to be the main playmaker. Talau is better on the wing for a mediocre side than playing centre for a terrible one. Blore, well, Blore is basically the same but it helps to be in a super well drilled side where he only needs to do the things he can do well. Hand on heart, if we re-signed any of these blokes and they played exactly as well as they've played this season it would make absolutely zero difference to how the Tigers are travelling.

Oh, and in answer to your last question: Aaron Woods, Esan Marsters, Ken Maumalo, Joe Ofahengaue, James Gavet, Jesse Sue.

 

[Bellend]

We need a lot more experienced players signed this year why not sign players like Brad Parker from Manly can cover Centre,Wing,Lock is still only 27 years old with plenty of first grade games under his belt, great trainer and very good role model off it as well.

 

[SwervinMervin]

Picking a team to play to save your life I'd have Farah at hooker every time.
Time fades how good Robbie was.
Time also fades how much better than either of them Benny was.

I used to hear some commentators say that Walters and Buderis ultimately eclipsed Benny. No way. I reckon Benny was the best and most influential hooker I’d seen (80s onwards) until Cameron Smith came along. Hard to argue with Smith’s stats, but Benny was an unbelievable player.

 

[batboy]

well well well…. Johnny Morris as the defence coach…. To be honest I didn’t think much of it till I googled but during his reign at the sharks during the 2019-2021 seasons his final two seasons saw his team top the list of most missed tackles. While equally having to make the least amount of total tackles in the comp for one of them and not so far off for the other. Thoughts?

You looked at the period he was the head coach?
- Wouldn't he have also had a defensive coach at the time??
And if he's responsible as head coach of the Sharks - Why is Benji not responsible here and now.
Our defence for the most part - This year has been better....
Better than last year when Benji and Robbie were the Assistants

Solely blaming JM for the Defense at 2 different teams in 2 different roles is a bit rich.
The reasoning here really cracks me up.

You didn't mention he made the finals both years....
And only missed the finals in 21 - After they'd sacked him.
- How's our head coaches finals chances looking atm?

 

[batboy]

He has been a disaster.
We’ve focused our training and preparation on defence. All off season, up until now….we’re the worst in the comp….almost 30 points per game.
He needs to be removed from his position.

I wonder how much say 'assistants' actually have....
I think the voice they have depends on the head coach.
Guys like Cleary and Bellamy seem to really empower their assistants....
But guys like Hasler and even Sheens way back
- They're more just making up the numbers...

Every time I've ever seen a Training Session (Or even a Warm Up)
you don't hear a peep from them.

 

[Tom Shines]

I actually went through the list of Wests Tigers players on Wikipedia and I thought I'd picked out more or less everyone who left for another club rather than just disappearing from the comp. I didn't include Tedesco, Moses or Taupau as these were players the Tigers were keen to keep and who even the clowns running the joint at the time knew were going to be excellent. Lodge was sacked because he threatened to kill some people in New York - I'm not sure the same rules apply.

Oh, and in answer to your last question: Aaron Woods, Esan Marsters, Ken Maumalo, Joe Ofahengaue, James Gavet, Jesse Sue.

In respect of the last point …Woods yes…I forgot him … Joe stayed the same … ( I thought he was a solid first grader when he was here..nothing more than that )…the others … I guess we have different opinions of the term “good”…

I think the overall discussion should be about players getting better after they left regardless of the reason… it’s a discussion of poor coaching and culture at the Tigers …as we see with the likes of formerly good players that deteriorate rapidly after they get here like Blair, Klemmer and Ice to name a few …

 

[Tucker]

I wonder how much say 'assistants' actually have....
I think the voice they have depends on the head coach.
Guys like Cleary and Bellamy seem to really empower their assistants....
But guys like Hasler and even Sheens way back
- They're more just making up the numbers...

Every time I've ever seen a Training Session (Or even a Warm Up)
you don't hear a peep from them.

What do you mean?
The head coach oversees everything. The assistants run the sessions.

 

[batboy]

What do you mean?
The head coach oversees everything. The assistants run the sessions.

Plenty of Photos of Benji Training for someone who just oversees everything?
Like I've said
- I've been to sessions and the assistants are standing around talking....

 

[2041]

In respect of the last point …Woods yes…I forgot him … Joe stayed the same … ( I thought he was a solid first grader when he was here..nothing more than that )…the others … I guess we have different opinions of the term “good”…

I think the overall discussion should be about players getting better after they left regardless of the reason… it’s a discussion of poor coaching and culture at the Tigers …as we see with the likes of formerly good players that deteriorate rapidly after they get here like Blair, Klemmer and Ice to name a few …

I think you've missed my point. I don't think that should be the discussion because I don't think it's true. Most players are more or less exactly the same after they leave the Tigers as they were when they were here, and the ones that obviously take a genuine step-change upwards are the ones everyone knew would do so and we didn't want to lose (plus occasional retention howlers like Papenheuysen and Addo-Carr).

There's not really any discussion to be had, actually. A club with poor recruitment and nothing much coming through the juniors is going to have too many bad players in first grade, which means players coming in are going to look worse because they're required to do too much or aren't given any service. Papali'i is a classic example: he had a pretty straightforward job and excellent supply of the type of ball he needed in a good Parramatta side, then he came to the Tigers and got neither. He didn't get worse - he got put into a bad team. It's a team game, and players in a bad team are going to find it very hard to shine.

What we need is an ongoing uplift of roster quality and good coaching. There's no magic to it.

 

[426Tlgerland]

You looked at the period he was the head coach?
- Wouldn't he have also had a defensive coach at the time??
And if he's responsible as head coach of the Sharks - Why is Benji not responsible here and now.
Our defence for the most part - This year has been better....
Better than last year when Benji and Robbie were the Assistants

Solely blaming JM for the Defense at 2 different teams in 2 different roles is a bit rich.
The reasoning here really cracks me up.

You didn't mention he made the finals both years....
And only missed the finals in 21 - After they'd sacked him.
- How's our head coaches finals chances looking atm?

If we had double the points in our attack the defence may be ok , you get very tired defending all game , scoring tries is not as zapping and teams seem to get adrenaline rush from it and just keep going we looked super fit when we flogged the cows , Raiders , once we leak points it’s a long game

 

[Tom Shines]

There's not really any discussion to be had, actually. A club with poor recruitment and nothing much coming through the juniors is going to have too many bad players in first grade, which means players coming in are going to look worse because they're required to do too much or aren't given any service. Papali'i is a classic example: he had a pretty straightforward job and excellent supply of the type of ball he needed in a good Parramatta side, then he came to the Tigers and got neither. He didn't get worse - he got put into a bad team. It's a team game, and players in a bad team are going to find it very hard to shine.

So will Luai be the same when he gets here ?

What do you make of Talau being so much better this season ? He couldn’t even make the freaking first grade side of a wooden spoon side when he was here …

 

[Needaname]

well well well…. Johnny Morris as the defence coach…. To be honest I didn’t think much of it till I googled but during his reign at the sharks during the 2019-2021 seasons his final two seasons saw his team top the list of most missed tackles. While equally having to make the least amount of total tackles in the comp for one of them and not so far off for the other. Thoughts?

Yeah thought as much when it was announced basically got sacked from the sharks with the eye to Fitzgibbon because the sharks could attack but were completely out of sorts in defence.
We need to hire a defensive minded coach as a specialist assistant.