Signings, Suggestions & Rumours Discussion

weststigerman said:
I know it's an off season ritual, but I'm starting to be quite positive about next year.

You'd think at least 5 will be straight into our starting line up and 5 of the 6 have been playing finals. Add that to Galvin, Api, Bula and the likes of Fainu we're looking good.

I think now might be a good time to talk to Galvin again to see if he wants a pay rise and extension.
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Yep Galvin would be loving have watched the club sign Luai but adding Hunt and May , Bird , he will be happy as , I would 100% grab him again probably once Luai arrives and settles in , all Luai has to do is be positive around the kid and hel sign , nothing better than being part of a team coming from last and smashing its way to the finals
 
Betterdays22 said:
What does your rotation look like? .

Personally, I would love either TDS or Api coming off the bench with Hunt to wreak havok around the ruck after 20-25 minutes.

Regardless we are another top prop short. Hopefully that can come from within via Sione Fainu or Tim Johannsson.
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Hunt, May and Pole would be my starting three middles with TDS, Sione, Bird and Twal on the bench. I'm going to say on a hypothetical that Samuela and Seyfarth play 80.

Hunt starts the match and comes off after 15-20, replaced by Twal.

around minute 30, Sione and TDS come on with May and Api subbed.

early second half Bird gets on in place of Pole to play 13. May gets back on around minute 55 in place of Sione, as does Api for TDS. Hunt replaces Twal between minutes 60-70.

you’ve then got one interchange spare if you opt to bring Pole back on or for injuries.
 
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bigsiro said:
I think that’s right.

Top teams invariably have a number of stars.

Having said that, with Luai, Galvin, Api and Bula we have a unique, dynamic spine, boasting both experience and youth. At the least, we will be exciting and very watchable.

Pole and Fainu are poised to fully break-out and we seem to have the backline pieces to finish off moves.

We still carry Klemmer, Seyfarth and Twal, who do not inspire. Maybe next year they will be replaced.

All in all it is an excellent start to an overhaul, best offseason in many years.

Well done Benji and Richo. You’ve made us an attractive prospect, which is no mean feat.
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Richo has done it inside of a year.

Incredible.
 
jrtiger said:
I can't see him in the first choice side with Twal and Terrell there as better workhorse types. furthermore, the club won't want to trigger the clause for 2026.
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Probably correct unless Klemmer regains a bit of spark in 2025 and plays well enough to earn another season in 2026.
Without Klemmer we do become a very short forward pack in comparison to most other NRL teams which is a slight concern.
Edge back row depth is a major concern as it appears Benji has wiped Bateman. While I agree with Benji on this decision, if only leaves us with Samuela Fainu and possibly Alex Seyfarth and Jack Bird as possibilities to play NRL and Sukkar and Tumeth as the only other possibilities should they play well enough to be considered.
Lack of genuine speed and height in our backline is another concern.
 
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Spartan117 said:
The Melbourne system is the Best.

Stef will improve.

The challenge for the Wests Tigers is to create a system where players become they're best.

Starts with Fitness.
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Stef Absolutely DISGUSTED me this year.. complaining about being in a losing team when he was .. the bludger that missed the easy one on one tackles that led to tries that caused us to lose . He is an imposter and will be found out in Melbourne, not made by them . They will cut bait when they see what he is all about !
 
Quick question how many games is Api suspended for. Do any of the Fiji games count and do any of the pre season games count. I know that the preseason games were not counted, but thought last year they did count them.
 
bigsiro said:
I think that’s right.

Top teams invariably have a number of stars.

Having said that, with Luai, Galvin, Api and Bula we have a unique, dynamic spine, boasting both experience and youth. At the least, we will be exciting and very watchable.

Pole and Fainu are poised to fully break-out and we seem to have the backline pieces to finish off moves.

We still carry Klemmer, Seyfarth and Twal, who do not inspire. Maybe next year they will be replaced.

All in all it is an excellent start to an overhaul, best offseason in many years.

Well done Benji and Richo. You’ve made us an attractive prospect, which is no mean feat.
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I honestly do not get the TWAL hatred on this forum .. in a terrible team with players that had no ability to give him good call he has consistently carried the ball forward from awkward positions all on his lonesome.. he has also almost never missed a tackle , though he wish he would hit a bit harder and throw them on the ground a bit more .. still, given some good ball he can really be part of a pack that gets over the advantage line
 
jrtiger said:
Hunt, May and Pole would be my starting three middles with TDS, Sione, Bird and Twal on the bench. I'm going to say on a hypothetical that Samuela and Seyfarth play 80.

Hunt starts the match and comes off after 15-20, replaced by Twal.

around minute 30, Sione and TDS come on with May and Api subbed.

early second half Bird gets on in place of Pole to play 13. May gets back on around minute 55 in place of Sione, as does Api for TDS. Hunt replaces Twal between minutes 60-70.

you’ve then got one interchange spare if you opt to bring Pole back on or for injuries.
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I like it.

I think (hope) Klemmer will be better for having a stronger defensive prop partner and better outside backs out of our own end. I would still start with him and May, Pole at lock.

Sione and Hunt are a good partnership who will cause a lot of problems. Particularly if they have a fresh TDS coming along with them. Problem is we will probably need a high workrate 13 to cover the defensive lapses.
 
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dazza65 said:
I think in the Stephanie round about we have come out in front; both in $ and ability. Extremely happy - I know Stef probably has quite a ceiling and under Bellamy may show it...but... maybe not.
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if i had the choice of Stef or May I'm taking May.

This year I was watching him as a rooster and often thought to myself why cant the tigers get blokes like this... Never expected it to come to fruition.
 
jrtiger said:
I can't see him in the first choice side with Twal and Terrell there as better workhorse types. furthermore, the club won't want to trigger the clause for 2026.
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I'd have Klemmer ahead of Twal, and while he's on big money right now, if the option for 2026 is reasonable I'd be okay to keep him.

He makes over 100m per game, is generally good in defence. Not an explosive prop but rarely gets dominated and doesn't have a question mark around concussions like Twal.

Now that Miller and Faagutu are gone there isn't really anyone coming through to take his spot in the next 12 months or so.
 
jrtiger said:
I’m in the minority but I’ve got Royce starting next to Terrell with Pole locking the scrum.

Terrell is a workhorse type. high minutes defensively minded middle forward that can ballplay and offload. you pair him with Twal or Klemmer and we’re back where we started.

Royce has come here to be a leader and an enforcer. he comes knowing Marshall wants him to build more minutes into his game, and from what I can see he actually looks more trim than what he did at Cronulla already.

long road ahead but I think it’s the best way to balance the starting pack.
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I had my concerns with Pole the back end of the year defensively, I don't know if the role suits him.
 
TigerNeddyK said:
Stef Absolutely DISGUSTED me this year.. complaining about being in a losing team when he was .. the bludger that missed the easy one on one tackles that led to tries that caused us to lose . He is an imposter and will be found out in Melbourne, not made by them . They will cut bait when they see what he is all about !
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He won't be playing first grade until he's in shape, that's the difference at Melbourne. It's frustrating because he dogged it with us much like Moses did but highly likely he'll be successful there.
 
I see our middles being something like

May + Pole to start

After 20 Pole off for Klem.

After 30 May off for Hunt, Api off for TDS/Fainu

After 50 Api comes back on, after 50-55 May back on for Hunt

After 60 Pole back on for Klem

Then you've got Sefarth, Fainu and Bird who can rotate lock, Twal as backup in the rotation too.

I don't think we can afford to have both Pole and Hunt on at the same time given their defensive issues, especially if a youngster is covering Api in the middle of the match, so pairing up our two best defensive forwards in May and Klem with one of Pole or Hunt makes sense.

I'd also expect to see Klem start the season and then get phased out with younger players getting more game time
 
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