Richo's experience is irrelevant, the results here is all that matters as he's been here for 18 months.
The "right type"- funny you mention that as apparently Galvin and Stefano weren't the right type of players, but we offered them close to a million dollars each.
Klemmer was hired by Benji/ Sheens when Kimmorley was coach, not Madge, I'm pretty sure.
TDS was also re-signed under Richo/ Benji regime. Then, let go. Was he not the right type of player then, or did he turn into the wrong type of player?
The whole winning attracts talent is true, and let's be honest that we aren't a winning club. Benji obviously has no experience turning a losing club into a winning one and Richo's last real struggling club was in 2010s before Madge went to Souths. There has to be someone else who's in-charge. Who's our head of football? Don't most clubs have one? The CEO can't be doing everything. If there is one, why are we not hearing from them?
Everyone knows it's difficult to build a roster, but you can't just look at things case by case. There is a clear pattern here that players do not perform well here, players are unhappy here and that players when given the opportunity want to get out of here. You can argue against that, but clearly players do not achieve their goals here, whether it be development, winning, social support, whatever it is, we aren't giving them the right tools to succeed here.
Either we are buying and re-signing the wrong type of players, or we are buying players whose goals don't align to ours. You speak to how Storm used to sign players (see how they talk to the support staff), how the Bulldogs signed players currently (ability to play wherever team requires them), Penrith signed players (fitness was paramount). What is our stratefy? Seems like Benji values skill over anything else, a recipe for disaster IMO.
There is absolutely no point keeping the TDS or Galvin money aside and buying a shiny new player when you have fringe players like Seyfarth, Hunt, Bird, Sukkar, Douehi, To'a etc not performing to the desired levels. The lower grades aren't performing well either. Are the coaches performing well there? Who's assisting the coaches? Penrith had a certain style that was coached from Jersey Flegg to NRL level.
Obviously, we aren't going to get any of these answers. But Richo's quotes, the way we have signed and let players go makes me very confident that there isn't actual future planning going on about the things I've mentioned.
Honestly I don't really know what your pitch is, apart from to complain. By all means, complain away.
Nobody is arguing that Tigers are doing well. We've got a long long history of signing ordinary players and losing our best players, well before Richo and Benji. The results aren't there and the most recent recruitment isn't making the impact we hoped.
We cleaned out the cupboards 1.5 years ago, got rid of all the old furniture, offloaded another bunch of contracts. So now we have to wait for the current people to have a decent crack at making a difference, before we shuffle the furniture again.
Specifically on TDS and Galvin however, the club clearly thought they were the right type of fit. Like you said, we offered contracts. But who knows with young men, they aren't even developed adults yet. Galvin proved himself to be a mercenary like so many others and he agitated for a release, so obviously he's not a good fit. TDS did the same, not willing to play behind one of the best hookers going around. So not a good fit.
The unfortunate reality is you have to get blokes in who are willing to play for a shit team, and make them better. If players only ever want to play for the top teams, then you get the Premier League where all the talent consolidates in half a dozen clubs.
I personally don't see alternatives to what Tigers are doing right now July 2025. You can keep the players to their contract, kicking and screaming, to make a point of it, but there's also no evidence this does you any better. Lots of clubs let players leave rather than spend a few hundred thousand to make a point. Even just the machinations of Galvin leaving have clearly disrupted the side.
There is a point of saving the Galvin and TDS money - you spend it anywhere you want. Lacking depth, as you note, isn't helped by paying players who don't want to be there. But money helps with your salary cap moving forward.
I don't think Stefano was the wrong type of player, I though he actually handled his time at Tigers OK.
So in terms of a specific critique of the overall recruitment strategy and who is in charge, I don't waste time speculating what they are doing behind the scenes. It's never interested me. I do think the recruitment since 2024 has been better - better calibre players and less dead weight on the books. I think it's fairly admirable that Richo was able to clear the plate of Klemmer, IP, Bateman, Alaimalo, Miller, Olam Sezer, Simpkin and Bud Sullivan all in one season.
There is a plan, it's plain to see. We lost TDS but we today upgraded Haywood. We dropped a large offer on Galvin, he rejected it, so we promote Latu. Keeping in mind these are not the Tigers' plans, these are the decisions forced upon the club by unsettled players and their managers. We retained Makasini despite enormous external interest. We wanted a centre and backrower for 2026 so we've signed Taylan and KPP. Not elite but reasonable risks.
To say Richo's experience is irrelevant is a silly comment, you can take that one back. It's the exact critique of Benji, that's he's not experienced enough. Tell me also how Trent Robinson's experience is irrelevant, or Shane Flanagan, despite their clubs being in average form.
BENJI SUX! Fine, replace him with Coach X, I'm not going to grumble too much. But we've changed everything, from the top to the bottom these past 2 years, I'm at a loss how another staff cut will help. I'd rather have them see out 3 years and see what happens.
