Justin Olam #281

All jokes aside, I for 1 am very happy with the signing of Olam. Sure, Blore could be anything, but we aren't lacking 2RF at the moment, and our backline desperately needed strengthening. Olam provides someone with experience in a successful system and is someone that the opposition would fear, something we have been sorely lacking.

There have been some concerns over his form and fitness, and I get that. I think the saying "never count out a champion" really applies here. He is a premiership winner and former dally m centre (only a couple of seasons ago). and has the mindset of a champion. I'm excited to see what he brings in Tigers colours.
 
rusted-on said:
All jokes aside, I for 1 am very happy with the signing of Olam. Sure, Blore could be anything, but we aren't lacking 2RF at the moment, and our backline desperately needed strengthening. Olam provides someone with experience in a successful system and is someone that the opposition would fear, something we have been sorely lacking.

There have been some concerns over his form and fitness, and I get that. I think the saying "never count out a champion" really applies here. He is a premiership winner and former dally m centre (only a couple of seasons ago). and has the mindset of a champion. I'm excited to see what he brings in Tigers colours.
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Spot on

I also think we need to think how we sign players.
Do we sign them at their height? i.e. Bradman Best who is going as a 700k Center (I believe we offered 800k and he still did not move). Well Best is a good player, but he won't always be playing at 3 tries an origin game level...

Do we sign them when they are down? IMHO if Olam takes off, we have signed him at his lowest value, 425k. 2022/2021 Olam out performed Best and was up there with Joey Manu...

It's a risk. I think Olam coming from Melbourne's tough training is going to drop, but drop to an intensity far above our guys. Yes he may have an issue with the Drink, that issue is manageable if we do the right stuff and nip it in the bud early. Ofcourse PNG men drink 1-2 Beers then smash up everything... lets see.

All in all, I think it's the right signing choice. Go for a player who has 1 year out of form and comes cheaply. But one who is going to bring at least 400k to the field, who is physically tough and once a dally M center.
 
crazycat said:
Spot on

I also think we need to think how we sign players.
Do we sign them at their height? i.e. Bradman Best who is going as a 700k Center (I believe we offered 800k and he still did not move). Well Best is a good player, but he won't always be playing at 3 tries an origin game level...

Do we sign them when they are down? IMHO if Olam takes off, we have signed him at his lowest value, 425k. 2022/2021 Olam out performed Best and was up there with Joey Manu...

It's a risk. I think Olam coming from Melbourne's tough training is going to drop, but drop to an intensity far above our guys. Yes he may have an issue with the Drink, that issue is manageable if we do the right stuff and nip it in the bud early. Ofcourse PNG men drink 1-2 Beers then smash up everything... lets see.

All in all, I think it's the right signing choice. Go for a player who has 1 year out of form and comes cheaply. But one who is going to bring at least 400k to the field, who is physically tough and once a dally M center.
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Yep I agree. He brings a hard edge we haven't had for a while, and even if his standards drop slightly, he is still miles ahead.

As for whether we buy when hot or when form has dropped and hope for a return to form, I don't think that is an exact science. We signed Blair when he was at the peak of his powers, only to get bugger-all in return (not entirely his fault imo). You hope for a player to at least put out in line with his pay packet, but determining what players to take a punt on and which players to give a wide berth can only be judged with the benefit of hindsight. I'm confident we see some good stuff from him this year. If he performs anywhere near the level he was at a couple of years back, he proves to be a very astute signing. The value of the experience and mentorship he brings for the younger guys as well can't be understated.
 
rusted-on said:
Yep I agree. He brings a hard edge we haven't had for a while, and even if his standards drop slightly, he is still miles ahead.

As for whether we buy when hot or when form has dropped and hope for a return to form, I don't think that is an exact science. We signed Blair when he was at the peak of his powers, only to get bugger-all in return (not entirely his fault imo). You hope for a player to at least put out in line with his pay packet, but determining what players to take a punt on and which players to give a wide berth can only be judged with the benefit of hindsight. I'm confident we see some good stuff from him this year. If he performs anywhere near the level he was at a couple of years back, he proves to be a very astute signing. The value of the experience and mentorship he brings for the younger guys as well can't be understated.
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I’m not sure with a lot of signings whether the player is just measured on his outcomes , or whether the make up and culture surrounding him is given enough attention.
Is Luai the player we think, or is it because he has Cleary on one side and Yeoh on the other. It will be a huge experiment to see whether he is capable of directing a team himself when he gets here.
Is Olam the player he is because he has Munster next to him and good finishing wingers, or is he a star. Once again, all will be revealed very soon.
I think it is essential to look at the bigger picture re recruitment to ensure you are chasing the right players.
 
Halbrowne61 said:
I’m not sure with a lot of signings whether the player is just measured on his outcomes , or whether the make up and culture surrounding him is given enough attention.
Is Luai the player we think, or is it because he has Cleary on one side and Yeoh on the other. It will be a huge experiment to see whether he is capable of directing a team himself when he gets here.
Is Olam the player he is because he has Munster next to him and good finishing wingers, or is he a star. Once again, all will be revealed very soon.
I think it is essential to look at the bigger picture re recruitment to ensure you are chasing the right players.
Click to expand...

Yep spot on. I guess every player comes with some level of risk (injury history, form slump, the unknown), and some risks are more prudent to take than others. In the case of Olam and Luai, I believe the potential benefits far outweigh the potential risk. As for off-field qualities (leadership, experience, attitude, culture fit etc), these are just as important as what happens on the field. Not every player is a leader with experience, but attitude and work ethic can't be bought. You either have it or you don't, and this is crucial.
 
rusted-on said:
Yep spot on. I guess every player comes with some level of risk (injury history, form slump, the unknown), and some risks are more prudent to take than others. In the case of Olam and Luai, I believe the potential benefits far outweigh the potential risk. As for off-field qualities (leadership, experience, attitude, culture fit etc), these are just as important as what happens on the field. Not every player is a leader with experience, but attitude and work ethic can't be bought. You either have it or you don't, and this is crucial.
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Not to mention star value especially in Luai's case.

If he doesn't pack out home matches nothing will.

Lets face it we've been so boring to watch lately, it's actually been worse than losing.
 
Halbrowne61 said:
I’m not sure with a lot of signings whether the player is just measured on his outcomes , or whether the make up and culture surrounding him is given enough attention.
Is Luai the player we think, or is it because he has Cleary on one side and Yeoh on the other. It will be a huge experiment to see whether he is capable of directing a team himself when he gets here.
Is Olam the player he is because he has Munster next to him and good finishing wingers, or is he a star. Once again, all will be revealed very soon.
I think it is essential to look at the bigger picture re recruitment to ensure you are chasing the right players.
Click to expand...
I actually look at Olam in the reverse this year.

The wingers outside him have scored a stack of tries. I.e. did he draw defenders in and then give the ball to Xavier/Warbrick! Did the Storm wingers look fantastic because Olam would be targetted?

But yes, lets see what happens on the field. Luai I very much see as a lone Ranger kind of player. He seems to make stuff of nothing and I totally rate him on doing this. I just don't know how he will go with Combo's and the Halfback side of being a half.
 
Can’t wait for him to take a run play 2 charging full pelt making a tough 15 meters and getting a quick play the ball
 
Halbrowne61 said:
I’m not sure with a lot of signings whether the player is just measured on his outcomes , or whether the make up and culture surrounding him is given enough attention.
Is Luai the player we think, or is it because he has Cleary on one side and Yeoh on the other. It will be a huge experiment to see whether he is capable of directing a team himself when he gets here.
Is Olam the player he is because he has Munster next to him and good finishing wingers, or is he a star. Once again, all will be revealed very soon.
I think it is essential to look at the bigger picture re recruitment to ensure you are chasing the right players.
Click to expand...
It all comes back to the very necessary changes we’ve just witnessed. Guys like Bellyache, Wayne, Uncle Nick, Rusty, Richo, they get people and they get footy players. When you’re talking to a footy player or his manager in a negotiation scenario you need to be able to see through the BS. Identify the underlying characteristics that you want from a player in your club.

What we’ve had for years now is not that. The signings of Jet and BJ screamed that loud and clear.

Thankfully Benji has seen this in some of his mentors and I think he’ll do well at that side of the game.
 
Halbrowne61 said:
I’m not sure with a lot of signings whether the player is just measured on his outcomes , or whether the make up and culture surrounding him is given enough attention.
Is Luai the player we think, or is it because he has Cleary on one side and Yeoh on the other. It will be a huge experiment to see whether he is capable of directing a team himself when he gets here.
Is Olam the player he is because he has Munster next to him and good finishing wingers, or is he a star. Once again, all will be revealed very soon.
I think it is essential to look at the bigger picture re recruitment to ensure you are chasing the right players.
Click to expand...
I think there is another possibility. Similar to the Dogs, but dissimilar to Koroisau last year, good players who go to bottom clubs struggle quite a bit. Papali'i a fine example for us last year. Kikau, Burton, Mahoney for Bulldogs last year. One player can't change a team, they can influence it. It's up to the whole team to turn it around and Benji will be in charge of making it a cohesive dressing room
 
rugbygoated said:
I think there is another possibility. Similar to the Dogs, but dissimilar to Koroisau last year, good players who go to bottom clubs struggle quite a bit. Papali'i a fine example for us last year. Kikau, Burton, Mahoney for Bulldogs last year. One player can't change a team, they can influence it. It's up to the whole team to turn it around and Benji will be in charge of making it a cohesive dressing room
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Let’s face it Paps came into a broken team last year without halves or good backs. Hard to pin much on him, he’s trying to learn the style of a team that didn’t have one.
 
BAGNF05 said:
Let’s face it Paps came into a broken team last year without halves or good backs. Hard to pin much on him, he’s trying to learn the style of a team that didn’t have one.
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His attitude has been dog shit. Very disappointing.
 
BAGNF05 said:
I can’t recall seeing him missing many tackles or not chasing or covering his teammates like Luciano before him, I think criticism is unfair. Our problems were largely in scoring points and that’s not really his domain nor why you sign a back rower. Just my opinion.
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Im talking about off field. Refused to commit for months after he had already signed. Let speculation grow for no reason, instead of simply saying he would honour the contract. Than this season, when rumours popped up about him going back to Parra, said he would be here next year, but said he’d reassess his options this season as if he is off contract. It was piss weak.
 
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