Signing Rumours..

[TYGA]

I would target Vaughan, ET, Daniel Tupou, Damien Cook and we will challenge for a top 4 position.

That would be a great quartet to have, add Idris and they would balance out the team nicely. So in that case, we've no chance of getting them :laughing:

Sadly you are right. We are not that far away from challenging if we can find a few diamonds in the rough like Aloai and Taupau we can still challenge without bigger name signings.

 

[Regan]

Lichaa would be a bad signing Sharks did not care about him going they did not rate him and Des was at the lower grade game when Lichaa got his 3 try's in one game and 3 or 4 try assist Lichaa Carved it up that day best game he has and will ever play he can only pass one way

 

[Kavi]

I think you will find the club has a bit of cap for next year available. The subsidising of Farahs contract is no where near the reported figures of $750 to $800k that the crappy telegraph quote. I think you will find we are paying around the $550 to $600k mark.

So say souths are paying $350 to $400k, plus Halatua retiring who would of been on around the $250k mark, Addo Car around $150k and Cherrington $100k. There is spare cap money of around $850k to $900k.

So Elijah Taylor would be after $350k to $400k, Idris $200k and Vaughn $300k to $350k. Plus you have to consider a few small third party deals from the like of Harry for say $25k to $50k each and it could easily happen.

Doing those rough figures i think the club could have a good crack at re-signing ET and signing Vaughn and Idris. I think chucking in a fourth signing like Lichaa would be wishfull thinking.

halatau's money would have already been allocated i would think

 

[TYGA]

How many people here would be willing to trade ET for Vaughn and Idris? I'd probably keep ET myself.

Its a very good question. I wouldn't want Idris for free. Vaughan alone would allow Sue to play lock and take pressure off Woods. Our pack would be more intimidating with Vaughan, Woods, Sue, Aloai, Grant.
If we could get Vaughan and keep ET it would be a massive signing.

 

[Kavi]

How many people here would be willing to trade ET for Vaughn and Idris? I'd probably keep ET myself.

Its a very good question. I wouldn't want Idris for free. Vaughan alone would allow Sue to play lock and take pressure off Woods. Our pack would be more intimidating with Vaughan, Woods, Sue, Aloai, Grant.
If we could get Vaughan and keep ET it would be a massive signing.

Woods, Vaughan, ava, sue, felise = great front row

 

[stryker]

How many people here would be willing to trade ET for Vaughn and Idris? I'd probably keep ET myself.

I would. We need more grunt and size. ET is good but steadily declined in form as the year went on.

 

[TCL]

I've got concerns over the ET contract. Why haven't we concluded this yet?

Just a theory, his form as Stryker said did taper off at the end of the season not horrible but it dipped, it could have been a virus or it could have been a breakdown in contract discussions. Maybe he is not happy, either the sum he is being offered or the way he is being used? Something is amiss.

 

[Tiger4life]

How many people here would be willing to trade ET for Vaughn and Idris? I'd probably keep ET myself.

I would. We need more grunt and size. ET is good but steadily declined in form as the year went on.

i wouldnt even think about it. Id take fhem 2 any day of the week. They are just what we need.

Not sure what happened to ET. His back end of the year wS average. If he wasnt injured or stressed about contract talks then someone is not right. When he was linking with brooks we looked amazinf. Unless his role was changed by Mr Taylor.

 

[Kavi]

one of the nrl 360 crew said vaughan will be at dragons next season…

 

[Masterton]

Probably best if we all just pretend Ballin doesn't exist. He's very unlikely to play significant minutes, and any time he does play should be viewed as a bonus.

McIlwrick is a backup - do we even know if he's being signed on a first-grade deal?

Personally I'd be happy with Lichaa/Liddle as the first-grade rotation and McIlwrick playing 9 in reggies. None of them would be on any significant money.

We cant pretene Ballin doesnt exist becasue he is making up $250k of our salary cap.

As for Lichaa, proabably the second worst decision made by the bulldogs. The first being choosing Anasta over a young Thurston and letting him sign with the cowboys. Second not reSigning Ennis and paying $500k for Lichaa. He is one of the worst hookers in the game, cant kick , doesnt run, and passing is horrendous. Id rather rankin be our utility coming off the bench.

By letting go of Farah and cherrington our money and playing time is now invested in liddle and ballin. Lets hope Ballin is healthy and Liddle has what it takes.

This discussion is ridiculous. What you're saying is that the club ought to assume a 33-year-old who hasn't recovered from back-to-back ACL injuries is going to be the first-choice hooker next year. It doesn't matter how much of the cap he's taking up: if he can't play, someone has to take his position - and trying to fake it for the entire season with a combination of kids, out of position halves and reserve-grade players would be lunacy.

The Tigers let Farah go because the coach wanted rid of him, and it let Cherrington go because it saw Liddle as the better long-term bet. The Ballin signing was a disaster from the get-go but unfortunately you don't get do-overs so yes, sadly, the Tigers will be spending a million bucks on hookers that won't play for them next year. That doesn't mean they don't need a hooker who can play for them.

Personally if the Dogs are willing to pay freight on Lichaa I think he's worth a crack. You're making a false comparison: you're comparing Lichaa to an imaginary world in which Ballin is fit or in which Littlejohn and/or Marshall-King can play extended periods as a first-grade hooker. I'm comparing Lichaa to the real world, where none of these things apply.

Let me give you a comparison. If I eat a meal and get sick then eat another meal and get sick again, it doesn't mean I ought to give up eating. It means I need to maybe try a slightly blander diet for a while until I can trust myself not to keep eating stuff that makes me sick.

This discussion is not ridiculous its hilarious. Im not telling the club to assume anything on Ballin, but thats their position on Ballin. We continually get updates on him, surgery was succesfull, Ballin is now running .etc. If they didnt think he was going to be ok, why is he still on our books for next year?? He was a terrible signing from day 1\. But JT and the club are convinced he will be there in 2017 mentoring liddle and playing first grade.

I have no idea what your getting at with your food analogy, but yes you need to keep eating otherwise you might fdie lmaoooooo.

It really isn't that hard an analogy to understand. If we have no hookers besides Liddle, our season might fdie.

 

[andrew 474]

Maybe the Club is trying to get , Vaughan , Idris , ET all signed up , decked out in tigers Colours , then make an announcement , few shots of the 3 and a shot of them with , Woods , Sue, Ava , Grant , Mosses , Brooks
All should look good
Good to Dream

 

[jirskyr]

Lichaa would be a bad signing Sharks did not care about him going they did not rate him and Des was at the lower grade game when Lichaa got his 3 try's in one game and 3 or 4 try assist Lichaa Carved it up that day best game he has and will ever play he can only pass one way

That's not true at all - Dogs came in with a very competitive offer that Sharks did not match, and Sharks signed Ennis in response as he was on the outer at Canterbury.

Lichaa was Junior Kangaroo, NSW U20s rep and NYC hooker of the year. He was very highly regarded and arguably in 2015 he showed some signs of ability. This year for Lichaa has been a total blowout, but frankly it could have a lot to do with coaching and strategy rather than pure ability. Lichaa is doing something like 45 tackles per game, and for an attacking dummy, that really takes his sting out. Plus arguably all the Dogs players went backwards in 2016, the club really declined as a premiership threat as the season progressed.

The form of Lichaa makes me think of how Cherrington was tracking at Tigers - standout junior prospect, but struggling to deal with the realities of the FG hooking demand.

Jacob Liddle is another top prospect but people should not lose their minds if he struggles a bit to achieve 70 mins and 40 tackles every week for 24 rounds. There are very few hookers who can maintain that kind of workload and still be an offensive threat, hence why some clubs don't use the hooker as a focus point of their attack (and what JT did once he took Farah out of the equation this year).

 

[Tiger4life]

We cant pretene Ballin doesnt exist becasue he is making up $250k of our salary cap.

As for Lichaa, proabably the second worst decision made by the bulldogs. The first being choosing Anasta over a young Thurston and letting him sign with the cowboys. Second not reSigning Ennis and paying $500k for Lichaa. He is one of the worst hookers in the game, cant kick , doesnt run, and passing is horrendous. Id rather rankin be our utility coming off the bench.

By letting go of Farah and cherrington our money and playing time is now invested in liddle and ballin. Lets hope Ballin is healthy and Liddle has what it takes.

This discussion is ridiculous. What you're saying is that the club ought to assume a 33-year-old who hasn't recovered from back-to-back ACL injuries is going to be the first-choice hooker next year. It doesn't matter how much of the cap he's taking up: if he can't play, someone has to take his position - and trying to fake it for the entire season with a combination of kids, out of position halves and reserve-grade players would be lunacy.

The Tigers let Farah go because the coach wanted rid of him, and it let Cherrington go because it saw Liddle as the better long-term bet. The Ballin signing was a disaster from the get-go but unfortunately you don't get do-overs so yes, sadly, the Tigers will be spending a million bucks on hookers that won't play for them next year. That doesn't mean they don't need a hooker who can play for them.

Personally if the Dogs are willing to pay freight on Lichaa I think he's worth a crack. You're making a false comparison: you're comparing Lichaa to an imaginary world in which Ballin is fit or in which Littlejohn and/or Marshall-King can play extended periods as a first-grade hooker. I'm comparing Lichaa to the real world, where none of these things apply.

Let me give you a comparison. If I eat a meal and get sick then eat another meal and get sick again, it doesn't mean I ought to give up eating. It means I need to maybe try a slightly blander diet for a while until I can trust myself not to keep eating stuff that makes me sick.

This discussion is not ridiculous its hilarious. Im not telling the club to assume anything on Ballin, but thats their position on Ballin. We continually get updates on him, surgery was succesfull, Ballin is now running .etc. If they didnt think he was going to be ok, why is he still on our books for next year?? He was a terrible signing from day 1\. But JT and the club are convinced he will be there in 2017 mentoring liddle and playing first grade.

I have no idea what your getting at with your food analogy, but yes you need to keep eating otherwise you might fdie lmaoooooo.

It really isn't that hard an analogy to understand. If we have no hookers besides Liddle, our season might fdie.

So your saying without a recognised hooker our season would die? Its probably why we missed semis this year, both our recognised hookers where playing reggies, while a second rower and winger were taking turns at it. Thanks for pointing it out. Or has the game plan changed again for 2017?

 

[Telltails]

Paying for a hooker to play somewhere else and paying for the other to rehabilitate at our expense - and now we want to buy another one - just in case he doesn't get back on the field - all eating into our cap.
Dumb as - and yet some will defend that at as moving forward
Why not stick with the end of this season's plan - don't play one at all! Hard to not be frustrated.

 

[supercoach]

Iam starting to think the club is thinking they might be able to get two players for the price of ET and maybe fix two problem areas. Not saying I agree with it, but i guess it is all about getting the most bang for your buck. Although you would have to wonder who is going to put their hand up to do 50 tackles a week plus do a bit of ball playing

 

[happy_tiger]

I can't see the club coming out and making any announcements until we are getting closer to the membership drive starting

If we do have multiple quality signings they will hope to push the memberships to record numbers

Makes perfect business sense

 

[2041]

Paying for a hooker to play somewhere else and paying for the other to rehabilitate at our expense - and now we want to buy another one - just in case he doesn't get back on the field - all eating into our cap.
Dumb as - and yet some will defend that at as moving forward
Why not stick with the end of this season's plan - don't play one at all! Hard to not be frustrated.

Just to be clear: I'm not saying any if the past decisions are good ones. All I'm saying is that with Farah and Cherrington gone and Ballin unlikely to play, the team needs a hooker. This stupid past decisions are done, there's no point compounding them by refusing to acknowledge their consequences.

 

[Fade_To_Black]

I think you will find the club has a bit of cap for next year available. The subsidising of Farahs contract is no where near the reported figures of $750 to $800k that the crappy telegraph quote. I think you will find we are paying around the $550 to $600k mark.

So say souths are paying $350 to $400k, plus Halatua retiring who would of been on around the $250k mark, Addo Car around $150k and Cherrington $100k. There is spare cap money of around $850k to $900k.

So Elijah Taylor would be after $350k to $400k, Idris $200k and Vaughn $300k to $350k. Plus you have to consider a few small third party deals from the like of Harry for say $25k to $50k each and it could easily happen.

Doing those rough figures i think the club could have a good crack at re-signing ET and signing Vaughn and Idris. I think chucking in a fourth signing like Lichaa would be wishfull thinking.

Do you have any inside info on how much WT are subsidising Farah's contract next season MightyTiger or is it just a guess?
I don't know why that whole issue of Farah's contract and how much both Souths and WT are each paying towards it is such a closely guarded secret, it just adds to fans' frustration.

 

[Fade_To_Black]

How many people here would be willing to trade ET for Vaughn and Idris? I'd probably keep ET myself.

Its a very good question. I wouldn't want Idris for free. Vaughan alone would allow Sue to play lock and take pressure off Woods. Our pack would be more intimidating with Vaughan, Woods, Sue, Aloai, Grant.
If we could get Vaughan and keep ET it would be a massive signing.

Why wouldn't you want Idris "even if he was for free"? Him on a cheapish contract would have potentially massive up-sides for our club. If he was fit and motivated to try his guts out then he would be a super signing IMO. Height and power are 2 qualities that we have little of in our backline.

 

[Tiger4life]

I think you will find the club has a bit of cap for next year available. The subsidising of Farahs contract is no where near the reported figures of $750 to $800k that the crappy telegraph quote. I think you will find we are paying around the $550 to $600k mark.

So say souths are paying $350 to $400k, plus Halatua retiring who would of been on around the $250k mark, Addo Car around $150k and Cherrington $100k. There is spare cap money of around $850k to $900k.

So Elijah Taylor would be after $350k to $400k, Idris $200k and Vaughn $300k to $350k. Plus you have to consider a few small third party deals from the like of Harry for say $25k to $50k each and it could easily happen.

Doing those rough figures i think the club could have a good crack at re-signing ET and signing Vaughn and Idris. I think chucking in a fourth signing like Lichaa would be wishfull thinking.

Do you have any inside info on how much WT are subsidising Farah's contract next season MightyTiger or is it just a guess?
I don't know why that whole issue of Farah's contract and how much both Souths and WT are each paying towards it is such a closely guarded secret, it just adds to fans' frustration.

Not sure how reliable, but i heard that we are subsidising $500k. The $750k that keeps getting chucked around includes $250k that was owed to him previously. If that $250k has been included in 2016, then we have an extra $450k to play with. With the players we have been reportdy been chasing this makes sense.