I would rather us go and sign like 10 absolute guns rookies (the Josh Schuster's of the world) than a single "experienced head" unless it's a signing from the UK. Our hit rate on these older player signings is abysmal but it's excellent on the former. Build from the ground up with youth. Brimson and Arrow are fine marquee signings I suppose but JWH is NOPE. I would rather overpay for a star Australian Schoolboy by giving them a 300k a year deal than overpay for someone like JWH who is likely to be injured and suspended 2/3rds of the season and will probably last 18 months before the wheels fall off completely.
Speaking of which, does anyone have an update on the Schuster saga? That one was a signing I was super excited about.
Edit: Never mind Schuster has been re-signed by Manly.
Success method;
1 Quick, ball playing/tackle breaking fullback - Throw some money at Brimson or Lomax as they would both be decent value for money in this position. I don't think we can compete properly with Corey Thompson at fullback as much as he tries hard. A high quality fullback is key to success. Charnze vs. Tedesco in the GF attests to that.
2 Big, fast wingers on pennies - Preferably Fijians haha... but I would probably try Tommy Talau here to parter with Nofo for next year. Talau might move to centre as he grows into the side but start him on the wing like many other great outside backs did.
2 Defensively stout centres who can put their winger away with a little bit of x-factor about them in the run as a bonus. - Momirovski and Mbye fit the bill here fine, plug them in and forget it.
1 Steady half that doesn't make many mistakes, has a decent kicking game, can get repeat sets and can run plays that a good attacking coach draws up (bonus, go get a good attacking coach) - Benji can do this for now in a pinch, but I don't think Luke Brooks is steady enough for this role. Maybe Billy Walters can be this long term.
1 X-factor running half, that has a decent long kicking game when required to boot it downfield when coming out of our end, and can put up a bomb - Cody Walker would be the template for this, but Brooks can play this role better than he can game manage.
2 Enforcer forwards that hurt the opposition with their running games and bruising defence, doesn't matter if they're edge or middle but better if they are versatile enough to switch between (David Fifita, Josh Papalii types) - This is our major weakness. Mikaele can be one, but he's young and needs someone to carry that load with him. We should make a point of signing someone to fill this role.
2-3 Skillful backrowers and if one of them has a short kicking game even better. At minimum good footwork and speed/power to create line breaks when there is a hole present. - Garner might qualify, but both he and MCK are the poor man versions of what this can be (Wade Graham)
3-5 middle forwards that can churn out big metres and get over the advantage line. - Twal, Eisenhuth and Clark qualify here though I feel we could upgrade this group.
1 Fast, scheming hooker who can make 50 tackles a game and his backup. - Are we actually signing Billy Brittain? Because if so he is literally the best we could hope to get here imo.
