Does anyone else feel like a win/loss this weekend will dictate our season.
Personally, I think a win here would be massive. It would put us as 3-2 with a fairly soft draw. This would be a great result considering the teams we have versed, and would put us in the early finals picture
Conversely, I think a loss will be dire. I'm not too sure why to be honest, I just feel like it will put to sleep any finals run aspirations despite how early in the year it is.
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It's a lot easier for the warriors to take that path, union is massive in New Zealand but is a minor sport here in Australia. Any half decent junior union player in Australia is also already playing league and the vast majority end up going with league by the time they are 17.
We don't need to look at other avenues, although we should still venture down that path to some extent, we have more than enough talent in our junior system. We need to do a way better job at recognising and developing that talent than we have done since Brian Smith left the club.
If only there was a guy who did his apprenticeship under Brian Smith at Parra who left and took all that know-how to another NRL club which went on to win 4 GFs. Just imagine.
All because we weren't prepared to pay him what the panthers were, we obviously took our junior system for granted and thought they would just keep flowing through to first grade like they did in the smith era.
Semi Radradra was the player we got the last time we went down that path.
See the thing here is when the Roosters Melbourne and alike continue uncovering these types and we sit on our hands and moan why we are where we are.It's great having numbers it's better when quality comes along with those numbers and when you see Brown Talagi and Sanders walk out the door in 12 months the question has to be asked what is going on.
Going to Union for talent is like leaving no stone unturned that's more so the key.If you think just looking inside your own catchment is the answer Parra's farked for sure proper farked because our neighbours Penrith are clearly lightyears ahead where we are.We've got to be best across the board by not taking an opportunity that others are taking is a opportunity lost.Much like TPAs and after football opportunities we must have everything at our disposal to win right now we don't.
You are missing my point, until we get better at identifying talent and then developing it it doesn't matter how far and wide we cast our net. It actually works against you when you have too many players as it costs money to have these players in your system, why do you think the storm and the like are so good at developing talent, they don't have as many but they are good at identifying the talent and they throw 3 × the money at them to get them into their system.
You only have to look at our current first grade squad to realise we are absolutely terrible at identifying and developing young talent,
Longi, recruit
addo-carr, recruit
Russell, junior
Penisini, junior
Kelly, recruit
Simmonson, recruit
Pezet, recruit
Moses, recruit
Hopgood, recruit
Paulo, junior
JDB, recruit
Williams, recruit
Tuilagi, recruit
Kautoga, recruit
Samrani, recruit
Doorey, recruit, was a junior
Morreti, recruit
Smith, recruit
TDS, recruit
Guymer, junior
Tuivaiti, junior
Walker, recruit
Papalii, recruit
That's 23 players named and only 5 came through our junior system into first grade.
If that's doesn't tell you our biggest problem is identifying and developing i don't know what does.
Fixing these problems should be our first priority , casting a wider net at this point won't do a damn thing.
So while doing what you say we shouldn't be looking at the potential of landing a Semi Radradra sounds like you have a plan for mediocrity figured out here,do you work for Parra R and R by chance because those donkeys seemingly have the same strategy all while other clubs are doing exactly that recruiting in the Union space.
You need a multipronged development and recruitment strategy not an all eggs one.The idea your dismissive of that means you'll fit right in at Parra because seemingly they are doing the same with soso results.
Thats seems good enough all while Penrith the Dogs and Tigers are in our own backyard are coming to get us.Don't you get sick of top tier other code players making waves for other clubs while in all essence we flounder.
All I no is something is very much broken in the development and recruitment space but we continue to do the same and expect our coach to pull a rabbit out of his arse and then the fanbase cries me a river looking for someone's head.Something drastically needs to change.
Oh stop it, I'm not saying we shouldn't be looking everywhere, I'm saying it doesn't matter where we look if we can't identify and develop talent. It's no different than you saying the coach doesn't matter as long as the same head office is in place, did anyone accuse you of fitting in with mediocrity?.
JC Its not quiet like that, in its day Union was every bit as big as League, mainly through its much deeper International Flavour. The rules of the game have changed it hugely in Australia where we always had the League alternative, the Europeans and the NZ sides became the dominant (Aust won 3 World Cups to emphasise where we were in the game). That seems to be fading in NZ as well at the moment, they like our game better, but it is still only a distraction to the Union loving Kiwi's.
The GPS system for Union is still very dominant and its not just wealthy kids (families) that send their kids to GPS Colleges, they are head hunted by the schools and offered scholarships and some still mix the codes by playing both. The reality is both codes are now dominated by Islanders where the socio economical demography makes both sports very accessible to their pyhsiques and their parents wishes.
What Coryn say's is very true and we only need our Semi and Sivo experience to awaken this. The reality is we have never planned anything properly and therein lies the problem. I wrote recently that we should set up Semi (assuming he is at least ready for retirement) as an agent/ scout or even running an academy.
For a club that is paralysed by the fear of cap management, the cost of such an endeavour should be bloody obvious.....its not as though we haven't got the money through either the Leagues Club or the Football Club.
Our junior talents right now is not a problem. It's about retaining them and the transference into an NRL player. It's not the scouting that's the issue. Our SG ball team is probably the most talented team in the comp. PT and SB would agree with me I recon. But when you see them play, you wonder if the coach is training them to play as a team or individuals. So when we don't have juniors players hitting their potential, too juniors leaving and on top of that a RR team that can't land a single player it equals the roster we have right now
That's the point I'm trying to make, we have enough talent but lack the process of both identifying the best and developing them into first graders. It doesn't matter how far and wide we cast a net if we can't identify and develop what we catch.
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