How Are We So Far Behind?
Another season outside the top 8—and honestly, it feels like we’re further away than ever.
It’s not just that we’re losing games. It’s the gap. The difference between us and the top teams feels like light years. What’s worse is that being “competitive” now gets talked about like it’s some sort of achievement. Since when did that become the standard?
As a fan, there’s no confidence week to week. You go into games not knowing what version of the team is going to show up. Defence is a constant question mark. Goal kicking feels like a lottery. And when you look at recruitment and retention, it’s hard to say we’ve got it right—the decision-making around signings (like Pezet) raises more questions than answers.
Even the junior pipeline, which should be a source of hope, doesn’t exactly look stacked with standout talent ready to change the club’s direction.
Yes, there are some signs for the future. You can see glimpses here and there, and there are moments where things look like they might be heading somewhere. But let’s be honest—it still feels like a long, long road before we’re genuinely competing with the top sides, not just hanging in games.
Right now, it doesn’t feel like we’re building toward success—it feels like we’re trying to catch up to a standard that keeps moving further away.
And that’s the most frustrating part.
Replies
We beat the reigning premiers, at their home ground, just last week!
Panthers are head and shoulders above everyone else so far this year, alot of teams are going to get thumped by them. Better test for us is next week, tigers we are probably expected to beat
Thats the problem this idea that tigers are a better test
This should be the test and we are failing again.
We are so far behind because we have a bellow average roster and a absolutely joke of a coach.
if we avoid the spoon, we have over reached.
We don't have enough evidence to judge Ryles as a coach.
What is true is you need excellent on field talent to support a rookie coach through his first years. Look at how Ciraldo was set up at the Bulldogs with their recruitment sprees and poaching from the Panthers.
How has our R&R set Ryles up for success? We've missed basically every noteworthy player on the market and leaked basically all our talent bar Moses.
Ryles isn't the problem because the problem was here before Ryles.
If our R&R can't get and retain talent then we simply can't perform with the best.
There are levels… then there are next levels.
Penrith are in a private penthouse above the usual penthouses. It has a private elevator made of gold for the refs and NRL hierarchy.
We’re in the small shitty toilet under the 8 level car park… and it’s out of order. Smells like piss.
The rest of the NRL are making up the numbers to Penrith at the moment. Even then, at some point Cleary will purposely have them a little bit underdone to not peak too early and slow everything down and they will still win.
Without favouring the Eels, try this exercise. If Parramatta and Penrith merged tomorrow and you had to name your 19 players for next week, how many Eels would make your side??? Possibly Moses ( at #6) would get a start. Not many more, if any. Even the position I consider a weakness for the Panthers, #9, the Eels are at best on par. The difference between the 2 teams is alarming. When you consider the players the Panthers have let go over the past 5 years, there junior development systems are exceptional. The 2026 Panthers look so much better than the rest of the competition, I can't see how anyone can beat them.
SACK THE DEFENSIVE COACH and go all out for BOTH Xerri and Tago
We won't become elite by chasing players that other clubs don't want. The answer isn't finding discards who are better than our current discards.
We need to attract and recruit and develop and retain superstars.
That's the job of our GM of Football as is my understanding and he's failed miserably for a long time.
Because our forward pack is useless
Paulo cannot be re-signed unless he takes a 50% paycut
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