James Hooper wrote in blog today in regards to Parra search for X factor.
Think they're still in the market Trevor. Looking at Daine Laurie and a kid at Penrith playing fullback in NSW Cup
The Penrith fullback Isaiah Iongi has skill but only 19 and I heard resigned to 2025 so don't know how true it is. He played Qld u19s and seems to have good skill but nearly every junior player would have enough footage to make positive highlights package as no one posts videos of people's mistakes.
Iongi would be good option I think as can start on wing/centre with view to take over from gutho in few years, but playing in 1st grade is lot harder then Flegg and Reserves. Penrith have gone alright with juniors stepping up in outside backs so definitely worth a punt but don't see him being xfactor or major player this year.
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Iongi, yes please. Kid is a beast. Only thing is, with Crichton going will Penrith have a spot for him? Or will Taylan May move into Crichton's spot next year and Iongi stays in Cup? Hope the kid is good enough for Centre, though as a winger he will be fine. If we get him for 2023, he will go straight onto a wing. He is averaging 173 metres per game in NSW cup, needs some building up for Centre.
Next year May returns on the wing and Turuva will move to centre.
Haven't seen the kid play but if useless sacks of shit like Taylan May and Turuva will keep him out of first grade for the next few years, it's a no thanks for me!
Jeral Skelton from the dogs is someone I would look at. Aussie sevens. Look at his stats for dogs at cup. Especially this week. 19 runs fro 253m (85pcm). 12 tackle breaks. He can play centre and wing. Another dogs winger is Blake Wilson. Looks at his stats in the past couple week in cup level. They are tackling breakin machines and provide plenty of meters. Idk about their defence. But dogs r first in reserve grade. Getting these two players should be easy. Fox and Kiraz have the dogs wing for many years. Averilo and Alamoti r there centres and young. Crichton next year will play fullback. Perham will be their back up fullback and they will also have Xerri. D Casey and B Burns have also been preferred on their extended squad list. So both Skelton and Wilson pathway to the nrl is blocked. Eels can easily give them opportunity with W Blake most likely out of the club. Then we have Dunster, russel and Simmonson fighting over a wing and centre spot and none have done anything to cement a spot. Regardless Skelton and Wilson could be first man in at the eels if we can get an injury which is much closer to the nrl they wiill get in comparison to the dogs
Than I have been talking about Kayal Iro from sharks. This week in cup atcentre. 20 runs for 221m (90pcm). 7 tackle breaks and 4 offloads. 19 tackles with 2 missed. Atkinson is still doing great as well (cover fulback and halves). Again both players are down the pecking order at sharks and can easily get ago. In the halves, Tindal is the back up and they got another young half coming up so Atkinson nrl can't process tbere. All the sharks outside backs are young and got their long term future at the club. Players like Hiroyuki and Tracey are preferred as depth in extended squad list. So Iro future is blocked here. The club should be pouncing on these players
Good suggestions would have to agree on all of them. Iro was also Nsw cup player of the year and played in last years word cup.
Agreed that Iro is awesome.
Anyone seen this lad, Allan Fitzgibbon; https://youtu.be/v65FiXpNf_M
As a development club it would be great to see a Fiji connection feeding into our juniors.
I Like EA's thinking and yours too Coryn and Gaz, just be careful with stats on these young players and be just as careful with judgement..... a lot of people think/thought/some still do that young players like Russell and Dunster were the equivalent answer out of our stocks.
I remember discussing them both with a Parramatta supporter (a couple of years back and before their injuries) that lives close and knows the Arthurs and sees all the juniors coming through, he was always of the view that these players had some potential but were a long way from the top level. It turns out that is exactly how they fit, even if they did develop along the lines without their injuries, they would still have been average only players and we need better than that in this competition.
I have another juniors contact at the Titans and they have some unbelievable Australian Schoolboys level juniors coming through, so much so they have an embarrassment of riches......I am observing the commentary on our young blokes coming through the Flegg and Ball and how there is a definate improvement at Parra and achieving Semi Final level is a great start. It will be interesting if any of these get to Cup Level for the remainder of the season so we may judge their potential .....i.e. I see no reason in Rankin and Rein continuing to play if we have some potential replacements, we have nothing in our Reserve Grade other than the two M's in the forwards. You could just about drop the rest of them off now.
We need to be ruthless and get this happening, our two youngsters that played in the Dogs game are quiet simply not NRL level, yes Russell can get away with it but he is not the answer.
Special Note, somehow our second grade have been going well this year, we played the comp leaders (dogs) last week and were thrashed...... what was so savage about that result was the depletion of the Dogs NRL team and the resultant effect that would have on their seconds......it was not to be.
Yea stats can be misleading. I will say the stats the players I listed are providing, Dunster and Russel didn't produce anywhere near it.
Coryn for every one Semi there's probably 100 Eparame Navale's.
I don't think Fijian 7s rugby is the great gold mine you think it is - otherwise that grub Nick Politis's favourite word would be bula!
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