A lot of information swirling around the off season. Ive seen club interviews where officals "Ryles" has stated we have 1 spot left. Many of us took that as 1 spot left in the top 30. A look at our signed lists shows we have signed 27 players to our top 30, and 4 development players. So do we take the 1 spot left as meaning Ryles sees that we need to sign 1 more first choice 1st grader / Starter to the team. If this is the case, what position is he thinking. My mind casts straight away to our missing spine position, a Dummy Half, but I could be wrong.
Having 3 spots open and by my basic calculations, we have some significant money still available after Gutho leaving, means we should be in the hunt still for last minute trades. Our season gets away very soon, first game is only 10 or so weeks away. our first offical trial 6 or 7 weeks away. There should be another round of trades and movements when teams start pre season games and work out where they are and what they need moving forward. What are others thinking re 27 players signed and who we may seriously target from here.
Here is our current list as far as I can make out from internet sources.
2025 squad: Bailey Simonsson (2027), Brendan Hands (2026), Bryce Cartwright (2025), Dean Hawkins (2026), Dylan Brown (2025, PO until 2031), Haze Dunster (MO 2025), J’maine Hopgood (2027), Josh Addo-Carr (2025, CO 2026), Isaiah Iongi (2027), Jack Williams (2027), Joash Papalii (2026), Joey Lussick (2025), Joe Ofahengaue (2025), Jordan Samrani (2026), Junior Paulo (2026), Kelma Tuilagi (2026), Luca Moretti (2025), Matt Doorey (2025), Mitchell Moses (2026, PO 2029), Ryan Matterson (2025, PO 2026), Sam Tuivaiti (2025), Sean Russell (2026), Shaun Lane (2025, MO 2026), Toni Mataele (2025), Will Penisini (2025, PO 2026), Wiremu Greig (2025), Zac Lomax (2028)
Development players: Charlie Guymer (2025, NRL 2026), Kitione Kautoga (2025, NRL 2026), Richard Penisini (2025, NRL 2026), Saxon Pyke (2025)
Replies
Would be a great signing, especially for this season - can cover wing, centre, Fb or 5/8 would make us a a top 8 team instantly.
That is true, more so it was between Staggs and Cobbo, Madge chose Staggs. Cobbo though i bet will go to NQ. He would want to stay in Queensland.
yep Selwyn would be a prime pickup for sure.
It appears they may ne adding Williams to the prop rotation instead if an edge
You would have to have an insight to their thinking to arrive there Bluey.
I can sort of imagine when they recruited him (Williams) they had a specific type of role, but equally I suspect that the realisation that he is a "hybrid" forward would mean that there is no need to pidgeoon hole him at the moment.
Interesting that we have Lane who "us fans" suspect/opinioned should be a middle only now, understanding though as a bench player he could fit either role depending on circumstances.
This has more application to Matterson, who a lot think, is now playing more like a middle but could be every bit as good/effective as an edge or even lock. Don't forget he has made the journey via 5/8 in the day.
Williams gives us a different style of middle because he is quicker mover (fast leg speed and a tremendous percentage in defence) than our tradional middles. Guymer could also play both roles.
Telaegi and Cartright and the fringe forwards tend to be specificaly edge with the exception of a couple. Most certainly you can forget Greig in these early discussions, regardless of how he is going, he is a liability defensively in the type of process that Ryles will promote.
I have a view that Ryles will be so focused on "defence" that maybe forwards like Cartwright and Talaegi may find it difficult to begin with as both can be defensively liable (note that Talaegi is strong front on but not laterally).
I think the attack through the forwards will still be plenty with Junior and Hopgood both exceptional ball players.
The player to benefit mostly will be Dyllan Brown, all of a sudden he is not the only player that needs to be marked out of the game. The people on here that didn't understand that last year i.e. saying he was disaapointing in attack do not have any appreciation of the focus the opposition side's placed on him.
I look forward to the opening pack makeup for the first game against Storm because I think it will be opposition specfic with maybe a different tone when we play say Tigers.
Great post Poppa. Seems Ryles has a type of forward in mind and is sort of similar to BA. BA liked back-rowers that could also fill in the middle. Ma'u, Moeroa, Scott, Lane, Matterson, Papali'i etc. all back-rowers who could move into the middle in an instant. Cartwright was one that broke the mould of a BA type of back-rower. Took some time then in 2023 he came out as a tough edge player for us. 2024 saw glimpses of his old self returning.
Doorey would have been brought in to do simliar, Murchie and Momoisea were brought in as that hybrid types but didn't work out at all. But Ryles looks for bigger bodies but leg speed type. Could Ryles be moving towards having very limited Prop only players in his squad? Guymer and Moretti seem to be perfect Ryles players who incorporate leg speed and quick play the ball, mobile enough to move onto an edge if needed. Ryles may be looking for middles that play edge, as oppose to BA with edge players who can play middle. With defence being the main factor of who he signs. Williams has an error or two but is tough in defence. He is nothing special just a toiler who will be consistent 100%
As for Lane, i do not know why but i still see him as one of our better edge players. Granted his 2024 season was sub par at best, but i put that down to a collection of confidence and also attitude. I saw live his body language was atrocious. One game in particular, he went second marker against Souths, Cook scooted and he just walked towards him as Cook went through the gap near him. Then after a try, he walked to the middle with his hands on his hips. 2023 was disasterous from injuries so i do understand his confidence gonig down, then BA being sacked, a coach who he loved playing under being sacked probably made it worse. No excuse but it can happen. I will say when he was moved to the middle he was better but i think purely since it was a kick up the arse more so. You have Lane firing on all cylinders he is the best back-rower at the club, that is why i am saying if Ryles can get back his drive i would put him on an edge working with Brown.
Though i will say, i agree with players like Tuilagi and Cartwright might be on the outside looking in with the likes of say Guymer and maybe Doorey getting in over them. Do not be surprised if Guymer starts by the end of the year on an edge. But that is where Tuilagi, who has a deal for 26', can be an impact bench player for us. He was great late in the year but did seem like fitness and defence was an issue still.
Though Ofahengaue and Paulo can have a good year with Matterson and Williams in rotation, i still worry about the depth for out and out Props. Tuivaiti is nowhere near ready, Moretti is fine but can he be that full-time starter? Greig wont fit Ryles type of play unless he has a breakout pre-season and is super fit. That is why i hope we go for say a Thomas Hazelton or Davvy Moale who are Props with good leg speed and will fit what we are trying to do.
Great players will find a way to influence the outcome of a game regardless of how they are being 'marked' by opposition teams. I love him to bits but Brown simply had an inconsistent season and needs to do more/better.
I Know where your coming from, but honestly we had absolutely no other attacking focal point for opposition teams to worry about. Double team Brown and set the defence on his side last year and you took care of our attacking prowess. Fullstop. I see a different Brown, free and unencumbered as a 5/8 with Moses, Lomax, JAC all able to attack, and attack well, and draw their man or at least keep their defensive counterpart on them.
Take it a step further and seriously , our backline players last year, couldnt keep up with Brown when he took off, most of that backline couldnt see the gap he was about to create, or be good enough to read the play and get into a hole. He had to be a one man band. If he fails this year with a full compliment in the backline then the noose will come out for sure.
I'm not sure that's right Freshie, I have seen some great players that failed to make ordinary sides better.
Johnathon Thurston was one when he first went to the cowboys, Parra was when Kenny and Stirling were still around after 86, Ken Thornett during the 60's, Wally Lewis at the Broncs and Gold Coast, Ken Irvine at North sydney and of course our own Jarryd Hayne, there is a list of great players that could not make up the difference, yes they influenced outcomes, but they still needed other players to achieve results..... some of those sides we sent out last year were never going to win and the easiest way to do that was marking out Dyllan Brown. Dyllan is not a playmaking general, yes he is capable of play making, but it is a tough ask when your also the sides best defender. I saw him chase players from one side and end of the field last year and then get into position to take the next play up when given the ball.
He still has a great deal to offer but let me say if he was playing in a top side, you would not know which way he went. I am hoping like anything he will get his opportunity this coming year, but I also have a gut feeling he may have been burnt out, the same we we saw Nathan Hindmarsh burn out before his time. If his ACL goes, it will be a long way back.
Hindy never reached the same heights he was at for the first 5 years of his time in First Grade, and finally neither did Gutherson with the injuries he carried of the back of an unbelievable workload.
I don't think we were an 'ordinary side' in 2024. We had roughly the same roster as the team that went to the Grand Final two years earlier! I'll admit that Mitchell Moses was a HUGE loss but I still want to see players like Brown step up when the pressure is on. In my mind, we were poorly coached throughout that period and didn't have the systems in place to assist Brown in running the team.
-
2
-
3
-
4
-
5
-
6
of 7 Next