2024 starting 17 .... who's in your team?

[Cappuccino]

Short on props is all I can say

Too much salt not enough pepper to reverse an infamous quote from MG

 

[Marki]

What does that actually mean? First training run he gets a crack at fullback. Maybe the first few training sessions. All of pre season. One preseason game. First NRL game. The last

Often with Gould it’s what he doesn’t say that’s the clue to his thinking. He didn’t say 10 x NRL games, or half the season etc.

Always a Bulldog

That's right.
He could have meant "he'll play FB for the Dragons once we exchange him with Ben Hunt"

 

[Marki]

All I can say is with our top 30 squad, if we don't win the Knock on Effect Cup, I'll have to seriously think of giving up on this team.

First grade should end up somewhere between 12th and 17th.

But we have recruited well for reserve grade and I expect nothing but a premiership.

 

[D.O.W.]

Not to sure yet.
All I know is I want Patalo spend all 24' in NSW cup playing a full season before being a fulltime first grader in 25'.
Our middles are weak now, no more pressure on kids that have had injuries / aren't ready.

This is a make or break year for Patolo, he’s done zero to deserve a spot in the 17 other than being a prop (to which we are struggling in stock) - any other team he’s playing cup

 

[Old Man JB]

What does that actually mean? First training run he gets a crack at fullback. Maybe the first few training sessions. All of pre season. One preseason game. First NRL game. The last

Often with Gould it’s what he doesn’t say that’s the clue to his thinking. He didn’t say 10 x NRL games, or half the season etc.

Always a Bulldog

What it means is exactly what it says, he will get first crack at No 1, and barring a total disaster that will probably mean the whole season. We will find out soon enough.

 

[Philmus]

i’d like to see burton move to center. hutchison can pick up the 5/8 role and mann the 14 jersey. not sure where that leaves taaffe and salmon (obviously in cup but who knows what they were promised when they signed with us)

Critta
Fox
Burto
Kiraz
Wilson
Hutcho
Sexton
King
Mahoney
SST
Kiks
Preston
Curran

Mann
Knight
Hughes
Morrin/Edwards/Patolo

 

[Baseball Furies]

Maybe wait and see just before the season starts, they’ll be a lot of movement between now and then still.

 

[H-dog]

Kiraz
Fox
Xerri/perham to start the year
CrittA (help Skelton defensively)
Skelton
Burton
Sexton
Knight
Mahoney
SST
Kiks
Preston
King/Curran

Mann/salmon
Curran/king
Hughes/Sutton
Morrin/Edwards/Patolo

hopefully we can still get a Safiti from Newcastle or another forward

 

[bradyk]

This is a make or break year for Patolo, he’s done zero to deserve a spot in the 17 other than being a prop (to which we are struggling in stock) - any other team he’s playing cup

One of Patolo or Hughes will play the bulk of the season if SST (or another decent middle) isn't signed with our current middles stocks. If we get middles injuries it's still going to be grim.

 

[bradyk]

All I can say is with our top 30 squad, if we don't win the Knock on Effect Cup, I'll have to seriously think of giving up on this team.

First grade should end up somewhere between 12th and 17th.

But we have recruited well for reserve grade and I expect nothing but a premiership.

We should of won it this year.

 

[bradyk]

Can Curran play prop lol?

Maybe a low minute role off the bench. Ideally want him lock (less hit ups) or second row (won't play there with Kiks and Preston).

 

[CQDog]

Maybe a low minute role off the bench. Ideally want him lock (less hit ups) or second row (won't play there with Kiks and Preston).

Kikau off the bench for impact

 

[GoTheDoggies]

We are two props short! It’s a shame Pele didn’t put in the work he could have had a bench spot, opportunity missed for him.

 

[CQDog]

Our outside back options are all pretty creative, fast and some possess power and great aerial/hands and we have a weapon in Kikau. I would honestly go with a combo of Sexton and Hutchinson whilst Karl is out as both can ball play decent enough and both can steer a team around the park and just give the backs the ball in space out on the edges and make their roles much easier with better general play kicking than what Burton would offer. It’s still gonna be a tough ask from the backs considering they’re going to have to be battering rams in all of our games because our pack is so shithouse so it might not work at all as there is zero threat running wise from either Sexton or Hutchinson

 

[Marki]

Our outside back options are all pretty creative, fast and some possess power and great aerial/hands and we have a weapon in Kikau. I would honestly go with a combo of Sexton and Hutchinson whilst Karl is out as both can ball play decent enough and both can steer a team around the park and just give the backs the ball in space out on the edges and make their roles much easier with better general play kicking than what Burton would offer. It’s still gonna be a tough ask from the backs considering they’re going to have to be battering rams in all of our games because our pack is so shithouse so it might not work at all as there is zero threat running wise from either Sexton or Hutchinson

I believe you are on the right page with Hutchinson -Sexton halves combo.

The experiment with Burton at 5/8th must end. Our team and coaches will never get the chance to figure out if the rest of the team is good enough to keep in their position if our halves aren't steering the team around and playing proper footy.

Hutch is like Travis Norton. He has decent ball skills and good enough vision. He can't take the game from the scruff of the neck but he can play a good 5/8th role if the players around him do their jobs.

At the moment, with Burton, our players are not only tasked with doing their job, they have to make up for Burton's inability to ball play in the halves.

The sooner the coaches realise this, the quicker this team can move forward.

Losing Burton is not the end of the world for this team.

 

[albatross]

Hell will freeze over before Ciro picks Skelton at 4 unfortunately.

He has continually overlooked him when the opportunity was there to bring in some metre eating impact when we were playing like rubbish.

Hope he does tho. Exactly what we need.

I agree with Skelton's attacking ability, but he seemed to get injured a lot last year, just for a week or two here and there. Maybe he was carrying something? I'm pretty sure he was injured the week Quai-Ward got a run. I think his defence was probably a bit of a concern at centre too, coming from rugby 7s, but if Critta starts at fullback in rd1, I expect Skelton will be centre. I can't see why we would have let both Avo and Alomoti go if Skelton wasn't in the short term planning.

 

[Wearnze]

With Curran and Salmon arriving and with very little prop prospects do we think Edwards may make the permanent move to prop? He has the size…

 

[CrittaMagic69]

With Curran and Salmon arriving and with very little prop prospects do we think Edwards may make the permanent move to prop? He has the size…

I don't think he's physically dominant enough to play prop and would need to improve his ball carries if he was to become an option. Tbf to him he did improve in that area last season but he needs to take it up a few levels. Patolo and Hughes are our two best options in reserves however both of them are struggling to stay fit and rack up the minutes they need to develop.

I really can't understand how the club continues to fail in this area year after year, other than Vaughan we haven't successfully developed or recruited a genuine play 1 prop in years. King was a successful recruit and I think he's a borderline rep quality prop but I wouldn't consider him a genuine play 1 prop. We do however seem to have a million players that can play the small forward role and for whatever reason we seem to keep recruiting more. This Taumalolo rumour better have legs or we're stuffed again this season.

 

[Dogiezz]

I agree with Skelton's attacking ability, but he seemed to get injured a lot last year, just for a week or two here and there. Maybe he was carrying something? I'm pretty sure he was injured the week Quai-Ward got a run. I think his defence was probably a bit of a concern at centre too, coming from rugby 7s, but if Critta starts at fullback in rd1, I expect Skelton will be centre. I can't see why we would have let both Avo and Alomoti go if Skelton wasn't in the short term planning.

Wasn't he suspended a few times?

 

[TwinTurbo]

That's right.
He could have meant "he'll play FB for the Dragons once we exchange him with Ben Hunt"

Nope, what Gould said was he will be given a crack at fullback, he just didn’t say how long the crack will be.


Always a Bulldog