Fox Sports Klemmer

[The_Chimpster]

FFS…. I’ve got a headache reading these long a$$ posts

So Polly, who killed JFK?

Gus

 

[bricktamland]

No brainer, would make metres. Make tigers pay freight , loves our club . Better than taukoahou

 

[gibbo2]

Is he better than what we have? Would he be a step up?

Yes he is - but has to be at the right price

 

[Bazildog]

Closer to February we get the more frequent the long arse posts will be, and mostly by blow ins with an agenda. The is a real “Ray” smell in the air..

 

[gibbo2]

Klemmer 2023 keys stats -139 avg run metres a game
61 minutes played per game
average of 25 tackles a game with tackle efficiency of 98%.

I know he isn't the player he was when he was the best prop in the game. But those numbers are numbers we are crying out for and would seriously give us some defensive stability around the ruck .
If we can jag for a maximum of 500k then it's a must buy , especially with nothing better currently available on the market

 

[bradyk]

Klemmer 2023 keys stats -139 avg run metres a game
61 minutes played per game
average of 25 tackles a game with tackle efficiency of 98%.

I know he isn't the player he was when he was the best prop in the game. But those numbers are numbers we are crying out for and would seriously give us some defensive stability around the ruck .
If we can jag for a maximum of 500k then it's a must buy , especially with nothing better currently available on the market

He averaged 50 minutes in 2023. 60 minutes in 2022.

 

[2ndphase]

Not bagging this post for its contents or point but many like myself would not read this purely based on how long it is. I find if you’re clear and concise people will pay attention, unless you’re a troll like…(insert obvious name here).

I was the same i just scrolled on passed! Lol
Its not the first time to be honest.

 

[Robdog111]

Don’t ever imply you’re smarter than Gus regarding football management. Say what you want the bloke has runs on the board dating back to the 80s. He’s outspoken, he plays games with media etc. He does things we don’t even understand because he’s been around the who’s who of rugby league for decades. He knows how other clubs swindle things behind the scenes, he’s ruthless when you need someone to be ruthless. He’s playing the long game and it’s frustrating as a fan who wants immediate results but he’s been realistic in what he’s said in goals and KPIs for the club. He could have said things we are no chance of achieving or made promises regarding results like many probably would have.
The thing with Gus is he will take a risk and sometimes we need to do that because sitting on your hands and waiting can achieve nothing. But with Gus if the risk didn’t pay off he won’t sit back and let it idle. Much like contracts you’ve stated we will be paying the risk was those players could kick on and be good the other is we get them out of top 30 spots and look for someone else to give a chance.

100% agree

 

[Dogs79]

Reported today May is close to an extension with Roosters. That probably ups the need for someone like Klemmer, and still leaves plenty of cash for a ‘crack’ at AFB.

 

[The DoggFather]

No brainer, would make metres. Make tigers pay freight , loves our club . Better than taukoahou

Does he love our club?

 

[Bulldogs09]

Reported today May is close to an extension with Roosters. That probably ups the need for someone like Klemmer, and still leaves plenty of cash for a ‘crack’ at AFB.

Hopefully bullshit

 

[Nate DAWG]

This is a good post @Nasheed

It's a long reply. It's not a simplistic story. I've cut it down.

To blame everything on one of Hasler, Dib or Castle is a very simplistic view of the world. It's a combination of many things. Hasler and Dib did so much good for the club. They also got blinded by power and control. Dib done some things brilliantly someone outlined the third party supporters he brought into the club. He also had some glaring flaws.

Hasler's loyalty was to winning the next NRL game as that's the loyalty of every coach in the game. Hasler structured his roster accordingly. The problem was the club had the chance in early 2017 to advise Hasler it was his final year and allow him to see out the season. The mistake was retaining him for 2 years. The bigger mistake was sacking him before the new deal started. It was a panic decision. Releasing James Graham compounded that and sealed Dib's fate an an election.

If all the mistakes were made during 2017 the election outcome proved to be it wasn't a good one. We lost 6 directors in one hit. We just got a new CEO, a new Captain and a new GM of Football. So many mistakes made before the election and if they weren't made Dib wins the election. He panicked. He was blindsided by power. He was a good leader all the same. Just lost sight with power and election outcomes. I'm sure he's better now in whatever career path he has taken with time of reflection. But to blame Hasler or blame the Anderson's is simplistic. Dib did panic in 2017 to blame him is also a mistake. Power and potentially losing power can make people short sighted and reactive. It happens. He's human. We're human. Why can't politicians see what we're seeing? Why can't they see the end when we end it for them? Power short sights all kinds of people.

Our junior league was and still is strong. Our pathways teams produced players. Hasler did blood a lot of new talent that came through the systems. Our juniors aren't an issue. Our pathways aren't a problem. Never been.

Dib sacking Hasler and appointing Pay wasn't the right decision. The Anderson's sacking Pay for Barrett was even more farcical. Pay did dig his own grave on two fronts. He accepted a 12 month extension in 2019. Smart play by the Anderson's. Pay should have haggled for a 2 year deal or leave the building. He was developing some runs on the board in 2019. The other one was I said above we weren't ready for 2020.

We were still enjoying success at lower levels making grand finals in Matts and Ball, winning a NSW Cup & National Title and being undefeated in Matts winning by big margins before Covid ended the season.

The Anderson era was a horror show at NRL level. It showed promise during the second half of 2019. Something went wrong with Covid. We just weren't ready for the 2020 season. This all falls on Pay. No one else.

Pay's sacking came around the time there was a threat of an EGM. This still didn't save 3 directors. Why 3 and not 7 and why those 3 who knows, who cares, it happened. Again the threat of an election sees panic emerge.

Barrett was an abject failure as coach. His only strength if it was one is that he could attract players. Whether they were the right players is one Nasheed has argued about. He attracted them. He just wasn't a good head coach.

Barrett attracted Cotric (current international), Flanagan (scored nearly 200 points in 2020), Allan (current origin), Hetherington, Burton and Addo-Carr all to the club prior to Gould. After Gould he was involved in TPJ (this started before Gould, finished with Gould involved), Kikau and Mahoney. Barrett was with Khoury and Gould at the Chinese dinner.

Nasheed: A little technical note. Barrett actually saw this with Burton and Flanagan. The issue was he believed the answer was Burton and Averillo. Comedy capers. Averillo was thrown to the wolves.

Khoury became Chairman. A genuinely nice person. A passionate Bulldogs fan. He didn't want to lose being Chairman so soon. He got whiff of elections looming and 4 did nominate only to later withdraw. He head hunted Gould. He got him. Gould got 5 year deal with total control of everything and absolutely everything. This ensured no 2022 elections. Gould held the cards and got what he wanted. It can also lead to issues we are now seeing.

Gould was a terrific coach. He was a 1990's coach. He was finished by 1999. He's walked into two great NSW origin eras and when Queensland weren't as strong after Lewis in 1992 and before the 8 in a row dynasty in the early 2000's. He had the Canberra connection in the 1990's. He had Joey and Freddy in the 2000's. Gould achieved some very good things at Penrith. He was working with the best junior league in the game so all he needed to do was generate funds for them to have a training facility. He did recruit some good players. He also let some good footballers go when still contracted notbaly Lewis, Jennings and Moylan. All locals. Penrith began to see the NRL was passing him by. The sacking of Griffin was the end of Gould. Penrith could see he needed his wings clipped, moved sideways or needed to go. In the end he had to be moved on. We didn't see this. We just saw a team that made the 2020 grand final and were entrenched top 2 during 2021. We weren't seeing this was Ivan Cleary's era, Ivan Cleary's culture, Ivan Cleary's system and that he dismantled the 5 year plan.

Gould has such a forceful presence with juniors and pathways. He talks they listen. He does have an awe about him. The NRL is a different beast and it's slowly passing him by. Penrith saw this towards the end of 2018 that's 5yrs ago. It's passed Sheens by. It passed Griffin by last year. I don't think Bennett and Stuart have long to go I see signs in them the NRL is passing them by. This year will see whether Hasler has it or it's passed him. All bar Griffin been great coaches and have great records in the game. The only saviour for Bennett is that he's never drank, smoke, eats clean and has exercised every day. This has kept him going. He trusts his training staff. A lot of clubs have very sharp and very savvy operators. They're all trying to be one step ahead. Gould is doing everything at Canterbury and he's doing multiple jobs at Channel 9. He's also a very polarising figure.

Was Barrett's future sealed when Gould ran that training session and we won the game? I sensed Barrett basked too much in the glory of the win rather than knuckle the team down th following day. Gould didn't need to make the 10 years after me comment. One of the best decisions Gould made was sacking Barrett. I don't care how it was done it was done. Should have been done on the Friday night after the game not the Sunday afternoon when he's at a pub in regional NSW. Gould also made a brilliant decision making Potter the coach. Finally an experienced Canterbury man with a coaching background at 3 different competitions. Potter understood Canterbury. Potter understood Canterbury success. Potter knew what Canterbury was like being around when Moore, Nelson and Ryan were in their pomp. He coached at Wests Tigers so saw how politics can bring a person down. He coached in England. He coached NSW Cup. Coaching NSW Cup you're dealing with part time players, young kids on the rise and players who have been dropped from NRL. So he experienced all emtions. You don't get this learning as an assistant coach on the run.

Gould made the right call making Potter coach. He made the right call when he said it needs an experienced coach. Potter made references in press conferences he wanted to remain as coach. He should have been given 2 years. This would have smoothed a lot of waters. Potter was developing a good style of football. He settled from within the 1-6-7-9-14 roles with Averillo, Burton, Flanagan, Marshall King and Docker Clay. Obviously JMK was leaving out of Potter's control at least he was planning something. He brought stability into the spine. Not the best players. They were building.

A sidenote only two coaches have liked a running hooker being Ryan with Bugden and Potter with JMK. Ryan preferred Bugden. The selectors always wanted Johnstone. Yes we had selectors in that era. We do now but it's a sole selector and not the coach. We've only had two decent running hookers over the last 40 years with Bugden and JMK. The other solid to good ones been workers or tradesmen type players Johnstone, Thomas, Peats, Hetherington, Polla-Mounter (2001), Hughes, Perry, Ennis and Mahoney. We won't even talk about the hooker between Ennis and JMK that was a fatal mistake by all concerned. Ciraldo and Gould seem to want the organising and 40-50 tackle hooker. Anderson had a running hooker in 1993 and he didn't like him running. Serdaris said when Lamb wanted the ball he had to get the ball Anderson said so.

Back to Potter. But a problem might have been is that Potter would have wanted authority over team selection, retention and recruitment. Gould was given control and authority over everything football. A better world would have been Gould be part of a retention committee with Potter in charge, Gould in charge of pathways where he has a great presence and Potter in charge of NRL. The board handed over control they couldn't make the decision.

We all want Canterbury to be successful.

A fall down is the majority of Canterbury fans don't follow Rugby League as a whole. Nasheed I can see you're an exception. So they only see one small part of the game being the Bulldogs and don't see things from outside. Only a small handful of us follow Rugby League at other levels be it Super League, Queensland, country or local areas. Only a handful follow closely analyse what other clubs do more or less to see what they do right and wrong. They only see the headline bits. They're driven by the narrative from within. I still follow the fortunes of players who left Canterbury to see how they're going. Since it's been a lot lately I see what other clubs are doing.

Canterbury's structure was once it's great strengths with the NRL club and the Leagues Club. It's great when it has powerful leaders at the very top and the football team is winning games. It can also expose its holes and flaws when the leadership isn't as strong and the football team isn't winning. It has opened the door for lobby groups to challenge for power within the boards of both our clubs. Canterbury has since been trapped in the cycle of politics and election outcomes. It's not a healthy situation and has led to some very reactive and panic decisions.

Some of the signings we have made for next year, passing the blame onto the players and obsolving the coaching staff & management from the blame is a way to avoid elections. Both Khoury and Gould have a lot riding on the elections. Khoury wants to retain chairmanship. The elected board even if unopposed or reelected vote on chairman after the election. Khoury needs a strong personal result. Khoury gets that Gould gets a 5yr extension without a review of performance.

I haven't seen the Ben Hunt threads on this page and I'm sure there would have been a dozen threads at least and 1000's of comments. I have no doubt some would have raised caution and they would have been shot down. I told another Canterbury fan from day one Hunt won't be coming and it will end in badly. Canterbury fans under estimated Shane Flanagan. There was a bit of messaging from Gould that didn't suit with what Hunt wanted to achieve. Gould trying to keep Canterbury fans at bay and angle for his 5 year extension kept saying the club is in a massive rebuild. Hunt the next day said he's not interested in a rebuild. Flanagan said no. The angle from Hunt became homesickness.

I've been shot down in here about Connor Tracey. I've outlined the NRL Top 30 roster. I've outlined Cronulla will want a logical swap. I've outlined the type of areas Cronulla would be keen on. I've outlined two players other clubs might want Fox and Kiraz they aren't types Cronulla want. I've outlined because of the negative coverage from within and the desperation to release them RFM and another player they won't be part of the trades unless we pay full freight. I've outlined other clubs have very smart operators. I got shot down. We need to critically look at things rather than jump on the bandwagons.

We are chasing every player in the game. We are completely full in the Top 30. We aren't in a poisition to write off $800k or we would. We've had to write off the Jackson retirement.

I got shot down when I said the Roosters are smart only having 26 on their roster right now. You need to have 29 by Round 1. They can sit back and not pay players from the salary cap until Round 1. If they don't sign anyone they will promote a player from within for the season. This is a work around the cap. It's simplistic to say the Roosters have brown paper bags. Oh they do. They have third party sponsorship connections. They know how to work the salary cap. Not having 30 on the books right now is smart planning.

We have exhausted our Top 30. We are trying to release and pay freight for players. We are trying to make too many changes. I'm warning these things don't work.

I can't buy into rebuild when a player like Averillo who has come through the system and played 78 games has been freely allowed to go. Those who study the Top 30 cycle, players in, players out and the balance of the Top 30 knew Averillo was gone long before a rival club snapped him up.

DCE and Foran in 2011 had a very strong and experienced coach. They had Lyon as the captain. They had Stewart as fullback. They had Stewart at lock. They had people around them. Watmough in the second row. That Manly side was another level.

Now onto two clubs. I know one member has compared us to Brisbane in praising them and criticising us. I think it was @Geoff Chambers who done this. I think it's a good anology in many regards. Brisbane had an experienced coach. He has always been a law to himself. Bennett got what he wanted first time at Brisbane, at Saints, Rabbits and now Dolphins. They got rid of Bennett in a power play. They hire Seibold. Brisbane is a massive beast. It needs someone who understands Brisbane. Seibold didn't have the runs or the authority. He gets sacked. They finally give Walters a run. Walters seemed like the natural successor. Broncos legend. Won 5 premierships 1 as captain. He was twice on Bennett's staff. He did it all the hard way. He was sacked when Bennett felt he was too comfortable. He coached Super League. He coached Queensland Cup. He coached State of Origin. He was reunited with Bennett at 2 further clubs including Broncos again I think the other Newcastle. The simplistic thing is to say Walters trained them hard and got rid of the bad apples. Brisbane only signed 4 players of note and got rid of 4 players of note. They lacked leadership. They lacked direction on field and at training. So they signed Reynolds, Capewell and Taupau for the leadership. Why didn't we look at Taupau? They needed a box office player so got Walsh. The only players they removed were Lodge, TPJ, Gamble and Oloapu. Some others left for better opportunities and they trusted their pathways. As they have done with Dene Mariner to replace Farnworth.

Another good example is the Dolphins formation. They had zero players. Their Queensland Cup made the Grand Final in 2022 on the back of Warriors players and Fuller. The rest aren't remotely close to backup NRL let alone NRL. So they had nothing to work from. How to build a squad in less than 12 months without hitting panic buttons. How they held their nerve and resolve during the rejections is remarkable. They had to get to 24 players by November 1st or they weren't in the NRL. They snuck to 24 just days before it. Hammer became player 25. Niu became player 26. They promtoed 3 development and trial players to get to 29 before Round 1. The trial player was for one year and development the following year. They added a 30th later on and the deal was back to development for 2024 and NRL in 2025. This is all on the NRL website. It's a good example to follow in slowly building a team. They signed experienced leaders Bromwich brothers and Nicholls. We didn't even look at them. We would kill for one of them. By not panicing on the signings and finding ways to get players on 1 year deals they were able to land 2 gems from Broncos and one of our best two performers for next year. One of their one year wonders is now with us.

Broncos haven't done massive clean outs. Just identified they needed experience, leadership and one box office player. Without Reynolds, Capewell and Taupau the Broncos are a club of talent and no direciton. Walters and Reynolds need each other. Taupau might not be in the 17 he's the forwards leader.

Dolphins put the leadership and experience in place. This allowed them to fill the rest of the Top 30 with rookie players like Katoa and others. They had 7 players who hadn't played NRL in their official Top 30 all made their debuts this year. Again sourced from the NRL website. They made sure they got another one year deals to have a go at getting new players. They left the door open for 6 recruits. They got 4 one of them a rookie who was injured this year.

If you have access to STAN watch the Dawn of the Dolphins series. A good insight into the running of a club struggling to get started at the next level and dealing with rejections. Provides a good understanding of Rugby League. Our very own James Graham is even featured.

Broncos and Dolphins are big fishes in Brisbane. They are also lucky they aren't clubs that have political ramifications. This is our downfall. Politics and Elections. Saints and Tigers have the merger issues. We have the faction issues. A battle for constant power. A strong coach can cut through Saints and Tigers as Bennett and Sheens have done, as Flanagan is now doing and as Marshall looks to be doing. Marshall's biggest threat will be Farah. Canterbury as I've pointed need more than a strong coach. They need strong leadership in our two clubs.

What we are seeing with our squad is aside from Criction are players genuinely not wanted by their clubs for next year. We are falling into the trap of thinking we can turn them into something else. We should have allowed ourselves the chance to retain much of our squad and just add in the key areas.

Nasheed you are right we should have been in the ball park for Reynolds, Townsend, Marshall and I've added the Bromwich brothers, Nicholls and Taupua.

We've made mistake after mistake. We trying to believe in the theory two wrongs make a right.

I think this is too concise. Fkn clown ****. No one reading this shit

 

[Taylforth]

I think this is too concise. Fkn clown ****. No one reading this shit
View attachment 96079

While I agree that was an overly long essay, that is hard to read in one sitting, and does tend to ramble, I don’t mind such analyses from time to time. Too much now, is just “news grab, short message”. A lot of thought goes in to writing this & well done overall. While I don’t agree with everything, it’s what makes TK such a rich place to talk all things Bulldogs.

 

[Nate DAWG]

While I agree that was an overly long essay, that is hard to read in one sitting, and does tend to ramble, I don’t mind such analyses from time to time. Too much now, is just “news grab, short message”. A lot of thought goes in to writing this & well done overall. While I don’t agree with everything, it’s what makes TK such a rich place to talk all things Bulldogs.

Bro it’s not real. He is using ChatGPT to troll

 

[jake6]

Bro it’s not real. He is using ChatGPT to troll

You’d have to be a born loser to go to this much effort to troll. I’ve blocked them all. I think I might have to start blocking the people replying to them

 

[Nate DAWG]

You’d have to be a born loser to go to this much effort to troll. I’ve blocked them all. I think I might have to start blocking the people replying to them

I’m just trying to outlast them bro, after the election and after we’ve won a few games only Marley and Utility half will remain and the rest will disappear and come back with different names

 

[Taylforth]

Bro it’s not real. He is using ChatGPT to troll

Oh ok. Hadn’t thought about that.
Then why don’t the mods just throw them off TK?

 

[Nate DAWG]

Oh ok. Hadn’t thought about that.
Then why don’t the mods just throw them off TK?

Not sure bro

 

[SexBomb]

This is a good post @Nasheed

It's a long reply. It's not a simplistic story. I've cut it down.

To blame everything on one of Hasler, Dib or Castle is a very simplistic view of the world. It's a combination of many things. Hasler and Dib did so much good for the club. They also got blinded by power and control. Dib done some things brilliantly someone outlined the third party supporters he brought into the club. He also had some glaring flaws.

Hasler's loyalty was to winning the next NRL game as that's the loyalty of every coach in the game. Hasler structured his roster accordingly. The problem was the club had the chance in early 2017 to advise Hasler it was his final year and allow him to see out the season. The mistake was retaining him for 2 years. The bigger mistake was sacking him before the new deal started. It was a panic decision. Releasing James Graham compounded that and sealed Dib's fate an an election.

If all the mistakes were made during 2017 the election outcome proved to be it wasn't a good one. We lost 6 directors in one hit. We just got a new CEO, a new Captain and a new GM of Football. So many mistakes made before the election and if they weren't made Dib wins the election. He panicked. He was blindsided by power. He was a good leader all the same. Just lost sight with power and election outcomes. I'm sure he's better now in whatever career path he has taken with time of reflection. But to blame Hasler or blame the Anderson's is simplistic. Dib did panic in 2017 to blame him is also a mistake. Power and potentially losing power can make people short sighted and reactive. It happens. He's human. We're human. Why can't politicians see what we're seeing? Why can't they see the end when we end it for them? Power short sights all kinds of people.

Our junior league was and still is strong. Our pathways teams produced players. Hasler did blood a lot of new talent that came through the systems. Our juniors aren't an issue. Our pathways aren't a problem. Never been.

Dib sacking Hasler and appointing Pay wasn't the right decision. The Anderson's sacking Pay for Barrett was even more farcical. Pay did dig his own grave on two fronts. He accepted a 12 month extension in 2019. Smart play by the Anderson's. Pay should have haggled for a 2 year deal or leave the building. He was developing some runs on the board in 2019. The other one was I said above we weren't ready for 2020.

We were still enjoying success at lower levels making grand finals in Matts and Ball, winning a NSW Cup & National Title and being undefeated in Matts winning by big margins before Covid ended the season.

The Anderson era was a horror show at NRL level. It showed promise during the second half of 2019. Something went wrong with Covid. We just weren't ready for the 2020 season. This all falls on Pay. No one else.

Pay's sacking came around the time there was a threat of an EGM. This still didn't save 3 directors. Why 3 and not 7 and why those 3 who knows, who cares, it happened. Again the threat of an election sees panic emerge.

Barrett was an abject failure as coach. His only strength if it was one is that he could attract players. Whether they were the right players is one Nasheed has argued about. He attracted them. He just wasn't a good head coach.

Barrett attracted Cotric (current international), Flanagan (scored nearly 200 points in 2020), Allan (current origin), Hetherington, Burton and Addo-Carr all to the club prior to Gould. After Gould he was involved in TPJ (this started before Gould, finished with Gould involved), Kikau and Mahoney. Barrett was with Khoury and Gould at the Chinese dinner.

Nasheed: A little technical note. Barrett actually saw this with Burton and Flanagan. The issue was he believed the answer was Burton and Averillo. Comedy capers. Averillo was thrown to the wolves.

Khoury became Chairman. A genuinely nice person. A passionate Bulldogs fan. He didn't want to lose being Chairman so soon. He got whiff of elections looming and 4 did nominate only to later withdraw. He head hunted Gould. He got him. Gould got 5 year deal with total control of everything and absolutely everything. This ensured no 2022 elections. Gould held the cards and got what he wanted. It can also lead to issues we are now seeing.

Gould was a terrific coach. He was a 1990's coach. He was finished by 1999. He's walked into two great NSW origin eras and when Queensland weren't as strong after Lewis in 1992 and before the 8 in a row dynasty in the early 2000's. He had the Canberra connection in the 1990's. He had Joey and Freddy in the 2000's. Gould achieved some very good things at Penrith. He was working with the best junior league in the game so all he needed to do was generate funds for them to have a training facility. He did recruit some good players. He also let some good footballers go when still contracted notbaly Lewis, Jennings and Moylan. All locals. Penrith began to see the NRL was passing him by. The sacking of Griffin was the end of Gould. Penrith could see he needed his wings clipped, moved sideways or needed to go. In the end he had to be moved on. We didn't see this. We just saw a team that made the 2020 grand final and were entrenched top 2 during 2021. We weren't seeing this was Ivan Cleary's era, Ivan Cleary's culture, Ivan Cleary's system and that he dismantled the 5 year plan.

Gould has such a forceful presence with juniors and pathways. He talks they listen. He does have an awe about him. The NRL is a different beast and it's slowly passing him by. Penrith saw this towards the end of 2018 that's 5yrs ago. It's passed Sheens by. It passed Griffin by last year. I don't think Bennett and Stuart have long to go I see signs in them the NRL is passing them by. This year will see whether Hasler has it or it's passed him. All bar Griffin been great coaches and have great records in the game. The only saviour for Bennett is that he's never drank, smoke, eats clean and has exercised every day. This has kept him going. He trusts his training staff. A lot of clubs have very sharp and very savvy operators. They're all trying to be one step ahead. Gould is doing everything at Canterbury and he's doing multiple jobs at Channel 9. He's also a very polarising figure.

Was Barrett's future sealed when Gould ran that training session and we won the game? I sensed Barrett basked too much in the glory of the win rather than knuckle the team down th following day. Gould didn't need to make the 10 years after me comment. One of the best decisions Gould made was sacking Barrett. I don't care how it was done it was done. Should have been done on the Friday night after the game not the Sunday afternoon when he's at a pub in regional NSW. Gould also made a brilliant decision making Potter the coach. Finally an experienced Canterbury man with a coaching background at 3 different competitions. Potter understood Canterbury. Potter understood Canterbury success. Potter knew what Canterbury was like being around when Moore, Nelson and Ryan were in their pomp. He coached at Wests Tigers so saw how politics can bring a person down. He coached in England. He coached NSW Cup. Coaching NSW Cup you're dealing with part time players, young kids on the rise and players who have been dropped from NRL. So he experienced all emtions. You don't get this learning as an assistant coach on the run.

Gould made the right call making Potter coach. He made the right call when he said it needs an experienced coach. Potter made references in press conferences he wanted to remain as coach. He should have been given 2 years. This would have smoothed a lot of waters. Potter was developing a good style of football. He settled from within the 1-6-7-9-14 roles with Averillo, Burton, Flanagan, Marshall King and Docker Clay. Obviously JMK was leaving out of Potter's control at least he was planning something. He brought stability into the spine. Not the best players. They were building.

A sidenote only two coaches have liked a running hooker being Ryan with Bugden and Potter with JMK. Ryan preferred Bugden. The selectors always wanted Johnstone. Yes we had selectors in that era. We do now but it's a sole selector and not the coach. We've only had two decent running hookers over the last 40 years with Bugden and JMK. The other solid to good ones been workers or tradesmen type players Johnstone, Thomas, Peats, Hetherington, Polla-Mounter (2001), Hughes, Perry, Ennis and Mahoney. We won't even talk about the hooker between Ennis and JMK that was a fatal mistake by all concerned. Ciraldo and Gould seem to want the organising and 40-50 tackle hooker. Anderson had a running hooker in 1993 and he didn't like him running. Serdaris said when Lamb wanted the ball he had to get the ball Anderson said so.

Back to Potter. But a problem might have been is that Potter would have wanted authority over team selection, retention and recruitment. Gould was given control and authority over everything football. A better world would have been Gould be part of a retention committee with Potter in charge, Gould in charge of pathways where he has a great presence and Potter in charge of NRL. The board handed over control they couldn't make the decision.

We all want Canterbury to be successful.

A fall down is the majority of Canterbury fans don't follow Rugby League as a whole. Nasheed I can see you're an exception. So they only see one small part of the game being the Bulldogs and don't see things from outside. Only a small handful of us follow Rugby League at other levels be it Super League, Queensland, country or local areas. Only a handful follow closely analyse what other clubs do more or less to see what they do right and wrong. They only see the headline bits. They're driven by the narrative from within. I still follow the fortunes of players who left Canterbury to see how they're going. Since it's been a lot lately I see what other clubs are doing.

Canterbury's structure was once it's great strengths with the NRL club and the Leagues Club. It's great when it has powerful leaders at the very top and the football team is winning games. It can also expose its holes and flaws when the leadership isn't as strong and the football team isn't winning. It has opened the door for lobby groups to challenge for power within the boards of both our clubs. Canterbury has since been trapped in the cycle of politics and election outcomes. It's not a healthy situation and has led to some very reactive and panic decisions.

Some of the signings we have made for next year, passing the blame onto the players and obsolving the coaching staff & management from the blame is a way to avoid elections. Both Khoury and Gould have a lot riding on the elections. Khoury wants to retain chairmanship. The elected board even if unopposed or reelected vote on chairman after the election. Khoury needs a strong personal result. Khoury gets that Gould gets a 5yr extension without a review of performance.

I haven't seen the Ben Hunt threads on this page and I'm sure there would have been a dozen threads at least and 1000's of comments. I have no doubt some would have raised caution and they would have been shot down. I told another Canterbury fan from day one Hunt won't be coming and it will end in badly. Canterbury fans under estimated Shane Flanagan. There was a bit of messaging from Gould that didn't suit with what Hunt wanted to achieve. Gould trying to keep Canterbury fans at bay and angle for his 5 year extension kept saying the club is in a massive rebuild. Hunt the next day said he's not interested in a rebuild. Flanagan said no. The angle from Hunt became homesickness.

I've been shot down in here about Connor Tracey. I've outlined the NRL Top 30 roster. I've outlined Cronulla will want a logical swap. I've outlined the type of areas Cronulla would be keen on. I've outlined two players other clubs might want Fox and Kiraz they aren't types Cronulla want. I've outlined because of the negative coverage from within and the desperation to release them RFM and another player they won't be part of the trades unless we pay full freight. I've outlined other clubs have very smart operators. I got shot down. We need to critically look at things rather than jump on the bandwagons.

We are chasing every player in the game. We are completely full in the Top 30. We aren't in a poisition to write off $800k or we would. We've had to write off the Jackson retirement.

I got shot down when I said the Roosters are smart only having 26 on their roster right now. You need to have 29 by Round 1. They can sit back and not pay players from the salary cap until Round 1. If they don't sign anyone they will promote a player from within for the season. This is a work around the cap. It's simplistic to say the Roosters have brown paper bags. Oh they do. They have third party sponsorship connections. They know how to work the salary cap. Not having 30 on the books right now is smart planning.

We have exhausted our Top 30. We are trying to release and pay freight for players. We are trying to make too many changes. I'm warning these things don't work.

I can't buy into rebuild when a player like Averillo who has come through the system and played 78 games has been freely allowed to go. Those who study the Top 30 cycle, players in, players out and the balance of the Top 30 knew Averillo was gone long before a rival club snapped him up.

DCE and Foran in 2011 had a very strong and experienced coach. They had Lyon as the captain. They had Stewart as fullback. They had Stewart at lock. They had people around them. Watmough in the second row. That Manly side was another level.

Now onto two clubs. I know one member has compared us to Brisbane in praising them and criticising us. I think it was @Geoff Chambers who done this. I think it's a good anology in many regards. Brisbane had an experienced coach. He has always been a law to himself. Bennett got what he wanted first time at Brisbane, at Saints, Rabbits and now Dolphins. They got rid of Bennett in a power play. They hire Seibold. Brisbane is a massive beast. It needs someone who understands Brisbane. Seibold didn't have the runs or the authority. He gets sacked. They finally give Walters a run. Walters seemed like the natural successor. Broncos legend. Won 5 premierships 1 as captain. He was twice on Bennett's staff. He did it all the hard way. He was sacked when Bennett felt he was too comfortable. He coached Super League. He coached Queensland Cup. He coached State of Origin. He was reunited with Bennett at 2 further clubs including Broncos again I think the other Newcastle. The simplistic thing is to say Walters trained them hard and got rid of the bad apples. Brisbane only signed 4 players of note and got rid of 4 players of note. They lacked leadership. They lacked direction on field and at training. So they signed Reynolds, Capewell and Taupau for the leadership. Why didn't we look at Taupau? They needed a box office player so got Walsh. The only players they removed were Lodge, TPJ, Gamble and Oloapu. Some others left for better opportunities and they trusted their pathways. As they have done with Dene Mariner to replace Farnworth.

Another good example is the Dolphins formation. They had zero players. Their Queensland Cup made the Grand Final in 2022 on the back of Warriors players and Fuller. The rest aren't remotely close to backup NRL let alone NRL. So they had nothing to work from. How to build a squad in less than 12 months without hitting panic buttons. How they held their nerve and resolve during the rejections is remarkable. They had to get to 24 players by November 1st or they weren't in the NRL. They snuck to 24 just days before it. Hammer became player 25. Niu became player 26. They promtoed 3 development and trial players to get to 29 before Round 1. The trial player was for one year and development the following year. They added a 30th later on and the deal was back to development for 2024 and NRL in 2025. This is all on the NRL website. It's a good example to follow in slowly building a team. They signed experienced leaders Bromwich brothers and Nicholls. We didn't even look at them. We would kill for one of them. By not panicing on the signings and finding ways to get players on 1 year deals they were able to land 2 gems from Broncos and one of our best two performers for next year. One of their one year wonders is now with us.

Broncos haven't done massive clean outs. Just identified they needed experience, leadership and one box office player. Without Reynolds, Capewell and Taupau the Broncos are a club of talent and no direciton. Walters and Reynolds need each other. Taupau might not be in the 17 he's the forwards leader.

Dolphins put the leadership and experience in place. This allowed them to fill the rest of the Top 30 with rookie players like Katoa and others. They had 7 players who hadn't played NRL in their official Top 30 all made their debuts this year. Again sourced from the NRL website. They made sure they got another one year deals to have a go at getting new players. They left the door open for 6 recruits. They got 4 one of them a rookie who was injured this year.

If you have access to STAN watch the Dawn of the Dolphins series. A good insight into the running of a club struggling to get started at the next level and dealing with rejections. Provides a good understanding of Rugby League. Our very own James Graham is even featured.

Broncos and Dolphins are big fishes in Brisbane. They are also lucky they aren't clubs that have political ramifications. This is our downfall. Politics and Elections. Saints and Tigers have the merger issues. We have the faction issues. A battle for constant power. A strong coach can cut through Saints and Tigers as Bennett and Sheens have done, as Flanagan is now doing and as Marshall looks to be doing. Marshall's biggest threat will be Farah. Canterbury as I've pointed need more than a strong coach. They need strong leadership in our two clubs.

What we are seeing with our squad is aside from Criction are players genuinely not wanted by their clubs for next year. We are falling into the trap of thinking we can turn them into something else. We should have allowed ourselves the chance to retain much of our squad and just add in the key areas.

Nasheed you are right we should have been in the ball park for Reynolds, Townsend, Marshall and I've added the Bromwich brothers, Nicholls and Taupua.

We've made mistake after mistake. We trying to believe in the theory two wrongs make a right.

Word count!

 

[SexBomb]

Not sure bro

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