Vlasnik
Kennel Legend
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2011
- Messages
- 10,442
- Reaction score
- 8,181
The Bulldogs have splurged $4 million on two wingers. It’s the gamble they had to take
DARCIE MCDONALD is a HOT mama and a Kennel Favorite
Josh Addo-Carr has signed a mammoth four-year deal worth $2 million with the Bulldogs. Picture. Phil HillyardSource: News Corp Australia
The curious case of Josh Addo-Carr’s future has been settled.
He’ll be a Bulldog from 2022, ruling out a switch to the Rabbitohs — where many of his close mates play — and a move most pundits were tipping.
The 25-year-old caps off an impressive signing spree by new coach Trent Barrett who has lured Nick Cotric, Kyle Flanagan, Corey Waddell and Jack Hetherington to the club for next season as well as Matt Burton and now Addo-Carr for 2022.
Addo-Carr’s wish to return to Sydney to be closer to family was granted with a four-year deal at Belmore — a deal reportedly worth more than $2 million. It’s a well-deserved albeit big pay rise from his current deal with the Storm where he has been earning $375,000 a season — although it’s understood the club will top that up for the final year of his contract.
$500,000 a season for a winger? A lot of people will say it’s wasted money but in the humble opinion of this Bulldogs fan it’s money well spent.
When we look at what they’ve achieved in their careers thus far, Addo-Carr seems like a bargain compared to Cotric’s $600,000 per year deal. In hindsight, did the Bulldogs pay overs for Cotric? Possibly. But you could argue the club needed to do whatever it took to land a world class player to get the recruitment wheels in motion.
The Bulldogs are in a rebuild phase. They don’t have a recent premiership, they haven’t finished in the top eight since 2016 and there’s no marquee player to entice new recruits. It would be naive to think Canterbury-Bankstown have the same recruitment game plan as the Storm or Roosters.
The saying goes ‘you have to spend money to make money’ and while the Bulldogs’ end goal is not to make money it’s a saying that fits their situation perfectly. They need to splash the cash — wisely — to start a positive domino effect and that’s exactly what Cotric’s signing did and what Addo-Carr’s signing should do.
Besides, gone are the days of wingers just catching the ball and diving over in the corner. The wingers of today are taking the tough carries to get their team out of trouble, doing all sorts of acrobatic moves to plant the ball down and jumping metres to catch the uncatcheable.
Aside from his speed and skill, Addo-Carr brings an element of starpower that the club has been missing for quite some time.
His signing not only shows that the Bulldogs mean business but it’ll catch the attention of other big name players.
Elite players want to line up alongside other elite players. They want to join a team full of winners and they want to bust their guts for the players they truly admire.
That’s not to say the Bulldogs don’t have winners and admirable men in their side already. Will Hopoate won the 2011 premiership with Manly and Josh Jackson received the highly respected Brad Fittler Medal in 2016 for his efforts for NSW.
But Addo-Carr is generation now. He’s booming and he’s only going to get better.
The NSW and Kangaroos representative is widely regarded the best winger in the game. It’s been a long time since the Bulldogs have had the best of a position at their club.
It’s a power play just as much as it is a strong on-field signing.
For the past three years, the Bulldogs were a stepping stone club, an opportunity for middle of the road players to get some NRL time. Now it’s becoming a club that in-demand players choose.
The Bulldogs have been patiently waiting for this. A time where the back-ended deals rubber stamped by Des Hasler, Raelene Castle and Ray Dibb had cleared up and finally there would be cash to spend.
In July fresh off being officially unveiled as the new coach, Barrett told NRL 360: “we have to be really aware and very diligent in the homework we do on the players we need to sign because we’ve got to get it right.”
Addo-Carr is right.
The Bulldogs already had a solid forward pack. Raymond Faitala-Mariner played some of his best footy last season, Renouf Atoni and Ofahiki Ogden are extremely underrated and Adam Elliott improves every game he plays. Throw in Josh Jackson’s leadership, young Matt Doorey’s potential and Luke Thompson’s beast mode — which we’ll hopefully see come alive in 2021 — and it’s very promising up front. The addition of Hetherington’s aggression and workhorse Waddell is only going to strengthen it more.
They lack strike out wide and speed. The backline was chopped and changed numerous times last season. The addition of Cotric — whether he plays wing or centre — solves one edge in 2021 and in 2022 Addo-Carr will solve the other... unless he lines up at fullback. Then no one is questioning his pay packet given what other fullbacks are earning each season.
But regardless of where he plays, Addo-Carr’s impact will be felt both on the field and off it.
After securing a halves pairing of the future in Flanagan and Burton all of a sudden the Bulldogs’ spine is almost settled. But next on their hit list should be a world class hooker, someone like Brandon Smith and what better way to pledge your case to the Kiwi No.9 by using his Storm teammate.
No doubt it’ll take more than Addo-Carr to lock Smith in but it gives the Bulldogs much more hope than if Addo-Carr turned his back on their offer to go elsewhere. If one of the hottest signatures in the NRL chose Belmore then there must be something good brewing out there, right?
That’s why the Foxx is worth every cent.
DARCIE MCDONALD is a HOT mama and a Kennel Favorite
- December 17, 2020 12:22pm
- DARCIE MCDONALD
- Source: FOX SPORTS
The curious case of Josh Addo-Carr’s future has been settled.
He’ll be a Bulldog from 2022, ruling out a switch to the Rabbitohs — where many of his close mates play — and a move most pundits were tipping.
The 25-year-old caps off an impressive signing spree by new coach Trent Barrett who has lured Nick Cotric, Kyle Flanagan, Corey Waddell and Jack Hetherington to the club for next season as well as Matt Burton and now Addo-Carr for 2022.
Addo-Carr’s wish to return to Sydney to be closer to family was granted with a four-year deal at Belmore — a deal reportedly worth more than $2 million. It’s a well-deserved albeit big pay rise from his current deal with the Storm where he has been earning $375,000 a season — although it’s understood the club will top that up for the final year of his contract.
$500,000 a season for a winger? A lot of people will say it’s wasted money but in the humble opinion of this Bulldogs fan it’s money well spent.
When we look at what they’ve achieved in their careers thus far, Addo-Carr seems like a bargain compared to Cotric’s $600,000 per year deal. In hindsight, did the Bulldogs pay overs for Cotric? Possibly. But you could argue the club needed to do whatever it took to land a world class player to get the recruitment wheels in motion.
The Bulldogs are in a rebuild phase. They don’t have a recent premiership, they haven’t finished in the top eight since 2016 and there’s no marquee player to entice new recruits. It would be naive to think Canterbury-Bankstown have the same recruitment game plan as the Storm or Roosters.
The saying goes ‘you have to spend money to make money’ and while the Bulldogs’ end goal is not to make money it’s a saying that fits their situation perfectly. They need to splash the cash — wisely — to start a positive domino effect and that’s exactly what Cotric’s signing did and what Addo-Carr’s signing should do.
Besides, gone are the days of wingers just catching the ball and diving over in the corner. The wingers of today are taking the tough carries to get their team out of trouble, doing all sorts of acrobatic moves to plant the ball down and jumping metres to catch the uncatcheable.
Aside from his speed and skill, Addo-Carr brings an element of starpower that the club has been missing for quite some time.
His signing not only shows that the Bulldogs mean business but it’ll catch the attention of other big name players.
Elite players want to line up alongside other elite players. They want to join a team full of winners and they want to bust their guts for the players they truly admire.
That’s not to say the Bulldogs don’t have winners and admirable men in their side already. Will Hopoate won the 2011 premiership with Manly and Josh Jackson received the highly respected Brad Fittler Medal in 2016 for his efforts for NSW.
But Addo-Carr is generation now. He’s booming and he’s only going to get better.
The NSW and Kangaroos representative is widely regarded the best winger in the game. It’s been a long time since the Bulldogs have had the best of a position at their club.
It’s a power play just as much as it is a strong on-field signing.
For the past three years, the Bulldogs were a stepping stone club, an opportunity for middle of the road players to get some NRL time. Now it’s becoming a club that in-demand players choose.
The Bulldogs have been patiently waiting for this. A time where the back-ended deals rubber stamped by Des Hasler, Raelene Castle and Ray Dibb had cleared up and finally there would be cash to spend.
In July fresh off being officially unveiled as the new coach, Barrett told NRL 360: “we have to be really aware and very diligent in the homework we do on the players we need to sign because we’ve got to get it right.”
Addo-Carr is right.
The Bulldogs already had a solid forward pack. Raymond Faitala-Mariner played some of his best footy last season, Renouf Atoni and Ofahiki Ogden are extremely underrated and Adam Elliott improves every game he plays. Throw in Josh Jackson’s leadership, young Matt Doorey’s potential and Luke Thompson’s beast mode — which we’ll hopefully see come alive in 2021 — and it’s very promising up front. The addition of Hetherington’s aggression and workhorse Waddell is only going to strengthen it more.
They lack strike out wide and speed. The backline was chopped and changed numerous times last season. The addition of Cotric — whether he plays wing or centre — solves one edge in 2021 and in 2022 Addo-Carr will solve the other... unless he lines up at fullback. Then no one is questioning his pay packet given what other fullbacks are earning each season.
But regardless of where he plays, Addo-Carr’s impact will be felt both on the field and off it.
After securing a halves pairing of the future in Flanagan and Burton all of a sudden the Bulldogs’ spine is almost settled. But next on their hit list should be a world class hooker, someone like Brandon Smith and what better way to pledge your case to the Kiwi No.9 by using his Storm teammate.
No doubt it’ll take more than Addo-Carr to lock Smith in but it gives the Bulldogs much more hope than if Addo-Carr turned his back on their offer to go elsewhere. If one of the hottest signatures in the NRL chose Belmore then there must be something good brewing out there, right?
That’s why the Foxx is worth every cent.
Last edited by a moderator:
.
