I had Alby as my first choice halves partner to ARey at the start of 22, before he took a liking to Hass' shoes...then Ezra burst onto the scene.
Id be willing to throw another year at Alby in case of long-term injury to Ezra or ARey.
Im happy for Billy to be our 14 for now...even if that's him starting for the first 20 for Paix...then he's on the bench as needed to cover halves/hooker inuries.
Hoeter and Arthars are probably both not needed...as they are both middle-age backup options. Perhaps another year for Hoeter until we know for sure about the new crop coming through?
I'm okay with extending Albert, but I can't see him getting many games unless we use him off the bench as a utility. But that would require us finding an 80 minute capable hooker (for another discussion).
My latest thoughts on Billy is we should cut him loose, no matter the money. Obviously, his father cannot be expected to be impartial - which is perfectly normal - and that's already been discussed to death.
The problem will Billy is he's not a good enough to be our starting hooker. He can do the job, but all he does is shovel the ball, tackle to specification, and make the odd kick that never amounts to anything. He's bog average and we'll always be bog average with him as our hooker. Not bad. Not good. Bog average.
Interchange is even worse. We need a hooker who can relieve some pressure off Reynolds, so the opposition doesn't expect him to make every play, take every kick. We need a thinking hooker who can play more than 40 minutes. Billy isn't that. Everyone is pretty much on this page now.
So why not run him off the bench? Because he brings no spark. He's no use against a tired attack. He just goes through the motions. And ideally, you want a slippery 14 who can fill in at 6/7 should one of your halves get injured. Then your 80 minute hooker will have to play 80 minutes, or someone like Hetherington or Gamble can fill in the dummy half role. Which doesn't have to be a complicated role. If you're not expected to be the NRL's leading tacklebot, hooker can be one of the simplest jobs in the team. Just shovelling the ball on to a decent half will get you through the game - in a pinch. It's not ideal, but you can wing it in an emergency.
On the other hand, the halves are crucial. If you sub a bog average half in from interchange, you will probably lose the game. Especially if you're teaming up with a rookie like Ezra. Billy can play 5/8 sure. But he is possibly the worst half we've seen at the club, maybe ever. He's not even Brodie Croft. I think even Jake was better there and that's not saying much.
These stats don't tell the whole story, but they'll do. He's played 5/8th for us 7 times this season, for 1 win. Thankfully his father stopped picking him there, but all the way through he insisted that's where he wanted to play.
Cowboys trial: loss
Titans trial: draw
Rabbitohs: win
Warriors (replaced Albert Kelly from bench): loss
Roosters: loss
Panthers: loss
Eels (replaced Adam Reynolds from bench): loss
So no, he's not good enough as a "utility" if you expect your utility to be able to cover the halves as well.
