OFFICIAL 2023 Roster & Rumour Tracker

DIRECT YOUR COMPLAINTS AND CORRECTIONS TO @McHunt

RUMOURS (STATUS)

Daejarn Asi: rumoured train & trial. (source: The League Scene) (TO EELS)

Steve Kearney (coach): offered assistant coach. (source: Badel) (APPEARS TO HAVE SAID NO)

Herbie Farnworth (2024): agreed to extend and upgrade until at least end 2025 (source: Badel ) (FRESH)

Tesi Niu: permitted to talk to other clubs (source: Rothfield, Dobbo) (TO DOLPHINS)

Karl Oloapu: wants to join Dolphins for more money. (source: Mole) (EARLY RELEASE TO BULLDOGS)

Deine Mariner: wants to join Dolphins for more money. (source: Badel) (REFUSED)

Keenan Palasia: release to join Titans immediately (source: Badel interview) (REFUSED, TO TITANS 2024)

PLAYER ROSTER FOR 2023 AND BEYOND

PLAYER		2023	2024	2025
Adam Reynolds	Half	2023	2024
Billy Walters	Hooker, half	2023	2024
Blake Mozer	Hooker	2023	2024	2025
Brendan Piakura	Second row	2023	2024
Corey Jensen	Prop	2023
Corey Oates	Wing	2023
Cory Paix	Hooker, half	2023	2024	2025
Deine Mariner	Centre, wing	2023	2024
Delouise Hoeter	Centre, wing	2023	2024
Ethan Quai-Ward	Centre, wing	2023
Ezra Mam	Half	2023	2024
Herbie Farnworth	Centre, wing, fullback	2023
Jesse Arthars	Centre, wing	2023
Jock Madden	Half	2023	2024
Jordan Riki	Second row	2023	2024
Jordan Pereira	Wing	2023
Keenan Palasia	Second row	2023	Titans
Kobe Hetherington	Lock	2023	2024	2025
Kotoni Staggs	Centre	2023	2024	2025
Kurt Capewell	Second row	2023	2024
Logan Bayliss	Prop	2023
Marty Taupau	Prop	2023
Patrick Carrigan	Prop, lock	2023	2024
Payne Haas	Prop	2023	2024
Reece Walsh	Fullback	2023	2024	2025
Selwyn Cobbo	Wing, centre, fullback	2023	2024	2025
TC Robati (stood down)	Second row	2023	2024
Thomas Flegler	Prop	2023
Xavier Willison	Second row	2023	2024	2025

TRAIN & TRIAL

Max Plath: utility

Tristan Sailor: utility

Jayden Morgan: prop

Liam Horne: hooker, lock

Will Samuel: prop

Shalom O'Ofou: back row

John Radel: prop

Jack Ahearn: fullback

Tyler Coburn: lock

Jack Campagnolo: half

DEVELOPMENT

Ben Te Kura: prop, second row

Josh Rogers: half

Tomasi Seru: fullback

Tyson Smoothy: hooker

OFF CONTRACT 2024

Corey Jensen

Corey Oates

Ethan Quai-Ward

Herbie Farnworth

Jesse Arthars

Jordan Pereira

Logan Bayliss

Marty Taupau

Thomas Flegler

Tyson Smoothy

STOCKS

Front Row
Carrigan, Flegler, Haas, Willison, Jensen, Bayliss, Palasia, Taupau

Second Row
Piakura, Riki, Capewell, Robati, Palasia

Lock
Carrigan, Hetherington, Flegler, Robati

Hooker
Paix, Smoothy, Walters, Hetherington, Mozer

Half
Reynolds, Mam, Walters, Paix, Madden

Fullback
Farnworth, Cobbo, Walsh

Centre
Farnworth, Staggs, Hoeter, Mariner, Arthars, Cobbo, Capewell

Wing
Cobbo, Oates, Hoeter, Farnworth, Pereira, Quai-Ward


ETHNO MAP

QLD (16)
Billy Walters, Blake Mozer, Brendan Piakura, Corey Jensen, Corey Oates, Cory Paix, Ezra Mam, Keenan Palasia, Kobe Hetherington, Kurt Capewell, Logan Bayliss, Patrick Carrigan, Reece Walsh, Selwyn Cobbo, Thomas Flegler, Tyson Smoothy

NZ (8)
Deine Mariner, Brendan Piakura, Jesse Arthars, Jordan Riki, Jordan Pereira, TC Robati, Marty Taupau, Xavier Willison

NSW (3)
Adam Reynolds, Jock Madden, Kotoni Staggs, Payne Haas

Indigenous (5)
Ezra Mam, Jordan Riki, Kotoni Staggs, Reece Walsh, Selwyn Cobbo

Tonga (3)
Delouise Hoeter, Ethan Quai-Ward, Kotoni Staggs

Samoa (4)
Keenan Palasia, Jordan Pereira, Payne Haas, Marty Taupau

Cook Islands (2)
Brendan Piakura, Xavier Willison

England (1)
Herbie Farnworth

 

[Bull Shark]

I wonder if we offered Dave the right sort of money whether or not he'd consider coming back, he's obviously mates with a lot of the guys in the team. When I say right money, I mean right money for both parties. I don't think his heart has ever been in it at the Titans

imagine if he signs with the Raiders...in Canberra

 

[Bull Shark]

He's worth 700k.

900k in Canberra or 700k in Brisbane, I'd take Brisbane everytime. From a club perspective I'd give him 3 years and back the coaching staff to get him to his best.

With Tesi gone we've freed up some money, Robati is an unknown but potentially more money free there although I doubt he was on more than 200-250.

I could be wrong and someone smarter than me may be able to clarify it, but wouldn't every NRL club have a shit-tonne of salary cap space right now, given the whopping increase for next season and beyond?

I get that a chunk of that will be swallowed up by your bottom tier players getting a minimum wage increase but surely there is still a million or two that every club will have floating in the breeze right now ?

 

[BroncosFever]

I could be wrong and someone smarter than me may be able to clarify it, but wouldn't every NRL club have a shit-tonne of salary cap space right now, given the whopping increase for next season and beyond?

I get that a chunk of that will be swallowed up by your bottom tier players getting a minimum wage increase but surely there is still a million or two that every club will have floating in the breeze right now ?

I think player agents were smart and were able to foresee the increase and included something in their contract about that, if not.. then I expect to see a few funny games taking place and players trying to get out of contracts to renegotiate with more money available

 

[mitch222]

I could be wrong and someone smarter than me may be able to clarify it, but wouldn't every NRL club have a shit-tonne of salary cap space right now, given the whopping increase for next season and beyond?

I get that a chunk of that will be swallowed up by your bottom tier players getting a minimum wage increase but surely there is still a million or two that every club will have floating in the breeze right now ?

Most of the clubs would have had star players at the club with salary cap increases worked into their contracts. Whilst the cap went up, i highly doubt all the clubs didn't have to fork out extra player payments immediately. Added to this is all their development players got massive pay bumps and the minimum wage tier players did as well.

 

[Sproj]

I think player agents were smart and were able to foresee the increase and included something in their contract about that, if not.. then I expect to see a few funny games taking place and players trying to get out of contracts to renegotiate with more money available

Except Payne's probably, he doesn't seem overly bright.

 

[Swordfish]

imagine if he signs with the Raiders...in Canberra

He signs for the money & to play “comfortable” footy mostly. He would’ve an occasional good game per season & gets rapped by folks down there. But that will be all. His contract years(3?) will fly by & then he would look to sign for another side that’s willing to throw cash at him to play “comfortable” footy again.
I for one, don’t want to see him ever in Broncos colors.

 

[BroncsFan]

imagine if he signs with the Raiders...in Canberra

Probably why Fifita was on edge in the GC nightclubs

 

[Kimlo]

I could be wrong and someone smarter than me may be able to clarify it, but wouldn't every NRL club have a shit-tonne of salary cap space right now, given the whopping increase for next season and beyond?

I get that a chunk of that will be swallowed up by your bottom tier players getting a minimum wage increase but surely there is still a million or two that every club will have floating in the breeze right now ?

The answer is, it depends. A lot of the big money players have ratcheting contracts that are a % of cap so they just get an automatic increase. Given the lack of transparency it's hard to know how common it is, so clubs with lots of those won't have much space but clubs that just set flat figured will have some wiggle room.

DCE is one of those % contract guys, and you'd think anyone who recently signed in the last 18 months would have had a manager smart enough to set it up that way.

 

[BroncosFever]

I wonder how guys like Taumololo will get on, he signed a 10 year deal a few years ago now, not sure how much would have been known at the time in regards to cap increases

 

[1910]

Well you could potentially speak with the Titans about some kind of swap deal involving Palasia and of course salary on top of that. That would benefit both parties.

It is obvious that Dave loves the Broncos, not sure what the Raiders think they can do that the Titans weren't able to do. Plus Canberra is boring and cold, not really what you would imagine Dave is looking for.

And I've been resisting all offseason but time for a team list and assuming Haas, Robati and Willison and Kobe are out (Haas probably will play but you never know):

1. Walsh
2. Oates
3. Staggs
4. Farnworth
5. Cobbo
6. Mam
7. Reynolds
8. Flegler
9. Walters
10. Jensen
11. Capewell
12. Riki
13. Carrigan

14. Paix
15. Palasia
16. Bayliss-Brow
17. Piakura

I can't get on board Bayliss or Piakura at all. Bayliss played 17 games last year for Souths and only missed two so not a disrupted season at all- he just phoned it in for the Magpies. Stats don't tell you everything but a middle forward not topping their tackle count once and only producing the most metres for a Magpie once just isn't good enough and shows me plenty.

As a comparison Neale topped Jets tackle count-nine times from 16 games. Tells me effort in a similar team.

Piakura when I close my eyes all I see is 11 tackles in a Grand FInal. He's got a lot of ground to make up for.

 

[Jedhead]

I can't get on board Bayliss or Piakura at all. Bayliss played 17 games last year for Souths and only missed two so not a disrupted season at all- he just phoned it in for the Magpies. Stats don't tell you everything but a middle forward not topping their tackle count once and only producing the most metres for a Magpie once just isn't good enough and shows me plenty.

As a comparison Neale topped Jets tackle count-nine times from 16 games. Tells me effort in a similar team.

Piakura when I close my eyes all I see is 11 tackles in a Grand FInal. He's got a lot of ground to make up for.

I tend to agree and think there is something not quite right about the amount of hype that followed Piakura's early development. To date, he has seriously underwhelmed in every game I have watched him play. I know he had a number of head knocks and covid based disruptions to his last few years and maybe there is something there.

The head knocks and having to miss out out due to the concussion rule should in itself be a flag. I do hope I'm wrong as the early mail was he was going to be something special sounded so promising. Unfortunately, all I've seen so far is laziness, inability to read the play, slow or unwillingness to get back and do the required cover defence and I've yet to see the "stinging defence" he was supposed to be renowned for.

 

[1910]

I tend to agree and think there is something not quite right about the amount of hype that followed Piakura's early development. To date, he has seriously underwhelmed in every game I have watched him play. I know he had a number of head knocks and covid based disruptions to his last few years and maybe there is something there.

The head knocks and having to miss out out due to the concussion rule should in itself be a flag. I do hope I'm wrong as the early mail was he was going to be something special sounded so promising. Unfortunately, all I've seen so far is laziness, inability to read the play, slow or unwillingness to get back and do the required cover defence and I've yet to see the "stinging defence" he was supposed to be renowned for.

I thought his last four ISC games were very promising and was looking forward to him playing finals and making up for missing out last year. Jets, Souths and Capras were all good games in attack and Townsville he was strong in defence.

Then he went and missed 11 tackles in a Grand Final- his last two games were not good at all and he didn't learn much against Penrith. I thought it was really selfish football.

His defence in the two biggest games went missing. You have a lot of work to do to turn around 11 missed tackles in a Grand Final.

I know he likes being the wide running off the half back rower but once Gamble and Roberts was out that wasn't going to happen- Ahearn can't do everything. He needed to adapt and come in and help and take some hard runs out of his comfort zone. I thought he did it more in the second half but it wasn't enough.

You can only be Menzies take two if you have forwards doing your work in the middle and a half getting you the ball. It wasn't that sort of game.

I thought in defence he was rushing up and his defence was rushed and had little thought. I said at the time he is a good tackler but he isn't a good defender. He went up past the ball twice and it led to two tries.

Dolphins targeted him and the big Warriors just pulled him apart making him make multiple efforts and make choices and he couldn't do it. He missed a lot of tackles.

I give his season a pass mark but last two games made me sad and his WC form was a continuation of that finals form.

If Norths lose that game you hear a lot more about 11 missed tackles. Winning covered it up. I think he is a good tackler but he showed against Dolphins and Penrith he isn't a good defender.

 

[Evander]

Selwyn in trouble for openly saying Walters is a shit coach.. this kids a managers worst nightmare, surely think before you speak

 

[McHunt]

Selwyn in trouble for openly saying Walters is a shit coach.. this kids a managers worst nightmare, surely think before you speak

He said his manager is his partner, and runs his instagram account. Do you know who this is?

 

[Lazza]

How do ppl know these things. Like Selwyn what he said etc. Anyhow I wouldn't give Walters a pass mark. This year will need to improve. We need proper set moves, better defence structure and rotation of players.

 

[Chewed]

Because he said it on a video podcast. Literally video evidence of it.

 

[Gaz]

Danny Levi to the Raiders.

 

[Skyblues87]

Danny Levi to the Raiders.

Good pick up for them