What would you have done?

[lyn]

Once Locky retires we will have a tone of $$$ to buy some mad players or even just sign up all our players off cantract and buy some up and coming players.

 

[m1c]

Well i have another theory.... that Bruno cant man manage to save himself.

Think about it. Bruno took over in 03.... he lives on the deals Shane Edwards has put together for the next few years.

Come 05-06 the roster is completely his doing.

Looking back on the squad you'd say Locky and Webby were the only massive money earners, whilst Berrigan, Petero, Tate and (unfortunately) Carlaw would have had handy deals, the rest wouldnt have been on too much at all. He makes a few bad decisions on how he devides the 3.7 mil without taking into account the contract upgrades which are sure to happen in the next 2 years. You have to remember guys like Hunt, Thaiday, Hodges, Hannant, Eastwood, Boyd and Parker were on a pittance of what they are really worth.

.... what happens the next year? We leak players like a seive, and highly payed players at that. Same thing next year...

IMO our gains/retentions and losses just arent equalling out. I'm putting it down to some bad business decisions at the hands of Cullen. We all know him and WB havnt gotten along for a while, could that have something to do with it?

 

[spoonbled]

and if the team dont perform next year it wont be Cullen who faces the firing squad it will be poor Henjak.

 

[Alec]

I'd pay Ennis 4 million.

Seriously though, I wouldn't have signed Marsh, Clinton or Sims. Wouldn't have went for Folau either, unless he agreed to sign for 300K. And if he did sign, I'd put him on the wing, and persist with Moon in the centres. Moon can pass and he actually seems to work for his winger, unlike a lot of centres these days.

I doubt that Folau would be getting more than 300k

I dunno...those number (1.6Mil) had to come from somewhere. He might not be on that much now, but he could getting more in the next couple of years to make it 1.6Mil in total over 4 years, but that still counts as 400K a season in my eyes. Anyway, I'm not Bruno Cullen or Israel Folau. I dunno how much he is getting - I'm just basing it on what I've read.

 

[Foordy]

I'd pay Ennis 4 million.

Seriously though, I wouldn't have signed Marsh, Clinton or Sims. Wouldn't have went for Folau either, unless he agreed to sign for 300K. And if he did sign, I'd put him on the wing, and persist with Moon in the centres. Moon can pass and he actually seems to work for his winger, unlike a lot of centres these days.

I doubt that Folau would be getting more than 300k

I dunno...those number (1.6Mil) had to come from somewhere. He might not be on that much now, but he could getting more in the next couple of years to make it 1.6Mil in total over 4 years, but that still counts as 400K a season in my eyes. Anyway, I'm not Bruno Cullen or Israel Folau. I dunno how much he is getting - I'm just basing it on what I've read.

The reports that i have read have differed anywhere between 1.2mil over 4 to 1.6 mill over 4.

 

[robbie mustoe]

anyone can make up a number and claim thats what they heard hes getting - doesnt make it true.

and anyway - if a player like kemp gets 250k at the warriors (i think thats what he got?), folau is worth about 800k a season.

Yeah people don't seem to understand this. If we did sign Folau on 300k or less we got an absolute bargain. He is a fantastic footballer. Look at what Tate got at the warriors.

 

[Kimlo]

He might chuck a SBW and say hes not happy with 350k a season.

 

[robbie mustoe]

well realistically, when you look at the money nuffies like stagg, mcguire, etc and then other 'maybe' players like boyd and michaels are on, folau would have every right to be not happy with only getting a little bit more than them.

There are people on this forum that think we should have offered Ennis what we offered Folau. That says it all really. I cannot believe a rugby league fan can watch Israel Folau and say he is not worth $300k at an ABSOLUTE MINIMUM.

 

[Coxy]

Because some of us have been around the game long enough to have seen young guys rip it up for a couple of years and then completely go off the boil and fade to obscurity, or at least never reach the same heights again.

The Broncos had one. His name was Julian O'Neill.

 

[m1c]

It's not that he isnt worth it, but we already have 2 super star backs in Hunt and Hodges, we don't need to waste money on another..... if we had the QLD backline we wouldnt even make the top 8. Our forward pack would be a bunch of park footy players worth about 40k each.

 

[robbie mustoe]

folau is/will be more of a 'super star' than Hunt, no doubt about that. i reckon more so than hodges too given his debut season form.

Unfortunately I agree. I accept Coxy's statement re players going off the boil, however I really struggle to see that happening here.

IMO he is already superior to both Hunt and Hodges.

 

[Coxy]

The Broncos have, apparently, structured the contract for exactly that scenario. ie, he gets less money early on (years 1 and 2) and provided he lives up to expectations he gets an upgrade in 3 and 4 if he chooses to stay.

To say he's superior to Hunt and Hodges is a joke. He hasn't got half the skills either of them have, although his attitude off the field would seem to be exponentially better.

 

[robbie mustoe]

how can you say he hasnt got half the skills of hunt? seriously, what good skills does hunt have apart from he can catch bombs well and he can run in a straight line (not that thats a skill)? as good as he is under bombs, in a bomb defusing tussle between the 2 my money would be on folau. folau cant pass, but neither can hunt. folau cant do attacking kicks, but neither can hunt. folau has kicked a few goals, hunt hasnt. hunt cant fend, folau can. hunt cant run over the top of players, folau can.

im struggling to see anything that Hunt can do that Folau couldnt, but theres plenty that Folau can do that Hunt cant.

Cannot agree with this. If you can watch the game on Friday and tell me that K cannot pass or put in effective attacking kick then kudos, you belong in an assylum.

Having said that, whilst Folau may not have the range of skills that Hunt or Hodges possesses, if I was picking a rugby league side I would pick him ahead of both. He is just so effective at what he does well.

 

[ronnyd]

how can you say he hasnt got half the skills of hunt? seriously, what good skills does hunt have apart from he can catch bombs well and he can run in a straight line (not that thats a skill)? as good as he is under bombs, in a bomb defusing tussle between the 2 my money would be on folau. folau cant pass, but neither can hunt. folau cant do attacking kicks, but neither can hunt. folau has kicked a few goals, hunt hasnt. hunt cant fend, folau can. hunt cant run over the top of players, folau can.

im struggling to see anything that Hunt can do that Folau couldnt, but theres plenty that Folau can do that Hunt cant.

Hunt set up 2 tries with passes last match and one with an attacking kick!

 

[Coxy]

Hmmm, yes, a bit like Origin 1 when the inside players set it up for Slater to just put a pass on the chest of his winger to score, and he flung it over the sideline...

You're right, Hunt would fit in perfectly in the Queensland backline at fullback.

 

[robbie mustoe]

set up 2 tries with passes? he just threw the last pass, he didnt set up the tries. the lead up work - that was done by other people - set up the tries. the catch and pass one when he got hammered was good, but thats not him setting up the try either.

If a pinpoint accurate cut out ball is "just throwing a pass" then yes.

Put it this way, in relation to your previous comment, I am yet to see Izzy throw one of those balls.

 

[Coxy]

I'm trying to work out whether there's any use pointing out that for Izzy to score 21 tries would mean there'd be 21 try assists, be it a kick or a "straightforward flat pass". And therefore without players like Hunt, players like Izzy do SFA. Note who threw the try assist for Folau's only Origin try...

Seriously, you're just never going to get that for a team to be successful you need finishers, you need playmakers, and you need links in between. And Hunt is one of the better links running around at the moment.

 

[robbie mustoe]

im yet to see him throw one too. im yet to see hunt score 21 tries in a season though. i know which id rather have a player doing.

My comment was in relation to your statement that Hunt cannot do anything that Folau can't do.