Where to From Here? Let's Plan for 2021...er...2025

If we don't lose this year, we will next year. All our money still tied up with Bird and Milford and no experience or heart what so ever.

Losing Fifita, on top of the terrible season we have had is definitely the darkest time I'm Broncos history.

We used to never lose a player that we tried hard to keep, but our recruitment and retention has bungled it yet again. We lost Jai Arrow previously to keep the likes of Offa and McGuire, and now losing Fifita.

The club currently bares no resemblance to the team I once loved.
 
So I've taken a look at available players... I think we need a gun fullback, left center, middle forward depth and now a second rower.

Second Row
I think of most urgency right now is a 2nd rower as we can't run Glenn + Teo/TPJ with no depth. I want TPJ in the middle, and Teo can't handle 80... Glenn can barely get on the field at the moment.
Players of interest:
- Mitch Barnett is a free agent now
- Isaiah Papali'i is also a free agent as of now and warriors have Katoa and Tohu locked into their second row
- Angus Crichton is off contract in 2021... I actually consider Crichton to be the most complete 2nd rower in the comp
- Sua off contract 2021... if the coach is moved on we could go back in??
- Elliott Whitehead is off contract 2022... Canberra have some cap troubles and Whitehead seems like the guy that is getting moved around a bit. To me he is the kind of guy we currently need at the club. He's a winner and plays 80 minutes every week in a position we now need.

Front Row / Middle forwards
We've got promising players coming through, but they need someone with experience to guide them and lead them.... I think we would need to offload Offa to make room though.
Players of interest:
- Papa is off contract 2022... little far out, but he is a queenslander
- Nathan Brown has a PO for next year... would be a great addition to our pack.. and if we can put together a package to outdo his PO we could snag him
- Eisenhuth is available now... tried and true player in the middle
- Tamou... he might overprice himself though... hard to see him leaving Penrith
- Paul Vaughan has a PO for 2022
- Definitely not Christian Welch... he got belted by our pack on Friday... the guy is a plodder

Hooker
Turps and Paix look solid options moving forward, but we need a legitimate star in this position. I've said previously that B Smith would be my target and I think he could be pried away as earlier as next year. If CS9 plays on then go for Harry... If CS9 retires then Harry comes back and likely takes over the 9, so B Smith should be available for a move. Both come off contract end of 2022, but one of them should be available as of next year regardless of what happens... Storm can't keep them both. B Smith is the more likely to move on
Other players of interest:
- Jake Friend is available next year... see if he wants to come back to queensland. Would be a short term option to get us through to Turps, Paix, B Smith/Harry (2022), etc.
- CS9 off contract... throw the cheque book at him... he won't come anyway
- Jake Simpkin is contracted to end of 2022... but it 21 & 22 may be options (NRL.com has him down with (NRL))... he was a Brisbane contracted player up to last year and is highly touted

Halves
Dearden looks locked into one spot moving forward and we should have the cash available now to keep him... If I'm the broncos I look to upgrade and extend him right now with Fifita moving on.
Players to partner him:
- Clifford is off contract end of next year I believe... Halves pairing of Dearden and Clifford would have us with the two most promising halves coming through.
- Matt Burton off contract in 2021 and looks a genuine 6... Luai is also off contract in 2021 and also looks to be a genuine 6
- Keary off contract end of 2021... .. 2-3yr $1m contract to bring him back to qld and partner him with Dearden?
- Milford on a heavily reduced contract.... heavily reduced

Fullback
We have a few prospects coming through, but are they actually good?? Niu looks like he needs some bulking up and has been flagged by several on here that he looks more like a center... might also need some maturing between the ears...
- Reece Walsh might be ready end of next year?? Is he actually invested in the broncos or just another over hyped junior that doesn't give a shit about the club
Other players of interest:
- Drinkwater off contract 2021... will be fighting for a job when Morgan and Val come back
- Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow has a development contract through to 2022, but has no real chance of getting that fullback spot with Val there. Development contracts aren't worth much if a starting position and top 30 contract is on offer
- RTS isn't off contract until 2022... might be a bit far out, but he seems the kind of guy we should look at

Outside backs
Seems to be the one position where we have our future somewhat sorted with Herbie (must have re-signing), Staggs (look to extend him now before the wolves come) and Coates (extend same as Staggs)... we also have Arthars (who looks decent depth across the back 5) and Isaako (need to figure out where to play him and keep him there, but he may want to move on if he's Hoffman desperate for a fullback).
- Herbie looks purpose built for the wing (or maybe fullback??) and Staggs is set for right center... that leaves Coates and where to play him. I think the club see Staggs and Coates as our center pairing moving forward, but which one plays left center?
I like Coates on the right wing at the moment to learn his trade and get used to NRL...
Other players of interest:
- Oppa is off contract and could be our new Jack Reed. His opportunities in Nth Qld may be limited, but left center is wide open here.
- Will Hopoate is available end of 2021... more than capable at fullback or left center. He'll be almost 30 when he comes off contract though and will probably want a premium to move


Other players of interest. Titans... no one... we should not look to take any of their trash unless it's someone of note like Moe Fotuaika... they're in fire sale mode now with Fifita coming in on huge money and other huge money trash contracts like Shannon Boyd, Cartwright, A$H Taylor, Peach & Wallace.

Let the Sydney vultures come in and take their trash... and make them squirm for every cent of cap relief.
 
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1.Niu
2.Farnworth
3.Staggs
4.Bird/Arthurs
5.Coates
6.Milford
7.Dearden
8.Lodge
9.Paix
10.Haas
11.TPJ
12.Glenn
13.Carrigan
14.Turpin
15.Offa
16.Teo
17.Oates
That's what I believe our round 1 side will be not bad but not great. It's not a premiership side and we need to go to the market asap.
 
I’d sign Cameron Smith to get this club back to where it needs to be. His off contract and melb have Grant! Cameron would help with the development of this young squad.
 
In a key player, the club not be trying to cost cut or pay under what they are worth. This club needs to realise that sadly, the Broncos are no longer a destination club. Players do not want to go to Brisbane to win premierships because they are as far away from one as anyone right now.

The Broncos need to throw $2 million dollars at Keary and Grant, more if needed. Do not go for second best or more kids (B.Smith / Sam Walker), go for the BEST and do not be afraid of paying more than they are worth to get them to the club. Do not go all in on a risky gun kid (ala Milford / Taylor / Hynes (I'm all for signing him but not on huge money)), go all in on established guns - Keary and Grant. If Keary is not going to happen, aim for RTS.

Looking at the list from @BroncsFan, bring in Opacic as soon as possible. Drinkwater is not a bad option if we land Keary as a fullback option until Walsh is ready (not counting Niu, seems he wants to go to the Titans) and then RTS is no longer a fallback option.

Do not re-sign Milford unless he wants to stay for $200k, he owes the club money, absolute waste of talent.

For the props, I honestly think I would rank them in this order based on who is available - 1. McLean, 2. Tamou. For second-row - Barnett is a good call but I would look at bringing in Guerra, he is really needed in the short-term. I'd love to bring back Sua and I reckon he would come back but not if any of the idiots responsible for him leaving in the first place and screwing up the Bennett transition are still there and I can't blame him, he got totally shafted.
 
Unbreakable said:
McCullough just tore his hamstring off the bone, he'll be back to rehab at the Broncos next season like Kahu.
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To be honest, I'm not too upset. Its only for one year, which is still going to be a rebuilding year while also waiting for Milford, Bird and a couple of others to finally be off the books. These guys need someone with plenty of experience around training.
 
I'm not against keeping Macca, just not at 9. I think he has a lot to offer as a lock or bench backrower, maybe even a stop-gap 6.
 
Unbreakable said:
McCullough just tore his hamstring off the bone, he'll be back to rehab at the Broncos next season like Kahu.
Click to expand...
1595739211721


If it is the case, he should be fit at least. 30+ weeks between now and then, as much as I've always wanted Macca gone, if we're paying him, he'd be an excellent reserve 9 to have. I'd even be happy to keep to extend him for another 2 years at minimum wage if he was happy to stick around. Professional guy, great attitude, would be an excellent backup 9 to have.

This is also Macca we're talking about. If there's one guy who doesn't leave a stone unturned in rehab, it's him. He won't be a liability at the club.
 
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Why is everyone wanting Opacic back he's a Qcup player not NRL standard. He would be just like having another Boyd standing on the right. He isn't fast and doesn't break many tackles so he is the opposite to what we need in the centre's.
 
Doggies now 12 pts up on the Knights. Still plenty of time left but they could be one game off overtaking us.
 
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To be honest I think we've missed Macca's defensive work in the middle.
 
Kyall said:
Why is everyone wanting Opacic back he's a Qcup player not NRL standard. He would be just like having another Boyd standing on the right. He isn't fast and doesn't break many tackles so he is the opposite to what we need in the centre's.
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I have no idea how he's going, but we don't need a star, we need someone with a bit of experience, good defence, who can just pass the ball and not be too expensive. I think we've learned now that we just can't afford to have star players in every position.
 
Waynesaurus said:
To be honest I think we've missed Macca's defensive work in the middle.
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I'd seriously consider putting him at 13 next year, as good as Carrigan has been, the side needs a tackling bag in the middle to glue it all together.
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Kyall said:
Why is everyone wanting Opacic back he's a Qcup player not NRL standard. He would be just like having another Boyd standing on the right. He isn't fast and doesn't break many tackles so he is the opposite to what we need in the centre's.
Click to expand...

He is safe in defense and can pass, plus he never wanted to leave in the first place. Bringing him back is a no-brainer. As mentioned, this side doesn't need a superstar at centre, it needs someone they can depend on AND one he wants to wear the (admittedly horrible) jersey. This is a Opacic to a 'T'.
 
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Kyall said:
Why is everyone wanting Opacic back he's a Qcup player not NRL standard. He would be just like having another Boyd standing on the right. He isn't fast and doesn't break many tackles so he is the opposite to what we need in the centre's.
Click to expand...
He’s only in Q Cup because Paul got caught up in Marsters hype and then refused to drop him when he flopped.

Oppa would be a cheap, defensively reliable centre who does his job in attack. He would be a reasonable improvement on Boyd but at a third of the cost and without the attitude problem. In theory we could select and forget Oppa and better spend the money elsewhere (buying an established spine player or forward) to give the team some balance.

Look at any GF winning team and you’ll see a couple of average players that Compliment the stars and probably have no right to be a premiership winner based on their own talent.
 
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