Jump to content

Brits in the NRL


Recommended Posts


4 hours ago, Pulga said:

 

Not NRL quite yet.

 

Wondered what had happened to him. He was announced as signing pro terms with London but then disappeared and was never mentioned again. It happens so often with the club that you end up just shrugging your shoulders.

Good luck to him, yet another one off the conveyor belt that will disappear when the club finally turns up its toes.

"Just as we had been Cathars, we were treizistes, men apart."

Jean Roque, Calendrier-revue du Racing-Club Albigeois, 1958-1959

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, nadera78 said:

Wondered what had happened to him. He was announced as signing pro terms with London but then disappeared and was never mentioned again. It happens so often with the club that you end up just shrugging your shoulders.

Good luck to him, yet another one off the conveyor belt that will disappear when the club finally turns up its toes.

He was down as No29 in their squad beginning of January so between then and now LB have lost an international representative at Academy level for a 3 year contract with Wests.  
 

I think we’ll see more of this.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, Jonty58 said:

You can see the fear in the Aussies eyes every time they play a Test match against us.

No wonder they hardly ever win.

Us.... they.... make up your mind which side your on.

To be honest the Aussies need to concentrate on trying to beat Tonga first - if they can do that then they can have a go at England.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, thebrewxi said:

I think it is the current fascination with having a ball playing 13. I'm still confused about this. Surely there have always been loads of 13s with great hands, and lots that are more about bashing it up the middle. Ball playing 13s are not a ne thing (although maybe they were out of fashion for 5, 10 years) But the oz media seems fixated with the idea that every team now needs a 13 that can act as a half back, so maybe the raiders have been spooked into putting Whitehead there?

Do you remember when they put him at 7 a few years ago for a match? He was dreadful. I'm with you; he's a class second row and always has been. Leave him there.

 

What the best Australian teams have now is a middle forward (or even two) who can distribute the ball well and allow the 6 or 7 to play one pass away from the ruck and attack with the edge forward/centre.  They are not really looking for the slight of hand forwards from the days of the great ball playing forwards.

In this role, Sutton is just as good as Whitehead as he has a decent pass in him and can find his half back. Plus he adds that grunt up the middle that Stuart won't get from Whitehead.

Even if Stuart doesn't want Sutton in the team, they would still be better if he moved Whitehead back to the edge and had Hudson Young or Horsburgh at 13.

  • Like 1

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Lowdesert said:

He was down as No29 in their squad beginning of January so between then and now LB have lost an international representative at Academy level for a 3 year contract with Wests.  
 

I think we’ll see more of this.

He impressed me whenever I saw him. What stood out was his aggressive defence and that he loved to bend his back and put his shoulder in (you don’t see many props do that)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, DoubleD said:

He impressed me whenever I saw him. What stood out was his aggressive defence and that he loved to bend his back and put his shoulder in (you don’t see many props do that)

Looks like Newcastle Knights are now seriously interested in Pearce-Paul and Pryce.  Also that they are looking for a 2 way agreement for their older players to find options to play in SL.  Has it come to this??  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 06/04/2022 at 16:52, nadera78 said:

Wondered what had happened to him. He was announced as signing pro terms with London but then disappeared and was never mentioned again. It happens so often with the club that you end up just shrugging your shoulders.

Good luck to him, yet another one off the conveyor belt that will disappear when the club finally turns up its toes.

The NRL clubs could unearth some real talent if they invested in developing the game in London

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, DavidM said:

Fingers crossed for Dom Young after going off early with a knee injury 

All seemed very innocuous.  He went over unopposed for a try (disallowed for obstruction in the building up) and then looked to be struggling to put any weight on it.

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

All seemed very innocuous.  He went over unopposed for a try (disallowed for obstruction in the building up) and then looked to be struggling to put any weight on it.

The innocuous ones tend to result in the worst injuries,let’s hope that’s not the case with Young.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

All seemed very innocuous.  He went over unopposed for a try (disallowed for obstruction in the building up) and then looked to be struggling to put any weight on it.

Apparently he was injured by a team mate celebrating the try, which was subsequently disallowed.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

Could Young make it in SL? Would he be a star or a run of the mill signing?

Could Young make it in Super League? Yes, of course, he is clearly a talented young player.  Would he? Who knows, there are plenty of variables in a young players career, not least injuries.

Despite doing pretty well on the wing for the Knights, Young is a centre and I am sure that will be his best position as he has good hands to complete some decent size which will only become more relevant in his mid 20's as he will get stronger.

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Lowdesert said:

Looks like Newcastle Knights are now seriously interested in Pearce-Paul and Pryce.  Also that they are looking for a 2 way agreement for their older players to find options to play in SL.  Has it come to this??  

Could be worse mate, they could be going to the onion. I saw that article of the Toulouse centre the other day, can`t think of his name, played junior League with Farrell and Ford ( two stars for England onion I believe) before all three were lost to the other code. Hopefully they`d have a crack at the NRL before they`d take that option now.

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, JM2010 said:

I completely agree and wish a serious effort would be made.

The NRL have a lot more money and seem to be having a good look at young British players

I like to think there is a certain `pull` factor in these situations; you lose a young player to over here and another young player will be given the opportunity in your part of the world. Young bloke who comes over here will have a fair bit of resources invested in him and he`ll either develop into a first grade player or he`ll probably go home none the worst for the experience.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, The Rocket said:

Could be worse mate, they could be going to the onion. I saw that article of the Toulouse centre the other day, can`t think of his name, played junior League with Farrell and Ford ( two stars for England onion I believe) before all three were lost to the other code. Hopefully they`d have a crack at the NRL before they`d take that option now.

 

 

1 minute ago, The Rocket said:

I like to think there is a certain `pull` factor in these situations; you lose a young player to over here and another young player will be given the opportunity in your part of the world. Young bloke who comes over here will have a fair bit of resources invested in him and he`ll either develop into a first grade player or he`ll probably go home none the worst for the experience.

I agree with this and I have said before that having a potential target of the NRL and the money/profile that comes with it will provide a pathway for our younger players that would stop them being tempted at the money available in NH Union.

This wouldn't stop player development , the opposite. You need more players at the development end of the funnel if there are more opportunities in the pro ranks.

  • Like 2

"The history of the world is the history of the triumph of the heartless over the mindless." — Sir Humphrey Appleby.

"If someone doesn't value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove that they should value it? If someone doesn't value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?" — Sam Harris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, Dunbar said:

 

I agree with this and I have said before that having a potential target of the NRL and the money/profile that comes with it will provide a pathway for our younger players that would stop them being tempted at the money available in NH Union.

This wouldn't stop player development , the opposite. You need more players at the development end of the funnel if there are more opportunities in the pro ranks.

Absolutely. The draw of the NRL is definitely a net positive for British rugby league, and should attract more young players to the game and keep them in it longer. 

A few years ago I was involved with youth American football here, and when we could demonstrate that British players were getting U.S. college scholarships it was definitely an attraction for talented teenage sportsmen who potentially had other options. We didn't even have to promise they'd make it to the NFL! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It isn’t a net positive for the game over here, as the NRL has no interest in the game outside the NRL. They won’t improve our product or our game, and will be prevented from playing internationals if at all possible. Their loss exacerbates the differences between the 2 comps in favour of the NRL, leading to declining quality and interest over here. Given the talent pool available locally, there is virtually zero benefit to the NRL. The will be unknown and unseen by 99.999% of the British public as opposed to being the sorts of players who can attract TV viewers and fans to the ground. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, The Rocket said:

Could be worse mate, they could be going to the onion. I saw that article of the Toulouse centre the other day, can`t think of his name, played junior League with Farrell and Ford ( two stars for England onion I believe) before all three were lost to the other code. Hopefully they`d have a crack at the NRL before they`d take that option now.

 

Shows several things in no particular order.  Lack of opportunity to develop, unsuitable learning course opportunity (college/Uni), unsuitable Club system, pay, sunshine.

I am guessing the London lad is continuing his learning with Keebra Park due to the link with Wests.

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Less standout but solid game for Herbie today as Staggs finally blasted into life on the other side . Couldn’t hold Manu up on the line but had a good quality battle with arguably the number 1 centre right now . One we may hopefully see again later in the year 

Edited by DavidM
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.