Brits in the NRL

[Davo5]

9 minutes ago, hunsletgreenandgold said:

Lets hope Sutton and Whitehead go well this morning, otherwise it could be a pretty grim week for 'Brits in the NRL' 

Whitehead’s 150th game for the Raiders,he’s been one of the Raiders best & most consistent forwards since his arrival.

[DavidM]

7 hours ago, Davo5 said:

Whitehead’s 150th game for the Raiders,he’s been one of the Raiders best & most consistent forwards since his arrival.

He sure has . I think symptomatic of the side as a whole he’s not at his best , not helped by playing out of position in earlier games , although his workrate is still second to none . I thought Sutton was pretty good today , especially his first stint

[Scubby]

2 hours ago, DavidM said:

He sure has . I think symptomatic of the side as a whole he’s not at his best , not helped by playing out of position in earlier games , although his workrate is still second to none . I thought Sutton was pretty good today , especially his first stint

Whitehead should still be one of the first names on the England team sheet. The guy is a machine and much better now he is back on the edge.

[DavidM]

3 minutes ago, Scubby said:

Whitehead should still be one of the first names on the England team sheet. The guy is a machine and much better now he is back on the edge.

He’s a leader .

[Scubby]

Just now, DavidM said:

He’s a leader .

He should be captain if Sam doesn't make it through the season.

[Dunbar]

Looking forward to seeing Tom Burgess and Luke Thompson go head to head this morning.

[Mr Frisky]

23 hours ago, hunsletgreenandgold said:

Lets hope Sutton and Whitehead go well this morning, otherwise it could be a pretty grim week for 'Brits in the NRL' 

Hopefully Jackson Hastings will start playing well for Wests.

[EastLondonMike]

Good effort from Thompson in a losing Bulldogs team. With 10mins to go he was the hardest working Bulldog, according to the stats.

[Dunbar]

9 minutes ago, EastLondonMike said:

Good effort from Thompson in a losing Bulldogs team. With 10mins to go he was the hardest working Bulldog, according to the stats.

I thought he did pretty well again today, one of the Bulldogs best again.  He is playing more minutes this year which I think suits him.

On the other hand, Tom Burgess looked like he played around 30 minutes.

[bobbruce]

8 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

I thought he did pretty well again today, one of the Bulldogs best again.  He is playing more minutes this year which I think suits him.

On the other hand, Tom Burgess looked like he played around 30 minutes.

Absolutely that is Thomson’s best role at Saints he was the support to Walmsley. If Walmsley was struggling in a set Thompson would take a couple of carries if Walmsley wasn’t quite making his minutes up Thompson would make up the difference. In a similar why to Matty Lees now. It seemed the Bulldogs signed him to be their lead forward which I don’t think is ideal for him. I do think somethings wrong at the bulldogs when you look at the quality of players they’ve brought in the performances don’t match up. Addo Carr,Thompson,Pangai junior,Nagen,Burton and Vaughan that should be the bases of a competitive squad. 

[DavidM]

Excellent game from Luke Thompson today . His first stint especially was like Thompson for Saints , very busy , lots of runs and hard to handle . Hard working in defence . Came back and put in another strong effort , big minutes to . It’s good to see him so involved , he can have real impact and in long spells 

[Number 16]

11 hours ago, bobbruce said:

 I do think somethings wrong at the bulldogs when you look at the quality of players they’ve brought in the performances don’t match up. Addo Carr,Thompson,Pangai junior,Nagen,Burton and Vaughan that should be the bases of a competitive squad. 

Barrett's appointment was much heralded... maybe too much so. 

Thompson had a strong game today. He's going well.

[StandOffHalf]

Jackson Hastings running the show for WESTS against PARRA and claiming the spoils with a 40-yard field goal five seconds from time.

Awesome to see him reeling away in jubilation and mobbed by his fellow Tigers. Good to see a smile cracking onto the face of Michael Maguire as well. Been a tough start for them and they desperately needed that pick-me-up.

[UTK]

Harry Rushton named to make his NRL debut off the bench with Emre Guler dropped.

Ryan Sutton starts at lock again.

Oliver Gildart named in the reserves again - bit unlucky with them getting their first win and Starford To'a being one of their best.

[Dunbar]

On 14/04/2022 at 09:51, hunsletgreenandgold said:

Lets hope Sutton and Whitehead go well this morning, otherwise it could be a pretty grim week for 'Brits in the NRL' 

Good news for Rushton but a hell of an assignment to make his debut against the Panthers.

[Davo5]

7 hours ago, Dunbar said:

Good news for Rushton but a hell of an assignment to make his debut against the Panthers.

And I bet he can’t wait.

[Tony Angelino]

8 hours ago, UTK said:

Harry Rushton named to make his NRL debut off the bench with Emre Guler dropped.

Ryan Sutton starts at lock again.

Oliver Gildart named in the reserves again - bit unlucky with them getting their first win and Starford To'a being one of their best.

Great news for Harry rushton and English RL.

As for Oliver gildart his back could be up against the wall already with the form of To’a who is very highly rated within the NRL and players like Talau and kepaoa still to come back from injury.

[Exiled Wiganer]

I know I am labouring the point but how is Rushton being picked good for British RL? Beyond the 100 or so British NRL fanatics his progress or lack of it will be unknown over here. He is playing in a competition opposed to playing internationals, so even if he is very good the likelihood of anyone over here actually being aware of it is vanishingly slim.
 

That said, on an individual basis, he can be proud of himself. 

[Tony Angelino]

26 minutes ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

I know I am labouring the point but how is Rushton being picked good for British RL? Beyond the 100 or so British NRL fanatics his progress or lack of it will be unknown over here. He is playing in a competition opposed to playing internationals, so even if he is very good the likelihood of anyone over here actually being aware of it is vanishingly slim.
 

That said, on an individual basis, he can be proud of himself. 

It’s potentially  good for the England national rugby league team.

[Dunbar]

30 minutes ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

I know I am labouring the point but how is Rushton being picked good for British RL? Beyond the 100 or so British NRL fanatics his progress or lack of it will be unknown over here. He is playing in a competition opposed to playing internationals, so even if he is very good the likelihood of anyone over here actually being aware of it is vanishingly slim.
 

That said, on an individual basis, he can be proud of himself. 

I do understand the point that players like (Bailey) Hodgson, Dom Young and Harry Rushton going to the NRL doesn't do a massive amount for English Rugby League but I think there are several factors to consider here.

1.  With just 3 youngsters at the moment and no signs that others will follow in greater numbers, it is hardly a player drain at this stage (this is a reduced negative rather than a positive of course).

2.  Talented young rugby players these days are very aware of where the potential pay packets can come from and scouts/agents will be all over them.  I would much rather they go to the NRL than Union for pretty clear reasons.

3.  They may not spend their entire career over there and so we could see some very good players return to the British game.

4.  If these players help England do well internationally then it has a very positive effect on the profile of the sport and player numbers, viewers etc. so they could benefit the British game without even playing here.

[Exiled Wiganer]

3 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

I do understand the point that players like (Bailey) Hodgson, Dom Young and Harry Rushton going to the NRL doesn't do a massive amount for English Rugby League but I think there are several factors to consider here.

1.  With just 3 youngsters at the moment and no signs that others will follow in greater numbers, it is hardly a player drain at this stage (this is a reduced negative rather than a positive of course).

2.  Talented young rugby players these days are very aware of where the potential pay packets can come from and scouts/agents will be all over them.  I would much rather they go to the NRL than Union for pretty clear reasons.

3.  They may not spend their entire career over there and so we could see some very good players return to the British game.

4.  If these players help England do well internationally then it has a very positive effect on the profile of the sport and player numbers, viewers etc. so they could benefit the British game without even playing here.

Maybe. And of course this is a thread for the 100 or so British NRL fanatics who will notice him. It would be, in my view, far better for the game as a whole and especially the British game, for these players to be strutting their stuff on Sky, BBC or Channel 4. 

[Dunbar]

11 minutes ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

Maybe. And of course this is a thread for the 100 or so British NRL fanatics who will notice him. It would be, in my view, far better for the game as a whole and especially the British game, for these players to be strutting their stuff on Sky, BBC or Channel 4. 

As I say, I appreciate the viewpoint.  And if it were more than the 8 or 9 Brits over there including the 3 youngsters then I would share some concerns.

But from a purely selfish note, I really enjoy the NRL and watching a Brit in a number of the teams every week adds an extra level to that enjoyment so I am ok with the players over there at these levels.

[DavidM]

I just got round to the Wests game . Hastings was very good on his return and bossed that side with great confidence and fair amount of quality . Amazing finish with a fantastic field goal . Personally if he has a strong season he should be bang in the mix for WC selection and judged on equal merit with every other eligible contender . I rate him very highly . I hope Gildart gets the chance to come back in sooner rather than later , i thought he showed some nice potential and tbh Jimmy the Jet looks a shadow of the player he was

[The Rocket]

1 hour ago, DavidM said:

I just got round to the Wests game . Hastings was very good on his return and bossed that side with great confidence and fair amount of quality . Amazing finish with a fantastic field goal . Personally if he has a strong season he should be bang in the mix for WC selection and judged on equal merit with every other eligible contender . I rate him very highly . I hope Gildart gets the chance to come back in sooner rather than later , i thought he showed some nice potential and tbh Jimmy the Jet looks a shadow of the player he was

When Hastings came to the Tigers I rated him highly, big mobile ball playing five-eight, I genuinely thought he could turn them around, so I`ve been a little surprised when he was never getting a mention as an option in your English halves. I just assumed it was something to do with him not being a `real` Pom or something. Unless you`ve got better options I reckon you`d be crazy not to pick him, imagine him with a half decent running halfback, could be a great combination.

BTW in case you Pommies didn`t know, his old man was Kevin Hastings, Daly M winning halfback for the Roosters in the 70`s and 80`s, I was a kid when he was in his prime but I remember him clearly and can remember people used to always say he was one of the best half-backs never to play rep football, unfortunately his career coincided with one P. Sterling and Steve Mortimer. I reckon Jackson hasn`t fallen far from the tree.

 

[Scubby]

1 minute ago, The Rocket said:

When Hastings came to the Tigers I rated him highly, big mobile ball playing five-eight, I genuinely thought he could turn them around, so I`ve been a little surprised when he was never getting a mention as an option in your English halves. I just assumed it was something to do with him not being a `real` Pom or something. Unless you`ve got better options I reckon you`d be crazy not to pick him, imagine him with a half decent running halfback, could be a great combination.

BTW in case you Pommies didn`t know, his old man was Kevin Hastings, Daly M winning halfback for the Roosters in the 70`s and 80`s, I was a kid when he was in his prime but I remember him clearly and can remember people used to always say he was one of the best half-backs never to play rep football, unfortunately his career coincided with one P. Sterling and Steve Mortimer. I reckon Jackson hasn`t fallen far from the tree.

 

With Shaun Wane as coach it wouldn't matter if he won the Dally M half back. No chance