Brits in the NRL: 2024 Edition

[DoubleD]

3 hours ago, NRLandSL said:

?, can’t agree with that one bit. He is an established first grade quality winger. The injury has set him back a bit but there is no denying his talent. He has been “ready” for NRL first grade for a good 2 years now. He is probably the best winger in the whole NSW Cup.

He probably needs more game time since coming back from an ACL and to get accustomed to the change of setup but he's definitely better than Pauga

[NRLandSL]

1 hour ago, DoubleD said:

He probably needs more game time since coming back from an ACL and to get accustomed to the change of setup but he's definitely better than Pauga

He’s probably better than Pauga, But Pauga has been quality every time he has played for us, he’s deserving of the back up winger spot for now. Though once Murphy starts tearing up in the NSW cup, he’ll take the back up winger role I reckon, and hopefully a starting spot next year if all goes well.

[arcticchris]

13 hours ago, NRLandSL said:

yeah of course, especially coming back off an ACL injury. But he's been ready to play at the highest standard since his first few games of 2022. He proved himself as a quality player a while ago now.

Don't forget, the bloke scored 19 tries In 2022, FOR WAKEFIELD. Including a 4 piece against St Helens

I think the find his feet comment was more in relation to the need to get more match sharpness and fitness post injury comeback than a suggestion of not being ready for first grade in terms of ability.

[JM2010]

Could Murphy be better than Dom? He seems to have everything needed for a good winger. Speed, agility, athleticism, good finisher and ball skills 

[NRLandSL]

KPP Having an absolutely blinder, far and away the best on the field.

[Vyvyan]

Some great efforts in defence and a great line break from KPP.

[WN83]

Excellent again from KPP. I watch him and always wished he just had an extra half yard of pace. If he had that, he would be incredible but that's being picky I suppose. He's settled in comfortably and along with Morgan Smithies, is doing the English game proud. 

[DavidM]

Some strong involvements . I still think they could use his running game more , he’s used as a dummy or not involved quite a lot . He’s a big asset to them 

[Dunbar]

Interesting to see how the Knights are using KPP.

He plays on the edge in attack but defends in the middle.  That shows the engine he has but sometimes a few Knights fans (on their forum) get frustrated that he stands out the first few plays on an exit set but they don't realise he has defended in the middle.

When they are in attacking positions, they are still using him as a lead runner and going out the back to Best too much.  Mixing it up and giving KPP some early ball will have the double benefit of keeping the defence guessing and using his strength and offloading game better.

Not to say any of the above is him not doing well... just he can get a lot better still when they figure out how to use him.

Edited April 11 by Dunbar

[DavidM]

38 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

Interesting to see how the Knights are using KPP.

He plays on the edge in attack but defends in the middle.  That shows the engine he has but sometimes a few Knights fans (on their forum) get frustrated that he stands out the first few plays on an exit set but they don't realise he has defended in the middle.

When they are in attacking positions, they are still using him as a lead runner and going out the back to Best too much.  Mixing it up and giving KPP some early ball will have the double benefit of keeping the defence guessing and using his strength and offloading game better.

Bot to say any of the above is him not doing well... just he can get a lot better still when they figure out how to use him.

Agreed 

[Damien]

 

 

[hunsletgreenandgold]

Will Pryce came off injured in the NSW cup game - not seen any updates on it. Hopefully nothing too serious. 

[bobbruce]

2 hours ago, Damien said:

 

 

That sort of impact can only help him getting more of the ball. 

[Exiled Wiganer]

KPP and Smithies will of course lift the level of the teams they joined. They were there or thereabouts in the first 17 for Wigan, after all. 

Having seen how well Thompson has handled the step up in quality, I am at a loss as to how he wasn’t a stand out player at Canterbury. I am guessing there is something not right with the culture at that club. 

[Futtocks]

On 11/04/2024 at 14:40, WN83 said:

Excellent again from KPP. I watch him and always wished he just had an extra half yard of pace. If he had that, he would be incredible but that's being picky I suppose. He's settled in comfortably and along with Morgan Smithies, is doing the English game proud. 

I think, because Kai is such a leggy figure, people expect him to be as fast as he looks, like another Dom Young.

But then you see him bouncing tacklers out of the way and making space for offloads, so he's starring at what he does.

[DoubleD]

On 29/02/2024 at 17:00, graveyard johnny said:

1st player not to make an impression and be back home on compassionate  leave with homesickness in 24? KKP  for mine

 

On 29/02/2024 at 17:04, graveyard johnny said:

style doesnt fit NRL  and not good enough- but thats just my humble opinion - hope he goes great guns though

Priceless 

[NRLandSL]

7 hours ago, Exiled Wiganer said:

KPP and Smithies will of course lift the level of the teams they joined. They were there or thereabouts in the first 17 for Wigan, after all. 

Having seen how well Thompson has handled the step up in quality, I am at a loss as to how he wasn’t a stand out player at Canterbury. I am guessing there is something not right with the culture at that club. 

Thompson was still pretty good for Canterbury, one of there best players. Just never reached his top form. Probably to due to the injuries and how bad the bulldogs are.

[Damien]

5 hours ago, NRLandSL said:

Thompson was still pretty good for Canterbury, one of there best players. Just never reached his top form. Probably to due to the injuries and how bad the bulldogs are.

Was he? He seemed to get plenty of stick and criticism. He certainly looked way off the player he was at Saints.

[WN83]

13 hours ago, Futtocks said:

I think, because Kai is such a leggy figure, people expect him to be as fast as he looks, like another Dom Young.

But then you see him bouncing tacklers out of the way and making space for offloads, so he's starring at what he does.

He’s doing fantastic, no doubts about that. I’ve always thought if he had that extra half yard though that he’d be a phenomenon. I remember being away at Hull in one of his first seasons with Wigan and people had been talking about his pace and how they’d not had chance to see how quick he is. He broke the line that night and was chased down by another forward in quick time. He’s so leggy though that it doesn’t really affect him to much. He’s tough to take down and gets his arms free with the ball.
 

His defence doesn’t get spoke about enough either. He is a nightmare to try and get past and swamps people with the size of him. It’s taken a little while but I think he’ll nail down an England spot now (if we play any games). 

[NRLandSL]

1 hour ago, Damien said:

Was he? He seemed to get plenty of stick and criticism. He certainly looked way off the player he was at Saints.

He definitely wasn’t as good as he was at saints, but he was certainly not a bad player. 

[WN83]

Thompson just didn’t seem like he could get any momentum going in the NRL. He started pretty well but it then seemed like there was one injury issue after another. He’s been very good for Wigan so far but I still feel like there’s more to come, as he builds his confidence back up. Fingers crossed he can now stay clear of those issues he’s faced in recent years. 

[graveyard johnny]

14 hours ago, DoubleD said:

 

Priceless 

pleased for him - doing great at the min 

[AB90]

2 hours ago, Damien said:

Was he? He seemed to get plenty of stick and criticism. He certainly looked way off the player he was at Saints.

When Thompson consistently played and got a good run of games he was pretty decent. The issue was his reported $800k annual salary which he simply wasn’t good enough to justify.

For context, over the last 3 years, Luke Thompson would have been on a similar salary to Payne Haas. Compare the respective ROI on that $800k for the Bulldogs/Broncos!

[Exiled Wiganer]

On 08/04/2024 at 10:24, hunsletgreenandgold said:

Lol. Nothing like getting ahead of yourself. He's doing great - long may it continue. Then we'll start to talk about him being one of Raiders best players. 

If you like. I only saw one of his games and he was already central to everything their pack does. My point is a narrow one - how many WCCs, or international games or Suttons starring at Canberra do people need to see before they simply take it as read that there is nothing at all surprising about a player who has been in the pro ranks at Wigan (or Saints, or Leeds, or wherever in SL) walking into a middle of the table NRL side. It is exactly what we should expect.

Again, the only surprising thing is someone swapping proximity to Liverpool, Manchester, Lancashire, Cheshire and the Lakes for Canberra  - playing in their winter. Am guessing the money is vastly higher there, because anyone who doesn’t opt for a Sydney/Brisbane team is going to a cultural/social desert. 

[GeordieSaint]

2 hours ago, WN83 said:

It’s taken a little while but I think he’ll nail down an England spot now (if we play any games). 

Direct replacement for Whitehead.