How long?

[The Wheel]

How long until Tom T gets a start? 3 more tries on top of his 4 in game 1!

 

[Mavin]

I'd have him in over Blair every day of the week. Time 2 look at the future Tom and Jake should be in the 17. Journey man like Horo and Blair should not be allowed 2 stifle our development.

 

[Ryan]

7 tries in 2 games? Kid sucks.

 

[NewwyEagle]

I'd give him a run in nsw cup for a few weeks first.

 

[winnyason]

Not yet, Blair is problem in defence though.

 

[globaleagle]

These turbo brothers look very good. I'm just worried if we rush them into the big leagues.....may may injure the good out of them.

Hopefully they are being well managed and the right time will come along. Unlike Aussie cricket which seems to do their best to injure young fast bowler after young fast bowler.

 

[Kiwi Eagle]

The U20s is rubbish

The 9s showed his defence needs some work, NSW Cuo before he gets near NRL

 

[IQofalimabean]

He will definitely play some NSWcup this year. Might get 1 FG game if lucky.

 

[castle eagle]

He will definitely play some NSWcup this year. Might get 1 FG game if lucky.

you mean 7 minutes of first grade if we go on previous treatment of young players making a debut

 

[sheridanstand78]

For those of you who remember, Brett made his debut at 17 and when he started he was the dynamic and lethal try scorer that he is today but defensively he was limited, Tom T is only going to get better and better and watching him in the 20's hes toying with his opposition, he is going to be a superstar and Manly will need him in the first team ASAP.

Youth is what is needed to revive the team and we have the kids coming through for us to continue to be a force.

 

[Fluffy]

Brett was a lot older for his second game though.

Tom T is on the slide anyway, 4 last week, 3 this week, he will only score 2 next week and 1 the week after and be done for the year

 

[Mavin]

They way we pick teams is so conservative so he may get his first game in 2018 (if he hangs around that long). It is so funny 2 hear people complain about his defence yet laud Hiku.

 

[Andrew..]

Tom T will get his chance but for now I think Cheyse Blair is only keeping Jorge's wing spot warm....if we go back before Jorge damaged his shoulder he's was being touted as a possible Blues player.

 

[sheridanstand78]

Brett made is debut in 2003, aged 17 and came back in the 2004 seasonn aged 18, Tom T is now 18 and will handle the step up.

The guy is a local boy and all he wants is to play for the club. He will get a chance sooner rather than later I predict.

Not only is he a prolific try scorer, he also creates them as well, he glides across the turf and has all the instinct of a seasoned footballer. Our 20s have a great team and they can continue the clubs success.

Never fear youth coming into the first team. Look at Souffs and Penrith for example, some of their best players are aged 20-23,they are flying now because in particular Penrith made the tough calls and got rid of the guys who were not really interested in being there. We are in the same boat now. Difference is we have a winning culture and that will always keep us strong.

 

[Supernintendo Chalmers]

For those of you who remember, Brett made his debut at 17 and when he started he was the dynamic and lethal try scorer that he is today but defensively he was limited, Tom T is only going to get better and better and watching him in the 20's hes toying with his opposition, he is going to be a superstar and Manly will need him in the first team ASAP.

Youth is what is needed to revive the team and we have the kids coming through for us to continue to be a force.

You also have to keep in mind though that the game was a lot different 12 years ago. The science behind building your body is a lot different and as such the typical size and shape of bodies playing the game today are not the same as back then. The game speed was a lot faster and as such bodies that have speed and aren't yet fully developed could get into it a lot easier with less risk of injury. Now you have these massive blokes wrestling for dear life, the game is more contact and dominate.

I'm personally of the belief NYC should be for 18 - 20's only and shift the marketing / tv coverage away from it so these kids can develop away from the spotlight, make them the opening game on gameday, promote a true reserve grade people can get excited about again, and give the kids time, once you have done your time in that comp and hit 20, then you are eligible for a much better NSW / QLD Cup and also NRL. You see a lot of these kids rushed through, and while some make it, a lot dont, there is alot of pressure, so if you make it so you can't debut in top grade until you turn 20 it might prolong a few careers and lead to a lot less expectation and pressure on kids giving them time to live life, learn to balance career and study for post football all away from the spotlight.

The rise in these suicides of young players is something that is a little scary, a lot are the polynesian / pacific youngsters who have the culture of having to provide for their family and if they get injured, or don't make the cut it places a heavy weight on them, they have all their eggs in the football basket and haven't developed as people, add on top the fact a lot are brought into the system and away from their families so young.

These kids have 13-15 years ahead of them if they play a full career, rushing is silly to me.

 

[Daddycool]

These kids have 13-15 years ahead of them if they play a full career, rushing is silly to me.

Agree with this.

Young Tom represents a huge & important investment by the club. The best thing for him at this stage is to; stay healthy and improve as a player. The last thing he needs is to get thrown into FG and get injured, setting his development back.

 

[hozza]

They way we pick teams is so conservative so he may get his first game in 2018 (if he hangs around that long). It is so funny 2 hear people complain about his defence yet laud Hiku.

If he's good enough he is old enough. Run him in nsw cup- if he kills it push him up to the big league.

 

[Killer03]

@hozza completely agree. If he's good enough (physically and mentally) then he's old enough. Some 17/18 year olds are mature enough to play first grade, some aren't. I haven't seen enough of Tommy Turbo to know if he's ready. Watching the 9s I did think his defence needed work. However I also see little value in him scoring 3 and 4 tries every week in NYC, this isn't developing him (imo). He needs to continue to be tested.

Although Tooves seems conservative, there was a lot of ridicule about him putting Feleti to 5/8 (which did seem a fair gamble), he needs to keep the Turbos hungry for 1st grade action.