Off contract players - back up FB?

[The Who]

Yea, I believe we need a genuine backup fullback in the top 30. Someone that has proven themselves against men.

There are always "kids" who break into First Grade before they are 20. There were 3-4 last season.
Reece Walsh was unknown prior to the season but showed that you can be a star fullback in the NRL.
This "kid" we just signed may be of a similar quality. Maybe not. But I'd rather take a punt on him than a 'name' fullback who has shown he is not up to NRL standard and commands a much higher salary.

 

[Eagle 1]

Reuben has improved and covers full back quite well , just not sure that when he tries to inject himself in some plays that it is that effectual in many instances . Last line of defence as a one not always particularly that good as well . Great season on the wing for Manly, adequate full back cover but still could ideally come up with a better option there i think and if one can be found

Agree with you somewhat M AL, If it's just a1-3wk cover for Tom, no problem, a long term absence by Tom maybe a problem though.

 

[Shoe1]

There are always "kids" who break into First Grade before they are 20. There were 3-4 last season.
Reece Walsh was unknown prior to the season but showed that you can be a star fullback in the NRL.
This "kid" we just signed may be of a similar quality. Maybe not. But I'd rather take a punt on him than a 'name' fullback who has shown he is not up to NRL standard and commands a much higher salary.

Walsh is exciting and fast Who, but we wouldn't tolerate even 10% of his errors. He was a big reason why the warriors were exciting to watch but also why they were unlikely to win a game.

 

[40 nil]

Harper played at one in the trials

I would like to see him get another shot at fullback. In that trial, his defence & catching the high ball was sound. His step would maybe enable him to make more metres running the ball back than Garrick. I think he played multiple positions, including fullback as a junior.

 

[jbb/james]

such as manlys reliance on Tom that the only fullback in the game that could fill in for him is tadesco and we dont have the cap room or the recruiting power to make that happen

Tom is a champion player but the key to his success is simply playing direct. As a result he engages defenders with that big body but it takes some thumps through every game. he seems happy with that exchange as do most ball players

Rather than recruit shouldnt we just expect more direct play from our much applauded international halves and shouldnt that responsibility be shared between them more.. it seems foran is welded to the left side and while he plays direct his touches are too few. tom would engage the line more times in one half of footy than DCE did for the whole season. i remember against the knights DCE did a beautiful move with a shimmy and deception to put someone away but thats about as close as he got all year and he still played it all before the line

If we changed our focus of attack to the Halves instead of the fullback ,our team would be more balanced and have more than 1 option. tom is going to assist anyway but 2 things stood out last season
tom was happy to become a non kicking halfback
and DCE was happy to let him at all times. as a result our structure leans to the back door instead of the front. sure a forward pack that smashes everyone into oblivion would help but the key to being a player of his reputation is to find ways to inject yourself into a game and one suspects that it would just make it easier for tom anyway

we have way more depth in the halves than fullback so a few injuries to DCE and foz would be easier to combat than toms absence. Con , lawman, schuster and walker cant get enough game time to showcase there abilities currently

our team suffers from the lack of fundamentals that the top halves bring to a side. do we have a top half or dont we . he either needs to become a kicking robot or put his body in harms way every week. he needs to contribute to a result in the first half of games and not wait until the game is open and soft to chime in with his 2 try assists

our whole team is out of whack , our bench, due to these missing fundamentals that we try to find in other positions

every halfback has there game and it seems obvious to some that DCE needs to find a key role instead of just being back up man or crab man

in seinfeld terms he is a siddler who needs his tic tac moment

DCE is a really good footy player, not necessarily a really good half but he needs to extend himself. One feels an 8 year contract has made him work on his fitness and media role rather than his job in the manly team.
try and fail by all means just be the man who tries , not just in D

i dont hate DCE at all, his contract hurts us, but he just doesnt seem to try and improve in the areas that the team needs year after year and its obvious that he tries to avoid those big moments in games ( field goals aside )

its pretty hard not to have a real footy conversation without involving the halfback , captain and most decorated player especially when your fullback is better at halfback and fullback than he is

anyway , roll your eyes

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

Red Pill posted this in the signings forum, so it looks like we have our back-up fullback:
Bega Roosters fullback Toroa Rapana has been signed by the Manly Sea Eagles. The 20-year-old known by his teammates as 'T' will join Manly's Jersey Flegg Under 21's squad in 2022. Roosters Coach, Scott Barton, said it's great to see the young man's hard work pay off, especially given 2021 was his first season playing rugby league after making the move from New Zealand to Australia and making the switch from rugby union. "Coaching T this year and being the guy who made contact with T to come over here, I'm very proud of him," Barton said. "I know the boys and the rest of the club are proud of him," he said. "We just wish him the best, there's a lot of hard work coming up for him and he'll rise to the challenge and I look forward to hopefully watching him play in a few games next year for Manly." The fullback will head to Manly around November to follow his dreams of playing at a higher level. Rapana and Shay Gray arrived in Bega from across the ditch on 17 January 2021 and completed pre-season with the Roosters with both players fitting into the club extremely well. "T has been a pleasure to coach and has a lot of natural ability," Barton said. "A player manager has seen his talents and put it to Manly, and Manly were keen to have him." It's a boon for the Roosters to have top tier clubs looking at players in our area. "It's great for the club that players in our club get recognised," Barton said. "Especially our little connection we have back in New Zealand," he continued. "All the four boys that have come from NZ to Bega, all of their friends are keeping an eye on them. "So for the young kids over there, they look at Bega Roosters and think 'yeah we can go to Australia, and can go to the Bega Roosters, and the way that T and the other boys have been looked after and T's been able to develop his game and go on and sign with Manly." Image: Sport Vision Tags: manly sea eagles, Bega Roosters More Articles ... New website to support South Coast families Boys charged with killing kangaroos No lockdown for Bega Valley Vessels at Eden's Snug Cove to be disposed of Listen Live LIVE STREAM 2EC The South Coast's Greatest Hits OPEN PLAYER

Source: https://www.2ec.com.au/news/109587-bega-rooster-signs-with-manly-sea-eagles
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Well if he’s pronounced Rap ana then he’s all good but if he wants Rap ar na he can **** off!!

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

Honestly Tom is irreplaceable, as is Tedesco.

Garrick fills in ok if he’s injured , he’s no Tom but then almost no one is!!

 

[40 nil]

Honestly Tom is irreplaceable, as is Tedesco

That's true, but when Tedesco is out and most of the Roosters' team is on deck, Manu goes very well at the back.

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

anyway , roll your eyes

Same as it ever was!

We need a little more threat from dummy half. Quite understandable that for his first full season there Crokes had to concentrate on defence and solid service to the halves. He produced the odd decent kick but knowing he was highly unlikely to scamper made it far easier for Storm and Souths to gang up on our forward runners. Create just a bit more uncertainty and the benefits will flow out to the wider men.

I'm expecting Crokes to spread his wings a little next year and it could make a significant difference.

 

[jbb/james]

Same as it ever was!

We need a little more threat from dummy half. Quite understandable that for his first full season there Crokes had to concentrate on defence and solid service to the halves. He produced the odd decent kick but knowing he was highly unlikely to scamper made it far easier for Storm and Souths to gang up on our forward runners. Create just a bit more uncertainty and the benefits will flow out to the wider men.

I'm expecting to Crokes to spread his wings a little next year and it could make a significant difference.

yep same as it ever was. same problems year after year, why would anyone consider the common denominator when we have denial , randomness and just bad luck as choices.

just a bit more uncertainty you say. thats cherries job too,

well you might ask yourself, how did we get here

so thats a NO for you on expecting DCE to step up and run to the line, or be a consistent kicker to help us overcome the tom reliance your saying we have it covered except for the frog. just asking ,

i must agree that maufacturing croker into a 9 has stifled the attack , as did levi last year. just didnt have a crisp enough pass for chez to run until we were 30 points down that levi guy, or api for that matter. just couldnt get it to the places he needed,
unfortunate we got levi as marty and AFB were ripping doors off so we had that piece of the puzzle solved all he needed was the right pass

and you might ask yourself, am i right or am i wrong
as the days go by

 

[Snake]

yep same as it ever was. same problems year after year, why would anyone consider the common denominator when we have denial , randomness and just bad luck as choices.

just a bit more uncertainty you say. thats cherries job too,

well you might ask yourself, how did we get here

so thats a NO for you on expecting DCE to step up and run to the line, or be a consistent kicker to help us overcome the tom reliance your saying we have it covered except for the frog. just asking ,

i must agree that maufacturing croker into a 9 has stifled the attack , as did levi last year. just didnt have a crisp enough pass for chez to run until we were 30 points down that levi guy, or api for that matter. just couldnt get it to the places he needed,
unfortunate we got levi as marty and AFB were ripping doors off so we had that piece of the puzzle solved all he needed was the right pass

and you might ask yourself, am i right or am i wrong
as the days go by

big Talking Heads fan mate? lol

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

Lol I think James would like to take DCE to the river and just chuck him straight in.

 

[jbb/james]

Lol I think James would like to take DCE to the river and just chuck him straight in.

look for the good of the thread only. OMG i am giving someone a free swing here but

there a van thats packed up with weapons ,
packed up and ready to go
there a gravesite out by the highway
a place that nobody knows

 

[George Rose's Butcher]

Yea, I believe we need a genuine backup fullback in the top 30. Someone that has proven themselves against men.

Tex Hoy?

 

[George Rose's Butcher]

look for the good of the thread only. OMG i am giving someone a free swing here but

there a van thats packed up with weapons ,
packed up and ready to go
there a gravesite out by the highway
a place that nobody knows

Who are we killing Dce? What about Suli? Id prefer suli we can trick him by poisoning his kfc. Too easy! 😉 then chuck him in the van etc

 

[double hoops]

I know it's often said they've done their dash. But out of curiousity. Can anyone see DES throwing that younger hoppa a life line. Did We or Did we not offer him a contract only 12 months ago? And it was NOT enough $ to someone's liking?

 

[double hoops]

Very tradesman like full back in Damon { Smith ] i think at Black Town but unlikely to be in the main squad .

Ahh the Dylan. Could be a smokey. Next to no reserve grade won't have helped his cause. He certainly seems to get some wraps

 

[40 nil]

Ahh the Dylan

Dylan Smith 2021 stats (a few missed tackles)

Dylan Smith

The Knock On Effect NSW Cup profile of Dylan Smith including career statistics, season stats, games, tries, goals, tackles and fantasy scores.

www.nswrl.com.au

NSW Cup 2020 highlights reel (Mounties)

 

[The better Robbo]

Dylan Smith 2021 stats (a few missed tackles)

Dylan Smith

The Knock On Effect NSW Cup profile of Dylan Smith including career statistics, season stats, games, tries, goals, tackles and fantasy scores.

www.nswrl.com.au

NSW Cup 2020 highlights reel (Mounties)

I have liked this guy since we signed him. He was one of our best in the trial last year, a genuine fullback with instinct and good support. Not sure why he hasn't had further mentions, especially now with no Suli and Funa.

 

[40 nil]

a genuine fullback with instinct and good support.

All we need is a reliable backup when Turbo isn't available. Most NRL teams have second string fullbacks. The lack of NSW Cup game time probably blocked Smith's chances last year. Only De Luis, and to a lesser extent, Burbo & Saddler, had the opportunity to step up in 2021.