Nonetheless, the signings you have made will not get you far next year, compared to the lost players - Watts has turned out to be a great signing for us and will get better in 2013. Taylor and Green too.

Brown, Paterson and Gleeson. The only good thing to say about this is that you will find out what sort of coach you have if he can get wins with those players.

Quote ="SirStan"So, now we should believe everthing you say when this was your take last month: =#FF0000Oh, by the way, any sign on fee comes off the salary cap (therefore comes from Wigan, not Rovers). Poor troll, even worse human being.'" Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf

Quote ="SirStan"So, now we should believe everthing you say when this was your take last month: =#FF0000Oh, by the way, any sign on fee comes off the salary cap (therefore comes from Wigan, not Rovers). Poor troll, even worse human being.'" Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf

Quote ="Rogues Gallery"Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf'" They are talking about a signing on fee paid to the player. They are not talking about the fee you paid to us.

Quote ="Rogues Gallery"Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf'" They are talking about a signing on fee paid to the player. They are not talking about the fee you paid to us.

Quote ="Rogues Gallery"Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf'" As pointed out, I wasn't talking about transfer fees.

Quote ="Rogues Gallery"Transfer fees do not count on the salary cap. www.therfl.co.uk/~rflmedia/docs/ ... on%20E.pdf'" As pointed out, I wasn't talking about transfer fees.

Of the 3 departing players you mention, only Taylor made any contribution to 2012. Watts did nothing in a Rovers shirt last season, so Tuimarve (sp?) doesn't have to do more than make 1 tackle on his debut to be an improvement. Green played 9 games, and looked unfit in all 9. Burns might miss a few games at the start of the season, but again, doesn't have to do much to be an upgrade on 2012 Blake Green.

Of the 3 you mention coming in, Brown won't be an automatic 1st choice, but a solid squad winger is something we had to rely on Latus for (who you have personally chuckled at, so even you will agree that Brown is an upgrade). Gleeson will replace sickbed Webster, and Paterson in for Galea. Now, this is the only replacement who has to step up to be an upgrade on the player leaving. That said, BG missed 10 games last year, so hardly value for 100K pa.

Watts was a penalty machine for us last season before he spat his dummy out at not getting picked and put in a transfer request. He went well at FC for the remainder of the season but the real test will come when the novelty wears off - Matterson and Sandercock got rid for a reason so it remains to be seen he he will go once he's got his feet under the table at FC. Tiumavava played 20 games in 2011 and not many last year but as long as he puts in an honest shift it will be more than we got from Watts.

Green's blood clot kept him out for most the season and he only managed 9 games before he got hamstring trouble
as so often happens after periods out. But even in those 9 games he just didn't look like the same player so the club did well to sell him to Wigan and replace him with a superior player in Burns who is still the right side of 30.

Brown has all the physical attributes needed and comes with good comments from Kear so he's worth a punt - Caro probably sounds more promising though; fastest player in the league and showing a commitment to move away from the big smoke indicates he's coming for the right reasons.

Webster was continually injured and in and out the team all the time so had to go. Gleeson is still only 24 and showed some good form for Salford and I certainly expect him to play more games which should help our defensive problems out wide.

Galea is my favourite Rovers player of the SL era but I think we've kept him a season too long already. I think the knee injury he sustained back in 2008 is catching up with him and the last time it reoccured in the pre-season derby when he went off in the early stages instigated a search for a new second-rower which led to Cory Paterson. When Galea returned it took him a long time to regain any real fitness obviously because of his age and he again ran into trouble with hamstring trouble IIRC. He played 17 games last season and most of them he was nowhere near full fitness IMO so I'm happy we've signed Paterson who looks to have all the attributes to be a big hit in SL providing he can regain the form he had as a few years ago whilst under Sandercock at Newcastle.

Unlike the vast majority of Rovers fans, I actually rate McDonnell and would have liked to keep him but the Chairman is right not be held to ransom for 130k.

Losing Taylor is a big blow but if he doesn't want to be here long term, then there's no point in him staying next year. I've big hopes for James Green and hopefully Beaumont can make his mark if he gets a bit of luck with injuries.

I am hoping George Griffin will have a big year next year i was really impressed at the end of last year when he came into the team! Another pre season of hard graft and a little bulking up will do him the world of good! Reminds me of a younger O Hara.

I think this kid is one prospect who's really flying under the radar and could well make his mark next season.

You said (coincidentally just before he signed for Rovers) that, if Rovers could have signed any prop in the world, you'd have signed Joel Clinton. Outstanding and credible judgement.

Ah. Instead of posting about George Griffin, you choose to bring up a 4 year old post - you're still a parasite I see.

On the odd occasion Clinton turned up to play, he was our best front rower - for instance his performance at Wakefield was a major part of us winning the game. Poor players don't win NRL GF's or play for Australia and four years ago (yes four years ago) he appeared to be the right signing for the club.

Unfortunately, despite his talent, I don't think he actually had any real passion or desire for the game and simply looked at it as a job - I told him this at the Rovers POTY dinner and he was gracious for my honesty.

Anyway, back on topic.

George Griffin,; if we can't sign another front-rower, I think maybe we should get him to put some weight on and play in the middle.

You're presenting an upbeat view of Rovers player Griffin. I'm presenting previously documented opinions of yours which show your views to be flawed/Rovers-biased. Your follow-up on Clinton provides a bit more insight on this. 3 years ago, such were his performances, you said you'd take him over any prop in the world (Rovers were being linked with him, but I'm sure this was entirely coincidental). He rocks up at Rovers and spectacularly fails to deliver over a 3 year period, steals a living, if you will. You then say it's because he doesn't have any passion for the game itself. How could he have been at the top of your list of world props to bring in if he wasn't really bothered about the game? Perhaps some of his underdelivery was that he was underwhelmed with the Rovers set-up, or perhaps he shares the same views on your chairman as @mase21, Willie Mason, since his loss of performance coincided entirely with his tenure at Rovers. Neither of us know, but based on the correlations before us, to attribute his lack of interest in RL per se could be construed as Rovers-biased.

There are, of course, further examples.
You predicted Tom Briscoe's lack of top class outside back attributes meant that by 2012 he'd be probably be a back-rower. The reality is that he (unlike Offiah-esque Fox) is still in and around the international squad and some NRL clubs are likely to be in for him next year. Not, I'd imagine, as a back-rower
You said that Tommy Lee's has a far more complete skill set than Danny Houghton. The reality is that Houghton is England Knights captain, at hooker, and player's player of the year at FC for the second year running.

The point is, this is not the nodding dogs forum where you can pick any aspect of what Rovers are doing and fabricate an apologetic post-rationalisation without challenge. You launch a rather laboured justification of the under-30s only approach, which could be summarised as lower age = fewer injuries. The missing challenges to this are:
Rovers have a squad of under 30s because they can't/don't want to pay the market rate for, or can't attract, big names.
Your long term absentees this year included sub 30 year olds such as Welham, Cox, Green, Lovegrove.
The top teams have a very significant proportion of over 30s
The best of your young players may choose to use Rovers as simply a stepping stone to Wigan, Leeds..

Anyway, Griffin. Heard good things about him. Sounds like a 2013 breakthrough player.

read the first two lines, same old. disappear barista

funny you missed out galea as one of our long term absentees mind you he plays for hull now and wouldnt make your argument seem as good would it

Brilliant

I said "included", not "was limited too". Old players get injured too, obviously. If you want to generalise, there is a greater likelihood that they get injuries than younger players. But to go to the extreme of saying no player should be signed over 30, when there were 14 of them on display in the Grand Final, is silly. Experience of the sort Sinfield, Peacock, Briers, Monaghan, Menzies, Finch and co bring to the comp is undeniable in its influence. Saying it's a long term build for the future is fine (assuming, of course, you can retain your best talent like Taylor). But as Neil Hudgell once put it, the competition should be about the here and now and anything less is selling the supporters short.

Cannot wait Mr Barista read and weep

It's generally impossible to identify to true context of a quote/statement without reading the build up to that quote and even then, like any type of text, it's meaning can be open for interpretation in the context of how it's meant.

You have a reoccurring tendency to regurgitate my previous postings totally out of context of their original meaning - and all most out of the context of where a current thread is going so a lot of threads end a discussion of the same things, over and over and over again, and the original thread is derailed.

Building a massive database of bookmarks with the aim of referring to them years later is simply not normal or adult behaviour which I'd suggest you probably already know, but refuse to face up to, and regardless of how big your house is, how much money you earn, I'd suggest it's in your best interests to seek help from a councillor to address these issues because referring to ancient quotes over and over again, year on year, will not justify your pathetic need for your database of quotes.

The bottom line is this; I'll post what I what, when I want, so I'd suggest it's time your leech like behaviour is curbed.

Great news, I love your posts they really are amusing. In fact I have yet to meet another poster who is on your level for the wrong calls

teams need experienced players i never said they didnt but you seem to just pick out the pieces that suits your own argument and you can bookmark this and bring it up next season galea much as i like him will be a bad signing prince will sign i think but doesnt really want to come your his last resort and i dont think ellis will stay fit your bought him 2 seasons to late

Well unfortunately because my right calls are never regurgitated, then this is the impression you get.

I'm sure that at some point in your life you will make a correct call and you'll make us all aware of it. Seems it could be some way off though.

Anyone still got a link to the thread where he rubbished briscoe and told us how fox was as good as offiah?

There's a few calls but I don't think anyone is really interested so there's no point.


I'm afraid not, because believe it or not, I never actually said that.

Compulsion to constantly re-visit 3 year old threads is pathetic.

So basically Galea is finished, Prince is reluctantly coming for his pension, and Ellis is crocked....

I think your worried Frankie

Well that was fun.