Jersey Flegg 2024

BTP said:
Great story Fletcher Hunt. Wouldn;t have had the opportunity if it wasn't for Linnane's injury, who I hope comes back firing like he was looking. But huge congrats to Hunt to have taken opportunity very well. Physically and ability wise looks on par with Linnane.
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Just a follow up in Fletcher Hunt.

Agree that the injury to Linnane has opened the door for him. He was selected for game 1 in the 14 jumper for his versatility.

The club most have a fair opinion of him as he has been signed for 3 years from Nyngan, where he was playing first grade. At the NSW schoolboy championships last year he was chased by at least 6 other NRL clubs and the Knights won his signature.
 
PTB said:
My guess would be that DeCourcey goes up to Flegg this season, once the Ball competition is finished. Then next season he goes into NSW Cup as a 20 year old and has a year there to develop his game in open age. The Club will likely resign Gagai for a further season (2025) with the succession plan being to replace him with DeCourcey in 2026.
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DeCourcey would be in the mix to replace Gagai, but Kyle McCarthy is 1 year older and last year went from Ball to Flegg to Reserve grade and got a run in the first firstgrade trial, and Fletcher Myers is 2 years older and was on a development contract for Manly when he was DeCourcey's age, was a regular reserve grader last year in what should have been his first year of Flegg and had 2 decent runs in our firstgrade trials. Krys Mapapalangi is 3 years older and is on a top 30 contract and was considered a chance to get that vacant wing spot for round 1 before knocking himself out in the first tackle of the trials.
In short, De Courcey might replace Gagai, but he has 3 very strong contenders in front of him who are all training with firstgrade and will play reserve grade this year.
 
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Billy said:
DeCourcey would be in the mix to replace Gagai, but Kyle McCarthy is 1 year older and last year went from Ball to Flegg to Reserve grade and got a run in the first firstgrade trial, and Fletcher Myers is 2 years older and was on a development contract for Manly when he was DeCourcey's age, was a regular reserve grader last year in what should have been his first year of Flegg and had 2 decent runs in our firstgrade trials. Krys Mapapalangi is 3 years older and is on a top 30 contract and was considered a chance to get that vacant wing spot for round 1 before knocking himself out in the first tackle of the trials.
In short, De Courcey might replace Gagai, but he has 3 very strong contenders in front of him who are all training with firstgrade and will play reserve grade this year.
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I am a fan of all 3 that you have mentioned and believe they have good future prospects. Rugby League is a performance based sport, form and Injuries will dictate which player along with DeCourcey get the opportunity to replace Gaga when he retires.

I was not discounting any of their chances, however just highlighting the pathway the club would have for DeCourcey if he continues to develop over the next 2-3 years. It will come down to how hard he is prepared to work, form and injuries. It is great for the club to have several options, as the landscape in junior development can change.

Maps needs some luck with injuries and time on the field as it was only at the end of 2022 season he was playing left centre in first grade. McCarthy had a breakout season last year where he progressed rapidly from Ball to NSW Cup and seemed to handle each step up in grade comfortably. However, the Coach showed his hand with the Fiji selections that he needs another season in Cup before being considered for NRL. Fletcher Myers did catch the eye in his 2 trial performance with good involvement, His runs out of the back field were impressive, where he displays strong leg drive resulting in good post contact metres. He would not be out of place in first grade if injuries occur to our outside backs.
 
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Give De Courcey time, he's only been here for 3-4 games. Interested in how McCarthy goes this yr with Myers, both vying for centre position along with Mapalangi. Myers was physically quite strong in his games in trials, every run he bent the line for a smaller lad. Has great speed as well, which wasn't showcased in trials but saw it last yr before he got injured.

Suddenly coming up with some nice depth in backline
 
BTP said:
Give De Courcey time, he's only been here for 3-4 games. Interested in how McCarthy goes this yr with Myers, both vying for centre position along with Mapalangi. Myers was physically quite strong in his games in trials, every run he bent the line for a smaller lad. Has great speed as well, which wasn't showcased in trials but saw it last yr before he got injured.

Suddenly coming up with some nice depth in backline
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I haven't even seen De Courcey play yet, so don't have an opinion of him.
Just pointing out we have 3 strong options who aren't much older than him.
Actually, Myers, McCarthy and Maps have all played wing as well as centre, so the four of them could be our three quarter line in 2026 or so - although there is another guy who is the same age as Maps called Best who might have something to say about that.
 
Yeah we're looking at a centre position that Might become available by next season or the season after. Depending how Enari goes you could see McCarthy pushing for wing as well. Goal is for all of them to be performing well, CUP and Flegg teams to be winning and Newcastle as a club having successful seasons in all grades. That comes with identifying high level talent, which I think we're finally getting back to doing.
 
Billy said:
I haven't even seen De Courcey play yet, so don't have an opinion of him.
Just pointing out we have 3 strong options who aren't much older than him.
Actually, Myers, McCarthy and Maps have all played wing as well as centre, so the four of them could be our three quarter line in 2026 or so - although there is another guy who is the same age as Maps called Best who might have something to say about that.
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The contract position is interesting for these players plus Sharpe, Armstrong and even Tuala.

My understanding of contract tenures is:

Maps - top 30 contract expires 2024
Myers - Development Contract expires 2024
Armstrong- top 30 contract expires 2024
Tuala - top 30 contract expires 2024
McCarthy - top 30 contract expires 2025
Sharpe - current Development Contract, elevated to top 30 contract in 2025 expires 2026
DeCourcey - elevated to top 30 contract in 2025 expires 2026

Therefore, at this stage only Sharpe and DeCourcey have contracts for 2026. Performances this season are crucial for Maps, Myers, Armstrong and Tuala.

Armstrong would be under pressure to lose his top 30 squad position to Sharpe and the same could be said of Maps or Tuala with DeCourcey to be upgraded and Myers potentially upgraded as well.
 
McCarthy isn't listed in our top 30 on the NRL list or on a development contract.
He might have a junior contract till 2025.
 
Billy said:
McCarthy isn't listed in our top 30 on the NRL list or on a development contract.
He might have a junior contract till 2025.
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That is correct, so he needs another good season to push for an upgrade. The competition for contract extensions/upgrades is creating a very competitive environment.
 
I think Myers stood out as best potential out of all the trialist in last two week. Hopefully he stays injury free cause he'd be my pick for backline replacement when/needed.

I also think Votano will be pushing very hard for a spot by 2026. If he's happy to debut on wing as no one is moving KP. He'd be fantastic on wing Votano with his height.
 
Myers and McCarthy have had very different journeys to this point.
Myers was one of the stars of our 2019 Mats side and scored the try that turned the tide in the grandfinal. He played for NSW under 16s and got a development deal at Manly where he did 2 firstgrade pre-seasons before coming back to us to do another one. In short, he's been training at as high a level as was possible for his age since he was 15.

McCarthy seems to have come from nowhere to play Laurie Daley cup for South Coast in 2022. I can't find anything before that. In 2023 he joined us for the Ball season and I don't even know if he trained with the Flegg squad. He might have just trained with Ball. He didn't look impressive in his first game of Ball on the wing. He looked like he was too shy to call for the ball. Over the season he got better every game till he was just about as good as Ethan Ferguson in Ball, and went on to shine in Flegg, and play 5 decent games of reserve grade to finish the season. He's just had his first firstgrade pre-season, and that might have been his first elite level coaching.

You never know when juniors have peaked, but I'm pretty sure Myers is as polished a player as coaching and training can produce, and McCarthy is a diamond in the rough with heaps of things to improve on still.
 
Billy said:
Myers and McCarthy have had very different journeys to this point.
Myers was one of the stars of our 2019 Mats side and scored the try that turned the tide in the grandfinal. He played for NSW under 16s and got a development deal at Manly where he did 2 firstgrade pre-seasons before coming back to us to do another one. In short, he's been training at as high a level as was possible for his age since he was 15.

McCarthy seems to have come from nowhere to play Laurie Daley cup for South Coast in 2022. I can't find anything before that. In 2023 he joined us for the Ball season and I don't even know if he trained with the Flegg squad. He might have just trained with Ball. He didn't look impressive in his first game of Ball on the wing. He looked like he was too shy to call for the ball. Over the season he got better every game till he was just about as good as Ethan Ferguson in Ball, and went on to shine in Flegg, and play 5 decent games of reserve grade to finish the season. He's just had his first firstgrade pre-season, and that might have been his first elite level coaching.

You never know when juniors have peaked, but I'm pretty sure Myers is as polished a player as coaching and training can produce, and McCarthy is a diamond in the rough with heaps of things to improve on still.
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My gut feeling after watching McCarthy progress last year and his noticeable physical development, is he could be better than Maps and Myers in 12 months time. There is just raw talent there. At the same time I am sure Maps and Myers will be good NRL players when the opportunities come.
 
BTP said:
I think Myers stood out as best potential out of all the trialist in last two week. Hopefully he stays injury free cause he'd be my pick for backline replacement when/needed.

I also think Votano will be pushing very hard for a spot by 2026. If he's happy to debut on wing as no one is moving KP. He'd be fantastic on wing Votano with his height.
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I have watched Votano closely over the past 3 weeks at the games I have attended. I am aware that he is playing a year up, however at the same age Fletcher Sharpe was far more involved and showed more physicality.

In the second Ball game against the Bulldogs at Cessnock Votano came across in cover defence as the last line of defence 10 metres out from his own line with the Buldogs winger skirting down the sideline. The Bulldogs winger just went straight through his poor attempt at tackle that lacked conviction. Then with 20 seconds to go and the Knights down by 2 they put on a set play from the scrum down the left hand side 20 metres out from the Bulldogs line. A beautiful pass put Votano through 15 metres out with only the full back to beat and he succumbed to the tackle and lost possession.

My point is he needs to inject himself into the game more and not just wait for the game to come to him. His physicality and contact in defence needs considerable improvement before he could be considered in a couple of years for NRL. Sharpe is well ahead of him at this point, even allowing for the fact he is 2 years older.

Votano is a beautiful runner of the ball in broken play, has great hands, can set up his wingers with precision passing and kicks goals from all over the field. However, defence is a non negotiable as a fullback and as he progresses through the grades physicality will be even more important.
 
Billy said:
I haven't even seen De Courcey play yet, so don't have an opinion of him.
Just pointing out we have 3 strong options who aren't much older than him.
Actually, Myers, McCarthy and Maps have all played wing as well as centre, so the four of them could be our three quarter line in 2026 or so - although there is another guy who is the same age as Maps called Best who might have something to say about that.
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Be really interesting to see if players like Fletcher Sharpe, Sebastien Sua, Kyle McCarthy, Paul Bryan, Myles Martin, Fletcher Myers, Jacob Davis and technically even Will Pryce start in Flegg or reserve grade.
2 years ago Garth Brennan started the year with everyone young enough to play Flegg in Flegg for the early rounds and slowly moved them up to reserves.
I doubt we'll do it this year, but I'd love to see it, just to see how the young guys perform.
 
1.
2. Tea-Rani woodman Tuhoro
3. Kyle McCarthy
4. Jerome Falemoe
5. Siaosi Kaliti
6. Taj Blackman
7. Liam Sutton
8. Paul Bryan
9. Jacob Davis
10.
11. Jayden Harris
12. Elijah Salesa Leaumoana
13. Myles Martin. (C)

14. Rory Whitby
15.Blake Woodford
16. Jack Cullen.
17.

Great we've still got Falemoe, Haris, Elijah. Keen to see how much Sutton has progressed for Flegg. Played a lot of Cup last yr.

Solid squad. Think McCarthy will go up to NSW CUP when SG is finished and De Courcey comes up. FB could be waiting for Votano>? That'd be sick. Love to see him have a full season of Flegg.
 
Not sure who the mystery fullback will be in Flegg but Votano is still named in SG Ball and Sharpe is in NSW Cup. Knights will presumably put up the full squads soon, the NSW Cup team has about 8 players named and the rest blank spots.
 
Full team

1. Wil Botham
2. Tea-Rani Woodman Tuhoro
3. Kyle McCarthy
4. Jarome Falemoe
5. Siaosi Kaliti
6. Taj Blackman
7. Liam Sutton
8. Paul Bryan
9. Jacob Davis
10. Myles Martin (C)
11. Jayden Harris
12. Elijah Leaumoana
13. Jaxson Rahme

14. Harry Reid
15. Rory Whitby
16. Blake Woodford
17. Jack Cullen

18. Tama Whareaorere
19. Kane Graham
 
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