Kalyn Ponga discussion

Can KP & Brown combined lift the 5% win/loss bump the Knights get when KP is in the side? Can the Knights get KP on the park for more than 13-15 games? Who plays 6 & who plays 7 out of Sharpe & Brown, and can it work? And can the Knights field a forward pack that will give Ponga, Sharpe and Brown some room to work in?

What's the Chinese curse? " May you live in interesting times".
 
frankLauda said:
Look he’s come out and said he’s not leaving. You can look at it both ways positive or negative. But he’s staying so we have to look at the positives with KP in the side and firing. And if he is that is a massive upside.

Happy a new coach next season. We have given AOB a good go. I actually think he’s done ok, but need a change to go the next level.

I’m liking the J Aurthor signing. He could be a real option him and brown in the halves. Sharpe in the centres possibly. Give him a roaming option. Although small size Turbo is good in the centres. Why not Sharpe also.

Get your best players in the starting 17. Crossland 13, gamble bench. M Aurthor 9.

Just an option with Sharpe at center. If I was the new coach I would be looking at the option. I think it might be harder to pull off the Ponga, Brown, Sharpe spine. All the top sides have a good game managing 7. None of those 3 have that so I would seriously consider J Aurthor.
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Sharpe would he completely wasted at centre imo. No he’s not a natural half but he’s definitely better close to the action. If we had to move him out of the halves even wing would be the better option as it allows him to use his speed and roam a bit more.

I kind of disagree all the best sides have a game managing 7 too. Storm run with 2 sixes (although Grant is more their game manager) and the Dogs are moving away from their game managing 7 to play with 2 sixes as well.

Ponga/Sharpe/Brown are a chance of working if they’re coached well, but it would require a new head coach and new attacking coach as I can’t see anyone currently at the club being able to make it work.
 
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I’m still excited to see the Brown/Sharpe combo, so Ponga staying is a good thing for me, because it means that’s still the plan. And it’s one less spine member we have to worry about. So overall it’s a positive he’s staying for me, if he goes then we’re a step closer to total rebuild.

I just wish the endless stories about him leaving would end and we could move on with the final years of his contract. Let’s hope next season he’s back to his best and injury free.
 
Chaister said:
Sharpe would he completely wasted at centre imo. No he’s not a natural half but he’s definitely better close to the action. If we had to move him out of the halves even wing would be the better option as it allows him to use his speed and roam a bit more.

I kind of disagree all the best sides have a game managing 7 too. Storm run with 2 sixes (although Grant is more their game manager) and the Dogs are moving away from their game managing 7 to play with 2 sixes as well.

Ponga/Sharpe/Brown are a chance of working if they’re coached well, but it would require a new head coach and new attacking coach as I can’t see anyone currently at the club being able to make it work.
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Galvin is a lot better ball player and general play kicker the Sharpe. Hugh’s is one of the best 7’s in the game. Sure he wasn’t in the beginning but him and Grant organise the team.
 
jamesgould said:
I’m still excited to see the Brown/Sharpe combo, so Ponga staying is a good thing for me, because it means that’s still the plan. And it’s one less spine member we have to worry about. So overall it’s a positive he’s staying for me, if he goes then we’re a step closer to total rebuild.

I just wish the endless stories about him leaving would end and we could move on with the final years of his contract. Let’s hope next season he’s back to his best and injury free.
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Yeah agree still the option, and sounds exciting. But does have an element of risk. I just think keep a close eye on J Aurthor. I hear he had some good games in cup.
 
Ponga, Brown, Sharpe and Arthur are the most talented collection of spine players we’ve had since the very short period we had Kidley, Mullen, Joey and Bedsy on the books. So yeah let’s see if it can work.

I struggle to buy into it with this coach - you need to embrace a fast, open, expansive attacking style when you’re playing with three primarily running playmakers - and it’ll put us in positions where, for example, KP is our designated field goal kicker. But it’s unlikely we’ll have an incumbent Origin fullback, international half, boom local junior & u19’s Origin rep as our options again any time soon if Kalyn does leave.
 
If he did end up leaving (which he won’t) but we’d have some serious coin to throw at some players that don’t want to be here.
  • $700 or more from KPP
  • $800 from Hastings
  • $3-400k from Thompson
  • $1.4m Ponga

Gus talking about us being under pressure cap wise, when the Bulldogs are reportedly paying a prop, a centre, and a 19 yr old half each on around $800k, Glass Houses.
 
a quick crack at the immortal sitting in his ivory tower. He sat under the scrutiny of the media and openly spoke how it beat him up . Now he sits and dishes out on our club supposedly his club. The bloke is only loyal to himself. Disappointed he hasn’t really got behind us just another media man . Probably wears Melbourne pjs at home
 
Chaister said:
He can’t keep playing rugby league if he loses a kidney. For starters the NRL wouldn’t allow it from an insurance perspective and secondly I doubt he’d want to take that risk. It’s just a sport at the end of the day.

I agree though I doubt he’ll lose an organ given the time since.
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I think he could definitely get cleared to play in the nrl if he did lose the kidney. I’m a doctor and a kidney transplant recipient.
Jonah Lomu played professional rugby post-transplant and that is WAY more risky than playing after a nephrectomy. The transplanted kidney is placed in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen below the liver. You can easily palpate it as is its very superficial. A native kidney is much more protected by the abdominal wall and surrounding tissue.
I would still advise against it, but there’s no way he wouldn’t be able to get approval to play assuming his remaining native kidney is anatomically and functionally healthy.
 
Approval or not, his Dr/specialist will be recommending he ceases contact sport if he loses the kidney.

One freak occurrence away from dying is a pretty big risk to be taking.

I doubt he lost the kidney, we would know by now I'm guessing.
 
Hutcho said:
I think he could definitely get cleared to play in the nrl if he did lose the kidney. I’m a doctor and a kidney transplant recipient.
Jonah Lomu played professional rugby post-transplant and that is WAY more risky than playing after a nephrectomy. The transplanted kidney is placed in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen below the liver. You can easily palpate it as is its very superficial. A native kidney is much more protected by the abdominal wall and surrounding tissue.
I would still advise against it, but there’s no way he wouldn’t be able to get approval to play assuming his remaining native kidney is anatomically and functionally healthy.
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I’m not a doctor, nor am I transplant recipient like yourself, but it just wouldn’t seem safe to me at all. I’m surprised to hear doctors would be supportive of it. Doesn’t look like it’s going down that path though thankfully.
 
I think at the very least they wouldn’t want KP leaving until we know that Sharpe is well and truly recovered and able to play as normal.

Let’s face it, would be just the Knights luck for KP to leave and then Sharpe to have some setback or complications resulting in him not being able to play.

Also, while having $1.4 million to spend sounds good in theory, getting decent players to actually take the money seems to be proving rather difficult at the moment.

I would like the chance to see if KP, Sharpe and Brown can work and with a new coach, there’s an opportunity to have a very good attacking side with Dom back as well now. Just need someone who is going to utilise each of their strengths and get them playing a positive, attacking style.
 
If KP wants out, and actually requests the release, I can't see the Knights saying no and forcing him to stay and play out his contract.

Especially if the request comes at the end of a season.

You don't want to force a player that does not want to be here, to stay and play. I think the club would release him and look to use that cap money elsewhere. But, sooner rather than later would be good so we can actually use that cap money for next season before the offseason player swapathon kicks off.
 
Seano said:
Also as @Billy points out, with Brown on the left, Sharpe on the right, Crossland in the middle and KP popping up anywhere, that's a scary prospect to defend. Especially if the Knights get some craft out of 9 and put together a pack that can give them some room.
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Whos gunna manufacture something and change the momentum when our middles are getting slaughtered. We will be very dangerous if we are generating ruck speed and playing on the front foot but sharpe brown and ponga are all downhill skiers.
 
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