Knights’ Recruitment Manager
- Thread starter Lefty
- Start date
HarVeeGee13
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
It's gonna be a long offseason JOJO.
At the end of the day Ponga's last season is probably going to be 2032. If we still have 1. Ponga 6. Sharpe 7. Brown we'll have a great foundation. Cody Hopwood will be 27, Jermaine McEwen 28, Lachie Crouch 29, Trey Mooney 30. I think if it's 3+ of them still around in 2032, we're in a hell of a spot. Would love to keep Manuleleua but if the proposed 'Mana Pasifika' team is team #20, that dude is getting offered over $1.5 million a season to go there and maybe more, good luck to us.
The rest is kinda just noise. Every team totally turns over the majority of its roster over a 6-7 year cycle. Been proven historically that if you keep gun spine players through these roster transitions, you have a recipe for being consistently competitive.
Dylan Brown is awesome and he was having a great season. When Ponga was out and Brown, Smith and Sharpe was our 7, 6 and 1, Brown pretty consistently outperformed the other two (with the caveat that I think Sharpe actually plays way better at 6 than 1 now), unless I was having a stroke when I watched those games. And that's his first real season in a new role. He'll get better. He's a cheat code for generating time and space for our best player, who also happens to be a top 3 player in the NRL.
At the end of the day Ponga's last season is probably going to be 2032. If we still have 1. Ponga 6. Sharpe 7. Brown we'll have a great foundation. Cody Hopwood will be 27, Jermaine McEwen 28, Lachie Crouch 29, Trey Mooney 30. I think if it's 3+ of them still around in 2032, we're in a hell of a spot. Would love to keep Manuleleua but if the proposed 'Mana Pasifika' team is team #20, that dude is getting offered over $1.5 million a season to go there and maybe more, good luck to us.
The rest is kinda just noise. Every team totally turns over the majority of its roster over a 6-7 year cycle. Been proven historically that if you keep gun spine players through these roster transitions, you have a recipe for being consistently competitive.
Dylan Brown is awesome and he was having a great season. When Ponga was out and Brown, Smith and Sharpe was our 7, 6 and 1, Brown pretty consistently outperformed the other two (with the caveat that I think Sharpe actually plays way better at 6 than 1 now), unless I was having a stroke when I watched those games. And that's his first real season in a new role. He'll get better. He's a cheat code for generating time and space for our best player, who also happens to be a top 3 player in the NRL.
Alex
Tony Butterfield
I don't get it either lolI skimmed through most of the posts but saw something in a few suggesting we let Brown go or along those lines...... Are you people on crack ?
The fact that some people were saying we wouldnt have made the GF if Brown was playing is just as absurd
They’re looking at the game and thinking absolutely nothing else would have changed, except Brown wouldn’t have taken the quick tap and intercept that Smith took.
Yes Smith had a great game, but the whole context of the match changes if Brown is there. We might have won by 20!
Frank McWilliams
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
Generally most think Smith is ok/VGood so thought, Brown back to 6, Smith to 7 and Sharpe to right centre, left if Best leaves.
If injury to 6 or 7 then Sharpe moves and the likes of Winter or Hunt move in.
Sharpe could be like a Kurt Gids covering anything from 1-7 but predominately centre when full side.
If injury to 6 or 7 then Sharpe moves and the likes of Winter or Hunt move in.
Sharpe could be like a Kurt Gids covering anything from 1-7 but predominately centre when full side.
KPGreatness
Todd Bates
Smith is a great player that is held back by defence, his attack is closer to top line than people want to believe, he broke a few mini records in 2026 for example he is the first Knights halves player (7,6) in six years to make it in the top 20 of try assists by the end of the season to which he had 16 and came 14th, next closet was Mitchell Pearce at 20th in 2020, Sandon also came in the top 20 specifically 14th for line break assists as well being the first Knights half since Mitchell Pearce to do it in 2020.
Sandon also came second in the NRL for lines engaged which is great for obvious reasons in terms of baiting players he is actually the first Knights half to do be in the top 5 since Jackson Hastings in 2023 and the only Knight to be in the top 2 of it since Mitchell Pearce in 2019.
Obviously he will always hold the record of being the first halfback since Joey to lead us to a grand final.
He is let down in defence but he has 50% of the game down pat being the attack and if he got his defence to around the 88% he would be one of the top line halves in the game.
Stats come from the NRL stat page.
Sandon also came second in the NRL for lines engaged which is great for obvious reasons in terms of baiting players he is actually the first Knights half to do be in the top 5 since Jackson Hastings in 2023 and the only Knight to be in the top 2 of it since Mitchell Pearce in 2019.
Obviously he will always hold the record of being the first halfback since Joey to lead us to a grand final.
He is let down in defence but he has 50% of the game down pat being the attack and if he got his defence to around the 88% he would be one of the top line halves in the game.
Stats come from the NRL stat page.
Newygirl
Adam Woolnough
You’d think such die hard would know or do they just like the narrative. Poor old panthers keep having players stolen but nothing stops them winning
Line engaged is the big one for me, been such a failing of our halves for so long. One reason it always used to look like "throw the ball to Ponga on a shape and see what he can do", rather than "get Ponga in space"
Seth Gecko
Kade Snowden
We are in a great place. We actually have players who many other clubs want. Our culture is enviable. Young players get the chance to make a name for themselves. That is the risk you take by putting them in The shop window. . But it also is huge attraction for any up and coming star.
On the surface it seems like a huge threat. But that is how the strong culture is built. They may decide to take the money and leave. But the key decisions come from not letting a player decide the narrative around a deal. Best IMO is taking the **** out of us. I know everyone agrees he has had a great year. So did Young and Walker. But their clubs have had enough.
PNG have created this chaos. I am surprised the pending cap increase has not settled it all down. PNG are going to be potentially booed and jeered relentlessly when they step on the field in Australia. A truly stupid choice by the NRL to make them enemy number 1 due to the rules they are allowed to operate under. It is only the start. I can see the clubs demanding huge changes if they start dominating.
On the surface it seems like a huge threat. But that is how the strong culture is built. They may decide to take the money and leave. But the key decisions come from not letting a player decide the narrative around a deal. Best IMO is taking the **** out of us. I know everyone agrees he has had a great year. So did Young and Walker. But their clubs have had enough.
PNG have created this chaos. I am surprised the pending cap increase has not settled it all down. PNG are going to be potentially booed and jeered relentlessly when they step on the field in Australia. A truly stupid choice by the NRL to make them enemy number 1 due to the rules they are allowed to operate under. It is only the start. I can see the clubs demanding huge changes if they start dominating.
Last edited:
Les Misérables
Mark Hughes
Gotta say, this to me feels true. Whether or not that combination works best, who knows. But individually as halves, those are the best two in those positions.
Smith is a better eyes up footballer than Brown imo. Smith can also chace points better than Brown and I'm not convinced we go as deep in the finals with Brown instead of Smith.