Kalyn Ponga discussion

Yeah, KP didn't become a bad player because Fletcher had a great game last night.

The problem is that the Knights have a bunch of other needs, and KP is a valuable and tradeable asset within the limits of trading players in the NRL, which are significant because it's not like the NBA.

Personally, I don't want to see him go, and I don't think they're going to trade him anyway, short of media reports that he's unhappy (which I think are largely a beat up as they often are).

But if we keep KP like most, I'm concerned about how pieces fit in our spine next season and worried we'll not have the forwards to give them any room to work.
 
jamesgould said:
Dunno if people on here have seen, but Ponga started Queensland Origin training late because of a quad injury he took into the camp.

Seems like he’s had a few injuries affecting him this season.
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I read this earlier in the week and thought it may of been off the mark with the diagnosis, he hurt his ankle late in the parra game and wondered if that was the issue.
But yeah he has had issues all year which he has toughed out to his credit.
 
slotmachine said:
Melbourne has Harry Grant. We have Phoenix Crossland.
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And I think that's the crux of why people are often unfairly down on Crossland. He's not Harry Grant, of course neither are the other 30 or so hookers in the NRL.

The point is, though, that we can make a spine containing Sharpe, Ponga and Brown work. Plenty of other clubs have repurposed players in those positions and made it work.

The issue is that without go forward, nothing is possible, no matter how good the spine is.
 
As talented as Arthur looks to be, it’s seriously underselling how good Harry Grant is to say “well we have young hooker X to take on that role”.

There are a few very canny hookers running round right now eg Wayde Egan, Api, JMK, Blayke Brailey, great at getting their team on the front foot etc, and Grant isn’t just a little bit better than all of them. He’s way better. He’s closer to Cameron Smith than any of them are to him.

Crossland is also locked down on decent money until the end of 2028, the club has basically already planned for the prospect of not being able to keep Arthur. Unless Ponga vamooses we are not going to be able to keep both Sharpe and Arthur - the only reason we would be able to keep Arthur if we’ve also got Ponga and Brown is because he hasn’t kicked on in first grade yet.
 
I don’t think I was underselling how good Grant is. Just observing that Arthur with a strong running game can play a similar role in our spine. Obviously he’s not on Grant’s level but I think he can offer a lot more than Crossland does.

I’m hoping by Round 1 next year Arthur with another preseason under the belt is ready for the 9 jersey.
 
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The energy the young guys bring into the team is brilliant, always so hungry to prove themselves.

I only got to watch about 3/4 of the first half and had other commitments on last night. What I love about Sharpe is he is running in and popping up in support play which he’s somewhat limited to at 5/8. (Don’t get me wrong I believe it’s his long term best option) He has his usual side of the field where he’s very good at it but in the fullback position he goes where he sees the opportunities. His fitness levels are reminiscent of Kurt Gidleys, he just keeps going! Also having moved him we got to see Gamble in his preferred position and where he simply looks most comfortable and competitive.

I didn’t get to have a proper look at Paul Bryan but he sounds like a real tough kid and his stats were fantastic on debut. A real shame the injury, any idea on how long that will see him sidelined?

Fletcher Hunt didn’t let any of last week get in his head and really just got in with playing the sort of football we know he’s capable of. A future superstar.

With Kalyn out of the team we get to see the dynamic a lot of us have been calling for. Dylan Lucas directing and leading by example. This kid has captaincy written all over him and I hope he plays his entire career in our red and blue.

I’ll rewatch the game when I get a chance.
 
From what I could see last night, we played as a team, which we haven’t been doing. That also says to me that AOB has not lost the playing group

What I want to know is why. Why did things change so drastically for this week.

I know we played basically a reserve grade Penrith side, but we looked like a well oiled machine. Played fast, people running onto the ball and backing up, great ball control (well the first half anyway)

Last week we looked like we had never met each other before. Why the massive change in attitude?
 
We all know Ponga wants to be fullback, but for some reason this year he wants to play as our 5/8. It puts him too close to the middle and negates his best asset of 3 v 3 and finding weaknesses to exploit.

Is Ponga trying to do too much, is this a change to his game that Ponga has decided to make himself or is he following the coaches instructions? Whatever the reason, it has to stop immediately

We saw last night what a difference a conventional type fullback roll does for us

Now I don’t know if Ponga doesn’t want to change to that style or he’s refusing to listen to the coach. Either way, the coach needs to grow some balls and make him play to the style we want. No player is bigger than the club.

We can then look to trade/release him if things don’t change. Clubs would be falling over themselves to get him and we’d almost be able to pick who ever we want in a player trade
 
Wicket said:
We all know Ponga wants to be fullback, but for some reason this year he wants to play as our 5/8. It puts him too close to the middle and negates his best asset of 3 v 3 and finding weaknesses to exploit.

Is Ponga trying to do too much, is this a change to his game that Ponga has decided to make himself or is he following the coaches instructions? Whatever the reason, it has to stop immediately

We saw last night what a difference a conventional type fullback roll does for us

Now I don’t know if Ponga doesn’t want to change to that style or he’s refusing to listen to the coach. Either way, the coach needs to grow some balls and make him play to the style we want. No player is bigger than the club.

We can then look to trade/release him if things don’t change. Clubs would be falling over themselves to get him and we’d almost be able to pick who ever we want in a player trade
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I'm sorry but KP has been getting himself in to the halves game for years and years now. This is not a new thing.

I don't care where Ponga chooses to attack, whether at first or second receiver, standing out wide in "his zone" to attack etc. Ponga is a dominating presence that takes focus and direction away from the halves as when Ponga is there, it becomes so much the get the ball to Ponga show that the halves we do have lost focus on their own game and creative attributes instead look to exploit and unlock Ponga.

When Ponga is out, well, he isn't there to exploit and the natural flow of a footy team return.

I don't have an answer to this phenomenon. Perhaps the calls for Ponga to move on are accurate for the betterment of the team as a whole. Maybe we need a better coach that can get the team playing better as a whole.
 
I was randomly thinking about the recent Dally M winners, they've almost all ended in uselessness.

2018 - RTS - stinking it up on the Warriors wing
2019 - Tedesco - spent about five years injured
2020 - Wighton - rubbish
2021 - Tom Turbo - likely to spend a decade injured
2022 - Hynes - horrible
2023 - Ponga - doesn't know how to play fullback
2024 - Hughes - ok so far, but be careful young man
 
Lefty said:
It’s a damning inditement on the standard of coaching at the Knights. It’s like have a Ferrari and being able to drive it properly.
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Then why is Fletcher Sharpe, 21, never been in any club's pathways besides Newcastle, better at playing fullback? Is that in spite of the terrible coaching at the Knights, whereas Kalyn's every issue is because of it?

People will say this claim an overreaction to a small sample size or whatever, but I stand by it. The issue with Kalyn is that simple. There are huge holes in his positional play as a fullback which Fletcher, despite being an inferior ball player, does not have. There are flow on effects to this which impact every other player.
 
jamesgould said:
I was randomly thinking about the recent Dally M winners, they've almost all ended in uselessness.

2018 - RTS - stinking it up on the Warriors wing
2019 - Tedesco - spent about five years injured
2020 - Wighton - rubbish
2021 - Tom Turbo - likely to spend a decade injured
2022 - Hynes - horrible
2023 - Ponga - doesn't know how to play fullback
2024 - Hughes - ok so far, but be careful young man
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Gee if current Teddy is the useless version, he must have been handy in his day!
 
HarVeeGee13 said:
Gee if current Teddy is the useless version, he must have been handy in his day!
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Some of them recover eventually, like Ken Griffey Jr stopped taking the brain and nerve tonic and returned to full health.

IMG_1668.jpeg
 
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