The pre-season 2026 thread

Les Misérables said:
Realistically, McEwen's defence deteriorated to a point where he was defending like an 18 year old fresh out of the Toyota Cup. The reads were really bad, the contact under pressure was arguably worse

He cannot be considered for the 13 and honestly probably shouldn't even be on the bench until he's proven beyond doubt that he is up to standard.

Part of me acknowledges that his defence after his debut was decent, and playing longer minutes was obviously too big an ask of him. So its not a criticism of the player, he's just so young and we should respect that and bring him along correctly.
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I thought his best game was against Penrith. In a badly beaten side, he took it to Penrith physically for about 65 minutes playing opposite a gun like Liam Martin when the rest of the pack hardly fired a shot. He was able to spark our attack early in the second half. He wilted in the final 15 and had a couple of bad defensive misses. That probably sums up where he is at right now. He is going in to a very important preseason right now and will come back a much improved player physically next year. I'm hoping he has a bit more help as well.
 
Les Misérables said:
Realistically, McEwen's defence deteriorated to a point where he was defending like an 18 year old fresh out of the Toyota Cup. The reads were really bad, the contact under pressure was arguably worse

He cannot be considered for the 13 and honestly probably shouldn't even be on the bench until he's proven beyond doubt that he is up to standard.

Part of me acknowledges that his defence after his debut was decent, and playing longer minutes was obviously too big an ask of him. So it’s not a criticism of the player, he's just so young and we should respect that and bring him along correctly.
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Yep and the absolute worst thing we can do next year is insist that if he’s getting picked in the team, he has to be an 80 minute back rower right now. Which for some reason was something AOB was inflexible on.

Hate to compliment the Roosters, but if he was there, they would have this gradual development approach for him where he’d alternate between giving a good 20-30 minutes in the NRL for a few weeks, then go back and play 80 minutes in Cup with clear feedback/KPIs that he’s given to implement while he’s down there. You would likely see him get a few weeks, then he goes down to Cup while Manulelua gets a few weeks in the NRL, etc etc. Players at that club don’t get “picked” and “dropped”. They are on a development plan. And the ones who do move on like Sitili get a genuine chance to prove they’re up to the standards the club demands, rather than someone just deciding at some point that they’re not good enough for the NRL and moving them on before ever giving them a debut.

I’m sure their salary cap stuff isn’t totally above board, but I do believe this is the reason they always seem to magically have a lot of forward and backline depth. It’s because they do a smart job of developing it. They haven’t had as good of a record of developing elite spine players as Penrith and Melbourne, but they are good at developing forwards and outside backs. If Josh King and Zac Hosking were Roosters juniors they’d still be at that club, earning less than they should to make a valuable contribution to the 17. And someone like Naufahu Whyte having the breakout season he did this year, that is the result of years of careful cultivation. He got that bell cow middle forward role after he was ready to take on that workload AND live up to their defensive standards the full time he’s out there.

There is nothing they do which we shouldn’t be able to come close to matching, given the Hunter region is a forwards and outside backs factory. We’ve honestly done the same thing as them and signed most of our marquee spine talent rather than been able to develop it. Where they beat us is the cost-effective roster they parachute guys like Teddy, DCE and Robson into.
 
JOJO82 said:
No doubt we start out as spoon favourites by the "experts", would love nothing more than for us to do a raiders and shut them all up.
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Surely they don't have the injuries they had this year with multiple guys out especially in key positions. Funnily enough when that has been the case guys like Jayden Brailey stay healthy. Other years he's been our main long term injury heh. A few of the teams that finished above didn't really have anywhere near the injuries, and Souths were in a constant state of disruption too so there's no way they win the spoon again with the talent they have and Brown coming on board.
 
Comparing the Knights and Roosters is a little bit chalk and cheese. The Roosters have systematically stock piled some of the best junior talent in the game by sending them to top level GPS schools and have many people of the same talent level so it is a bit easier to interchange. Also, every junior they have is at risk of getting usurped in the order when the flavour of the month free agent becomes available. They’ve also had a few forwards that that have failed to fulfil their potential.
 
HarVeeGee13 said:
Yep and the absolute worst thing we can do next year is insist that if he’s getting picked in the team, he has to be an 80 minute back rower right now. Which for some reason was something AOB was inflexible on.

Hate to compliment the Roosters, but if he was there, they would have this gradual development approach for him where he’d alternate between giving a good 20-30 minutes in the NRL for a few weeks, then go back and play 80 minutes in Cup with clear feedback/KPIs that he’s given to implement while he’s down there. You would likely see him get a few weeks, then he goes down to Cup while Manulelua gets a few weeks in the NRL, etc etc. Players at that club don’t get “picked” and “dropped”. They are on a development plan. And the ones who do move on like Sitili get a genuine chance to prove they’re up to the standards the club demands, rather than someone just deciding at some point that they’re not good enough for the NRL and moving them on before ever giving them a debut.

I’m sure their salary cap stuff isn’t totally above board, but I do believe this is the reason they always seem to magically have a lot of forward and backline depth. It’s because they do a smart job of developing it. They haven’t had as good of a record of developing elite spine players as Penrith and Melbourne, but they are good at developing forwards and outside backs. If Josh King and Zac Hosking were Roosters juniors they’d still be at that club, earning less than they should to make a valuable contribution to the 17. And someone like Naufahu Whyte having the breakout season he did this year, that is the result of years of careful cultivation. He got that bell cow middle forward role after he was ready to take on that workload AND live up to their defensive standards the full time he’s out there.

There is nothing they do which we shouldn’t be able to come close to matching, given the Hunter region is a forwards and outside backs factory. We’ve honestly done the same thing as them and signed most of our marquee spine talent rather than been able to develop it. Where they beat us is the cost-effective roster they parachute guys like Teddy, DCE and Robson into.
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A development plan for a young player?

Expecting a coach to have a plan to bring young players into first grade seems a bit much

I mean next thing you’ll tell me, Robinson goes into each game with specific tactics to target weak spots in the opposition
 
McEwen was overused because we had no one else.
We started the year with a very skinny roster.

He is still 2 years younger than Lucas was when he made his firstgrade debut.

Lucas had covid and injuries delay his debut till he was nearly 23 and at least 1 and possibly 2 years after he was ready.
McEwen was rushed in at 19, maybe a year before he was ready, but he held his hands up till the whole team stopped having a go.
 
Billy said:
McEwen was overused because we had no one else.
We started the year with a very skinny roster.

He is still 2 years younger than Lucas was when he made his firstgrade debut.

Lucas had covid and injuries delay his debut till he was nearly 23 and at least 1 and possibly 2 years after he was ready.
McEwen was rushed in at 19, maybe a year before he was ready, but he held his hands up till the whole team stopped having a go.
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Putting a few defensive deficiencies that young McEwen displayed at the back end of the season, I really liked his hard, aggressive running, even against the top players in the NRL.
With a full pre season and continued growth in stature and skill, I can see McEwen as an elite backrower who will be destined for much higher honours, even in the short term.
Put simply, he is tough and displays all the characteristics of a Knights forward when the club was first established. With Dylan Lucas, I can see Brown connecting with them on both sides of the ruck as 2026 unfolds.
 
HarVeeGee13 said:
Yep and the absolute worst thing we can do next year is insist that if he’s getting picked in the team, he has to be an 80 minute back rower right now. Which for some reason was something AOB was inflexible on.

Hate to compliment the Roosters, but if he was there, they would have this gradual development approach for him where he’d alternate between giving a good 20-30 minutes in the NRL for a few weeks, then go back and play 80 minutes in Cup with clear feedback/KPIs that he’s given to implement while he’s down there. You would likely see him get a few weeks, then he goes down to Cup while Manulelua gets a few weeks in the NRL, etc etc. Players at that club don’t get “picked” and “dropped”. They are on a development plan. And the ones who do move on like Sitili get a genuine chance to prove they’re up to the standards the club demands, rather than someone just deciding at some point that they’re not good enough for the NRL and moving them on before ever giving them a debut.

I’m sure their salary cap stuff isn’t totally above board, but I do believe this is the reason they always seem to magically have a lot of forward and backline depth. It’s because they do a smart job of developing it. They haven’t had as good of a record of developing elite spine players as Penrith and Melbourne, but they are good at developing forwards and outside backs. If Josh King and Zac Hosking were Roosters juniors they’d still be at that club, earning less than they should to make a valuable contribution to the 17. And someone like Naufahu Whyte having the breakout season he did this year, that is the result of years of careful cultivation. He got that bell cow middle forward role after he was ready to take on that workload AND live up to their defensive standards the full time he’s out there.

There is nothing they do which we shouldn’t be able to come close to matching, given the Hunter region is a forwards and outside backs factory. We’ve honestly done the same thing as them and signed most of our marquee spine talent rather than been able to develop it. Where they beat us is the cost-effective roster they parachute guys like Teddy, DCE and Robson into.
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Definitely. McEwen is one of my favourite players. I was singing his praises long before his debut, Im a huge supporter, but how he was used last year was toxic for the player and the team.

He needs to be handled delicately
 
Just gotta hope Holbrook has learned from the coaches he’s been under.

Too many players in the back end of AOB’s tenure have echoed this story of never knowing where they stand or what they were expected to work on. Unless they were one of his favourites.

He sort of morphed into Browny 2 by the end.
 
Les Misérables said:
Definitely. McEwen is one of my favourite players. I was singing his praises long before his debut, Im a huge supporter, but how he was used last year was toxic for the player and the team.

He needs to be handled delicately
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You change your words a lot. One minute you are bagging McEwen out for his poor defensive reads, and should not be in the 13 for next season. Now you are posting he is the one of the best and you picked him out of the crowd as one of the best ages ago. He played extra NRL because we had no one else. Which is it? Or do you just like putting people down?
 
HarVeeGee13 said:
Tobe, there’s no contradiction in saying a guy’s a great prospect while also saying there needs to be care and patience in bringing them along.

Playing in the back row is really hard. Giving good 80 minute performances in that position consistently isn’t something that just happens because a guy is talented.
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True, it is a tough game. I suppose I just don't like people rubbishing a 19 year old. A young kid who i thought played with a big heart.
 
Tobe Fair said:
True, it is a tough game. I suppose I just don't like people rubbishing a 19 year old. A young kid who i thought played with a big heart.
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Yeah saying he was singlehandedly responsible for us getting the spoon was over the top.
 
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