Recruitment Warriors 2024/2025 Recruitment & Retention

Warriors 2024/2025 Recruitment & Retention Discussion
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-​	Player​	2024​	2025​	2026​	2027​	2028​
1	Bunty Afoa	✔	✔
2	Tom Ale	✔	✔
3	Mitchell Barnett	✔	✔
4	The Greatest of All-Time	✔	✔	✔
5	Kurt Capewell	✔	✔	✔
6	Wayde Egan	✔	✔
7	Addin Fonua-Blake	✔
8	Jackson Ford	✔	✔
9	Tohu Harris	✔	✔
10	Chanel Harris-Tavita	✔	✔	M
11	Shaun Johnson	✔
12	Edward Kosi	✔	✔
13	Jacob Laban	✔	✔	✔
14	Ali Leiataua	✔	✔
15	Freddy Lussick	✔	✔	✔
16	Zyon Maiu’u	✔	✔	✔
17	Te Maire Martin	✔	✔
18	Luke Metcalf	✔	✔	✔
19	Marcelo Montoya	✔	✔
20	Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad	✔	✔
21	Marata Niukore	✔	✔	✔
22	Adam Pompey	✔	✔
23	Demitric Sifakula	✔	✔	T
24	Jazz Tevaga	✔
25	Taine Tuaupiki	✔	✔
26	Roger Tuivasa-Sheck	✔	✔	✔
27	Dylan Walker	✔	✔
28	Dallin Watene-Zelezniak	✔	✔
D1	Ben Farr	D
D2	Etuane Fukofuka	D
D3	Leka Halasima	D	D	✔
D4	Patrick Moimoi	D
D5	Tanner Stowers-Smith	D
-	James Fisher-Harris	-	✔	✔	✔	✔

key: T = Team option, M = Mutual option, P = Player option, D = Development contract

Confirmed Top 30 2024: 28/30
Confirmed Development 2024: 5/6

Confirmed Top 30 2025: 26/30
Confirmed Development 2025: 1/6

2025 Gains: James Fucking Fisher-Harris baby! (Panthers)
2025 Losses: Addin Fonua-Blake (Sharks)
2025 Off Contract: Shaun Johnson, Jazz Tevaga

 

[Noitall]

Given the shit show he has had to endure and poor treatment for showing leadership acting on behalf of the polyneasian players when asked to.

He should stay and soak up that contract money. Get his injuries sorted and take a contract somewhere better after that.

How can they ban him anyways? Would he be a sufficient Prop replacement for AFB?

I don’t see this working out too well for the bulldogs and Ciraldo, when pay negotiations go on you can see how unified the players are and I’m not too sure they’re going to take kindly to a player hung out to dry publicly like this. Think we should feel lucky we landed the good cop from the panthers assistants.

 

[SJ2k]

We need a goddam prop for next year, obviously it should be someone better but we can't not get one even if it is a has been. We came pretty close to only having Bunty on the roster, and that can still happen if AFB goes down. Would bloody kill for Lodge at this point. This isn't a position we can promote a 20 year old into unless they're the next Payne Haas.

 

[Warriors4eva95]

RFM is an average injury prone player past his best, who has been only a part of a losing culture, and being cut as the Dogs are trying to change their culture. He's done in the NRL, ESL is his only option.

He's not a guy to spend a roster spot on, considering our need to develop juniors. Kalangi Going for example is a far better guy for the club to give a spot too, a hungry younger player with footy experience, who is a leader in the high performing NSW cup squad.

I'm hoping we see some Pre season pics and news shortly, there are always a few interesting prospects who pop up.

Pretty much why I said Supplementary contract which I'm pretty sure he'd only be earning peanuts compared to the guys in first grade even if he was to play first grade

 

[Noitall]

Pretty much why I said Supplementary contract which I'm pretty sure he'd only be earning peanuts compared to the guys in first grade even if he was to play first grade

He’s on $400k a season.

 

[j_p]

On Lodge, what do we think Webby might have been able to do with his skill set?

Was Lodges beef with purely with Mr. Alpha? Or was it something else. Cos under Webby he might have regained his "love" for the club. And deliver a AFB like performance.

Is Shawn Blore on Offer? I feel like he could be a easily converted forms edge forward to prop.

I think Matt lodge issue was and is a Matt lodge problem from the number of clubs he's bounced around.
Left broncos early, left us early and there were rumors roosters weren't happy with him.

 

[j_p]

Come on folks. Lodge? RFM? We're really scraping the barrel here.

The PTSD of being a warriors fan is going to take a long time to overcome.

 

[Bevosa]

We need a goddam prop for next year, obviously it should be someone better but we can't not get one even if it is a has been. We came pretty close to only having Bunty on the roster, and that can still happen if AFB goes down. Would bloody kill for Lodge at this point. This isn't a position we can promote a 20 year old into unless they're the next Payne Haas.

This.
The vibe on here seems to be that on the back of one good year we are now some marquee club who can cherry pick the best players in the NRL.
Our best players are antiques with one or two years left, and the one that's not just asked to get out.
Once our youth system kicks in this could all change, but that's years away, I have faith in our coach to get the best out of any player, all they need to be is hungry for it.

 

[run_it_str8_again]

Come on folks. Lodge? RFM? We're really scraping the barrel here.

Agreed.

Lodge is not a sports player. Needs to leave the sports field, go seek therapy and fix his inner Lodgey.

RFM. I see him as possibly a replacement for Tohu. Has leadership and would click under Webby I reckon. Having said that I don't think we NEED him, but he could be a bargain.

 

[run_it_str8_again]

This.
The vibe on here seems to be that on the back of one good year we are now some marquee club who can cherry pick the best players in the NRL.
Our best players are antiques with one or two years left, and the one that's not just asked to get out.
Once our youth system kicks in this could all change, but that's years away, I have faith in our coach to get the best out of any player, all they need to be is hungry for it.

We might need to be patient and let this premiership window close in anticipation of development

 

[Noitall]

Agreed.

Lodge is not a sports player. Needs to leave the sports field, go seek therapy and fix his inner Lodgey.

RFM. I see him as possibly a replacement for Tohu. Has leadership and would click under Webby I reckon. Having said that I don't think we NEED him, but he could be a bargain.

I thought this year we lacked size and I’d have RFM on my bench in place of Jazz. If Jazz had RFM size, I reckon he’d be up there with some of the top props for his heart. He just doesn’t offer enough from the bench as a prop alone with Walker filling lock off the bench.

 

[SJ2k]

We might need to be patient and let this premiership window close in anticipation of development

Why though? We can have it both ways by signing a prop. Ridiculous to just abandon 2024 when we should be even better than 2023. We need to be aiming for 2nd week of finals minimum. There's no guarantee our youth are going to turn us into some kind of powerhouse in the near future, those pathways existed previously and we did shit all with it. Just look at how we wasted SJ, very unlikely we get another talent through like him in the next 5 years+.

The club needs to figure it out. Unfortunately it looks like we don't have the money to recruit a stud, so Webby is going to have to work his magic on a has been or 2 and that's ok. What's not ok is having 1.5 props on an NRL roster, it's absolute insanity.

 

[WellingtonOrc]

On Lodge, what do we think Webby might have been able to do with his skill set?

Lodge is managed by a cancer in Isaac Moses, club was well rid of him and his ilk.

 

[Warriors4eva95]

He’s on $400k a season.

Doesn't matter supplementary contracts are different from my understanding only 650k is set aside for 10 players 65k a year

 

[cock_o]

Looking at the updated signings tracker on the NRL app looks like Zyon Maiu’u and Jacob Laban confirmed in the top 30. Also Tuaupiki confirmed for 2 more years and Sifakula extended by 1 year.

 

[Noitall]

Reading this guy may have been cut from the bulldogs, stands about NAS size. Was at the Burleigh bears in 2022 so would have played with Tuaupiki. Probably not quite ready for first grade but not far off. We got TSS back from the bulldogs, hopefully another being a manurewa junior.

 

[Noitall]

Some Of Best Kiwi-NRL Junior Big Boppers To Watch Out For In 2024 — The Niche Cache

While the growth of Aotearoa rugby league is most evident in the number of young play-makers entering the Kiwi-NRL mixer, Aotearoa has always produced big bopper forwards and there are plenty of keep track of heading into the 2024.

theniche-cache.com

Features in here too, Isaac Matalavea Booth.

 

[Noitall]

Looking at the updated signings tracker on the NRL app looks like Zyon Maiu’u and Jacob Laban confirmed in the top 30. Also Tuaupiki confirmed for 2 more years and Sifakula extended by 1 year.

Interesting Ben Farr on a development contract. Apart from Sifakula and Halasima, it looks like there’s quite a few battling for another contract with many signed until 2024.

 

[Noitall]

Having played with Issac at school and club a bit, I really never thought he would have made it as far as he has honestly, A big body for sure, but wasn't a game-changer at all.

Jacob Hollobon was far and away the best player in our teams, which included Issac and Siah Karapani

He's a really good dude though, and definitely seems like the kind of person who would play a lot better with his family around.

Hopefully with nsw cup and pathways back in place we get some talent returning home, looking forward to seeing train and trial list.

 

[JaggedJ]

I'm reading 28 players signed. Room for a prop plus the customary "keeping the powder dry for NRL chaos"

Surprised about Tuaupiki but not disappointed.

 

[Citygirl]

Once bruce gets homesick and comes back tougher..

Where is Bruce? I feel I've missed something