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	Leka Halasima	✔	✔	✔	✔
10	Tohu Harris	✔	✔
11	Chanel Harris-Tavita	✔	✔	M
12	Shaun Johnson	✔
13	Edward Kosi	✔	✔
14	Jacob Laban	✔	✔	✔
15	Ali Leiataua	✔	✔
16	Freddy Lussick	✔	✔	✔
17	Zyon Maiu’u	✔	✔	✔
18	Te Maire Martin	✔	✔
19	Luke Metcalf	✔	✔	✔
20	Marcelo Montoya	✔	✔
21	Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad	✔	✔
22	Marata Niukore	✔	✔	✔
23	Adam Pompey	✔	✔
24	Demitric Sifakula	✔	✔	C
25	Jazz Tevaga	✔
26	Taine Tuaupiki	✔	✔
27	Roger Tuivasa-Sheck	✔	✔	✔
28	Dylan Walker	✔	✔
29	Dallin Watene-Zelezniak	✔	✔
D1	Ben Farr	D
D2	Etuane Fukofuka	D
D3	Patrick Moimoi	D
D4	Tanner Stowers-Smith	D	D
-	Jett Cleary	-	D	D	D
-	James Fisher-Harris	-	✔	✔	✔	✔
-	Kalani Going	-	D
-	Motu Pasikala	-	✔	✔	✔

key: C = Club option, M = Mutual option, P = Player option, D = Development contract

Confirmed Top 30 2024: 29/30
Confirmed Development 2024: 4/6

Confirmed Top 30 2025: 28/30
Confirmed Development 2025: 4/6

2025 Gains: James Fisher-Harris (Panthers), Jett Cleary (Panthers Pathways), Kahu Capper (Roosters Pathways)
2025 Losses: Addin Fonua-Blake (Sharks), Jazz Tevaga (Contract Expired), Shaun Johnson (Retirement)
2025 Off Contract: Nil

 

[Roons75]

Haha love it when the thug life chooses a highly paid professional league player. I mean what other option does he have in life

His 2 brothers are muppets, so chances are...

 

[cock_o]

How good would it of been if we got him for 2024 on the cheap. Used our bargaining power with AFB release. Would of made a premiership winning 2024 pack.

 

[Inruin]

NRL: NZ Warriors table big-money offer for Cronulla Sharks, Samoa front-rower Braden Hamlin-Uele​

NZ Warriors have reportedly entered the race to snare the services of Cronulla Sharks prop Braden Hamlin-Uele.
According to Sydney Morning Herald, the club has offered the Aucklander a three-year deal worth almost AU$2.2 million (NZ$2.38m) from 2025.
At NZ$750,00, the contract is understood to be higher than the deal offered by the Sharks to keep the 29-year-old, whose contract expires at the end of the upcoming season.

Hamlin-Uele would be seen as the new prop to lead the Warriors pack after the imminent departure of Addin Fonua-Blake, who was granted an early release from his contract on compassionate grounds to sign on with the Sharks from 2025.
Hamlin-Uele played one test for NZ Kiwis in 2019 before switching allegiance to Toa Samoa, who he represented at the World Cup in 2022.

He made 19 appearances for the Sharks last season, before missing the elimination final loss against Sydney Roosters due to injury.
Hamlin-Uele posted per game averages of 94.2 running metres, 18.8 tackles made and 2.3 tackle busts.

NRL: NZ Warriors table big-money offer for Cronulla Sharks, Samoa front-rower Braden Hamlin-Uele

The Warriors have reportedly outbid Cronulla for Braden Hamlin-Uele's services from 2025.

www.newshub.co.nz

 

[SJ2k]

How good would it of been if we got him for 2024 on the cheap. Used our bargaining power with AFB release. Would of made a premiership winning 2024 pack.

Yeah it would be so much better. As it is this just feels so meh. Huge downgrade with a risky contract.

 

[FormerlyJamesW]

Re: BHU, I would bring us back to pre 2023. How many of those players did we think we were paying overs for?

As memory serves, there were similar conversations around how much AFB was getting paid?

 

[Wah's Up]

Hope we sign BHU. Just for the drama it will cause on here alone. Some people are ready to jump off a bridge if we do lol.
Pass on Terrell May, I've heard he is a Charlie Uniform November Tango off the field. Cos he didn't choose the thuglife. Thuglife chose him type of guy apparently.

Do you mean C U next Tuesday?

 

[Riz]

Re: BHU, I would bring us back to pre 2023. How many of those players did we think we were paying overs for?

As memory serves, there were similar conversations around how much AFB was getting paid?

I think people often forget how much talk there was about AFB's output pre 2023 or more so his influence in games. Webby definitely brought the best out of him. I have no doubt that we would see similar improvement out of a guy like BHU.

 

[Tohu’s_Knees]

I’m in the “ok let’s make it work” column in regards to the BHU signing. (If it happens)

Is he of the calibre of AFB? No, obviously not.
As the highlights show, he does have his upsides in regards to impact.

His signing may (probably) have more of a flow on effect for others in the squad.
I’m probably one of the loudest on the forum from what I believe is a lack of size, particularly on our bench.
He doesn’t have near the output that AFB does.
Do we have to go back to a 4 prop rotation? Of actual props….. Does Bunty, Ale and Zyon Maiu’u get far more games/minutes as a result of his lack of output.

 

[mrblonde]

Haha love it when the thug life chooses a highly paid professional league player. I mean what other option does he have in life

Does he need a Haiku?

Terrell you wanker
Please Sign For Another Team
And Don't Be Crap For Us

 

[Dantheman]

I'm all for the signing, realistically who else are we going to get? I'm sure we will go after some decent players for the 2026 season - as it stands the options are pretty slim for next year.

 

[Defence]

I’m in the “ok let’s make it work” column in regards to the BHU signing. (If it happens)

Is he of the calibre of AFB? No, obviously not.
As the highlights show, he does have his upsides in regards to impact.

His signing may (probably) have more of a flow on effect for others in the squad.
I’m probably one of the loudest on the forum from what I believe is a lack of size, particularly on our bench.
He doesn’t have near the output that AFB does.
Do we have to go back to a 4 prop rotation? Of actual props….. Does Bunty, Ale and Zyon Maiu’u get far more games/minutes as a result of his lack of output.

I suppose if barny and the muss (good name for a tv show) are playing 50 in the middle and bhu 40 that leaves a 20 minute stint for someone like ale, sifakula or zyon (jazz still in the mix too).
Another starting quality prop would be ideal but thats not a bad worst case scenario... its an aggressive and mobile bunch.

 

[CWC]

If SJ’s retired with TMM & CHT our halves & BHU is our forward leader then 100% we’re in a rebuild.

I hope they at least have the cap to get an elite for 1 of the 2 positions in 2025 lol, otherwise we're rebuilding from ground up again haha

 

[CWC]

How good would it of been if we got him for 2024 on the cheap. Used our bargaining power with AFB release. Would of made a premiership winning 2024 pack.

Makes you wonder why they didn't put that in the negotiation eh, say we pay a little freight for AFB in 2025 and get BHU here for 2024 and keep AFB for a year, otherwise we'll move him to the Dragons

 

[Roons75]

We need Tapine.

 

[Tohu’s_Knees]

I suppose if barny and the muss (good name for a tv show) are playing 50 in the middle and bhu 40 that leaves a 20 minute stint for someone like ale, sifakula or zyon (jazz still in the mix too).
Another starting quality prop would be ideal but thats not a bad worst case scenario... its an aggressive and mobile bunch.

Agreed, more or less.
BHU/Niukore, Zyon Maiu’u and Walker coming on at that 20 minute mark would be quite something.
Or do we start Niukore and BHU?
Is Niukore even gonna be a middle full time?
So many questions…….

 

[Cces]

Getting BHU for 2024 would provide us with a formidable pack up against anyone in the comp. BHU to offset AFB , only from 2025, will likely see RTS return to a battering ram role to take up some of the slack. Not sure that that's what we want an aging RTS (as fit as he is) to be doing.
Ale has shown, albeit in the #13 role in NSW Cup, that he can play extended minutes but Bunty can't & Zyon Maiu’u hasn't shown this yet either

 

[Blain]

BHU is the best available in terms of an experienced NRL prop for 2025. The SPECULATED (not confirmed) number of $730k per year sounds heavy for sure.

But when taking into account the cap increases over the past couple years on 20%+, $750,000 is the old $600,000. Feels like a $100k over pay if that rumored figure is true, but that is the NZ increase we simply have to add for signing anyone.

 

[CWC]

Do we get a discount paying cash?

Just to prevent a riot

 

[Mr. Brownstone]

I hope they at least have the cap to get an elite for 1 of the 2 positions in 2025 lol, otherwise we're rebuilding from ground up again haha

I wouldn’t focus too much on the ‘forward leader’ description from the media. BHU would never be our forward leader ahead of Barnett, Niukore or Tohu, and then there’s Capewell on an edge, they will all be on the field a lot longer than BHU’s little engine will allow him, and they’ll have more impact while they’re on the field as well. Enforcer might be a better way to describe what the Warriors hope BHU will be, although I’ll believe it when I see it.

 

[regenerated borg]

BHU would be a good buy... if Cappy and Webby think so, it's OK by me...
Besides he hasn't played 100 1st grade games yet so still got more time to mature properly... plus the coaches he played under IMO are not in the same league as Webby who'll get more out of him..