Quote: Exeter Rhino "Watts and Fifita might be more realistic, but it's still a push, requiring significant transfer fees, cap space (quota space for Fifita), and agreement from the club and player. For the Saints players, given salary cap constraints, what makes you think Leeds are in a position to prize away one of the best players in the competition and out-bid the current SL champions?
Even in past big-spending eras we could arguably only sign Wigan's cast-offs in the 1990s (Hanley, Gregory, Goodway etc), Union project signings (Gallagher failed, Innes went well), players on the outer in the NRL in the 2000s (Lauitiiti, Leuluai etc), asset strip poorer SL teams (e.g. Ellis, Harris), or pick up players out-of-contract (e.g. Peacock - and let's not forget a big part of this was him playing for his hometown club). Remember even the cash-strapped Bulls wouldn't let us sign Vainikolo, however much we wanted him.
The point is that as wealthy as we may be relative to other SL clubs, there are, and have always been, limits to what the club can do by throwing money around. It's not fantasy RL.'"
You make some fair comments. I only meant we'd be able to compete for these players if the marquee spot was to become available if Merrin was to leave - without an available spot I agree they may not be achievable. I don't know if saints are using their marquee spots but I imagine that between Coote / Thomspon / Naiqama / Roby and Walmsley there must be 2 of them that are on it. if either Walmsley or Thompson wasn't in the marquee spots I'd go after one of them.
