So the famos 'Tongan Mafia' are quintessentially English then are they?

Although your point is valid, stop using it to have a cheap at your rivals and get your own house in order first eh?

But do you honestly believe that is why they would be bringing in Finch and Lima? They are like many clubs trying to find a quick fix. Thinking too short-tern rather than long-term. Saints and Leeds have invested in youth for years. Wigan are starting to do it. Warrington have just pinched everyone elses.

Hull FC are looking good this season. But when Fitzgibbon and Long don't play they struggle. Fitzgibbon is there for a year and Sean Long for two. It will be interesting to see what happens after that period. Wigan did it for years and it nearly got us relegated. Take it from a fan who has experienced this - more often than not it doesn't work! The rare occasions you can fill up your side with overseas talent or snap up other clubs talent and ignore your youth system like Bradford Bulls did it will eventually bite you on the backside. Just see their current lineup to date!

Hull will have 6 overseas players next season, about on par with most other teams.

Whats your point again?

Thinking about it, I'm not sure how accurate the story is. Even if players come off quota, they're still overseas trained.

There is a date where the players have to been signed aswell, I want to say Sep 1st 2007?

It's this stupid exemption rule.

Two of them are quota players and one has benefitted from the rule change brought in following Stanley Gene's 150th birthday, so is no longer considered as a quota player. We have 6 quota players, one of whom is due to be leaving at the end of the year. Beyond that the rest of the squad is British qualified. We have 7 foreigners in the squad.

Not so much a cheap shot, and the point remains that rovers appear (albeit in local rag speculation) to be wanting to keep their current quota players and add some more Aussies. Hull FC are not. While Rovers may have a good youth set up, chances for these players to develop may be few and far between if they are allowed to bring in more overseas players.

Just to clarify!

I do believe players like Fitzgibbon add something to a squad containing young English players and I dont think it is a coincidence that this year Danny Houghton for example has improved a heck of a lot.

What I do not want is more exemptions coming into force limiting even more the progression of homegrown youngsters.

So are you saying if you're classed as 'exempt' you're no longer classed as quota and 'overseas trained'?

1982 and STILL it continues.

Has the game in this country learned anthing since then with all the "experts", "professional role models" etc since then.

Of course it has which is why 30 year old crocks keep being signed for a final pension payout and we destroy the Aussies/Kiwis in every test.

It's so nice to know that all the voluntary effort put in developing kids is going to waste by the attitudes of clubs.

exactly, when exactly are these over the hill pensioners going to start influencing british RL players? We've been waiting 30 years!

It's like the old chestnut about needing Australian coaches to raise the standard of coaching.

Whilst I don;t agree with the amount of overseas players Rovers have and will have next year I won't lose too much sleep if we got to Wembley or win the SL title on the back of them!

How can you seriously believe the likes of Fitzgibbon, Menzies, Johns, etc didnt or havent had a positive influence on their team mates? Seriously imagine been a young kid turning up for training alongside players that have played at the very pinnacle of your sport!?!?!

Fairs do's regards the journeymen Aussies that come across and all teams are guilty of this, these players do keep British talent out of the first team.

So you've been waiting for 30 years to catch the Aussies but would happily watch HKR with a full team of Overseas?

Hmmm a bit contradictory for my liking. I guess your original post was merely a pop at Hull FC?

ALL clubs have been guilty of bringing across way too many AVERAGE overseas players so the chance of more been allowed is a bit depressing IMO.

Agree 100%.

The thing is though, that we are only just starting to see our first crop of good youngsters progress into their late teens - we are at the start of that investment period and it is only just starting to bear fruit. The chairman has stressed that the future of the club is dependent on developing our own players. With 8 of the 25 man squad from next year, having to be club-trained, we'll be including plenty of youngsters - more than some longer established SL clubs who have several club-trained players in their mid or late 20s.

This isn't about Aussies vs Developing Youngsters. It is Aussies, who have come of quota and qualify as fed-trained, vs (mostly pretty ordinary) ooc mid-career Brits. Still a legitimate argument to be had, but the cynic in me suspects that fans of a certain club are more outraged by us (possibly - standard HDM disclaimers apply) having better options for recruitment and resent our luck in this regard, rather than [ijust[/i been concerned about the good of the game

Would this thread have been started if it had been any another British RL team?

I think not.

Obsessed.