Good news. To my untrained eye us letting Davis go last year was a sign that all was not well with our management’s thinking and ability to get buy in from players. More eagle eyed posters will have spotted a plethora of other tells. We seem to have gone the long way around and wasted a year but I’m beginning to get a little bit hopeful about next season. Pending a move to the Isle of Dogs obviously.

With Jordan Williams signing I think we are a centre short of already having a reasonable starting 13. The article on Williams is the first (I think) to refer to any of the two year contracted players. I'm assuming all those players (on two year contracts) will indeed return. Would mean currently this team:

Walker
Ulberg
Grant
TBA
Macani
Leyland
Horsman
Albert
Davis
Bienek
Williams
Lovell
Parata

I guess moving Lovell to centre and Blakemore as a forward, we could technically put out a full 13. Unbalanced but feasible.

If new signings arrive that are clear "starter" level then I think the team should be competing for a play-off spot.

Agreed Crash, let's hope for an upgrade at halfback & kicker.

If we want top 6 we need to add 2 experienced half backs, 2 centres (sorry Dalton), and more depth in pack.

The big advantage of the apparent signings to date is that recruitment can focus on quality over quantity. I get the impression last season it was a desperation to get enough numbers in and the hit rate on Championship level players wasn't great.

I guess Australia may be the source of a couple of key players, but the combination of part-time and London may be an issue (London probably a selling point to an Australian of course).

There is no returning player I'm unhappy to see back. Not all should be in the match day first choice 17 though.

From what I can tell, Will Blakemore was released from his two year contract after the Workington defeat.

Very reasonable summary of the needs. Re Dalton. As an aside what a nice, articulate guy he is. I wasn't aware until reading the press release that he is also a winger. So as a back-up to the centre and wing spots that's useful. He was obviously injured early season but after a slow (understandable) start has done a solid job and I'm not adverse to him covering for injured first choice players. Centre was probably the weakest part of the team last year, I wan't at all impressed with Ferreira. Thought Dalton was the better of those two.

Blakemore wasn’t the worst player but not sure what next steps were for him. I think he’s at Chinnor RU club (is that right?) so that’s probably a decent move to home - perhaps nearer home as well. Good luck to him.

Yes he does seem to be a likeable guy. I didn’t think much of his early form but if he was carrying a knock that may explain it. Also, let’s be fair, we were all over the shop. Players played out of position etc. Agreed it would be good to have real competition in his position.

...and those sports offer full time contracts, DC1. This Northern Monkey only endured black bogeys for a few months at a time if he was getting a good rub from it.

Would remind you Bongser we offered full time contracts up until this season & still no northerners show Rob Purdham's commitment to London or anything like it.

There are quite a few northerners playing p/t non league football & Union in & around South East so my point still stands.

I imagine Purdham was on a much better contract than anything we've offered in recent years.