Loved Gray Pearce - he's fat, he's round, he's worth a million pound, Gary Pearce!!!!

I remember when Pearce had just joined Hull from RU. Real early on in his Hull career, think it was at Featherstone he was about to take a conversion practically under the posts, the ball fell over as he had just stated his run up. Not knowing in RL he could simply stand it back up, he attempted to flick the ball over as it was on its side on the floor! Everyone was wtf!?? Apparently in RU if it fell over that was the rule and that’s why players used to lay down and hold the ball to stop it blowing over in windy conditions before the kicker kicked it. Still, can’t remember the last time I saw a teammate holding the ball at goal kick/oenalty.

We used to do it in the playground at West Dock Infants!

There has certainly been a seismic shift in the club with arrival of Cartwright as HC.

I feel the decisions by Rowley & Lam not to take on the role have been a blessing in disguise.

So far from what seems to be transpiring in pre season is a club that is being lead both on & off the field in terms of the playing aspect.

Myler has been heavily involved in rebalancing the cap spend with in a squad that had been totally mismanaged for far too long.

Cartwright already seems to be a man that places a lot of value on leadership both in his playing staff but also in his coaching staff.
I can’t remember the last time players took part in full day sessions so that is another big change.
It was known but now seems very apparent in his short time here already that he is a man that has exacting standards that he expects to be met as a minimum requirement for pro players.

I don’t know how far up the table we’ll finish but to have a guy with the experience of Cartwright and to have come here fresh from the NRL and Origin can not be understated as a huge plus.

I hope it will be seen as a three season project when he will have had time to sign some of his first choice Aussies with a full year to run at recruitment for 2026 and 2027 but everything is at least on a professional footing again.

Great recollection. I remember in a press conference after we had won a game at the Boulevard and Pearce had just got back in the team after Smith dropped him to the A team. He'd scored the first try and Smith christened him when he said "We moved the ball left and Porky rolled over near the corner flag" everyone laughed and a legend was born . great player!

Talking to one of the lads in the elite talent group and his first words were '' It's just so much more professional''. He said it's been quite hard to believe just how much has changed and how so much better everything is.
Carty is massive on creating that brotherhood within the squad. He had them meet up on their day off last Thursday to spend some time together.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0k0v ... are-mobile Matt Dean interviewed Cartwright for Humberside yesterday. The interview is in 3 parts, skip to 7 mins, 37 mins and 55 mins to catch his bits. He comes across really well

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0k0v ... are-mobile Matt Dean interviewed Cartwright for Humberside yesterday. The interview is in 3 parts, skip to 7 mins, 37 mins and 55 mins to catch his bits. He comes across really well

Sezer has landed

Was fortunate to get one of the player's telephone calls yesterday evening (Yusuf Aydin) and he said someting very similar. Recalling how Aydin impressed me with how he threw himself into every game last season, I sense that those type of players will revel in Cartwright's approach.

How the bloody hell did you heel a divot in that concrete never mind hold the ball up to kick. West Dock Infants year 1958

Oliver Holmes in any training footage?

The guy who wrote the book on man management was Roy Francis - Smith was not in the same ballpark.

Smith was fairly successful in Aus but was also known as the coach who never won anything in spite of having some great teams (like Parramatta). Had 4 goes at winning GF's and lost all four - hardly a messiah.

Very successful at winning wooden spoons, however, with 3 to his name,