Shopping list for 2025

Quote: The Dentist Wilf "For heavens sake its not so much a case of which top level signing we will get but more a choice of who the hell will come to a club which is, as I said the other day, a basket case with a depressing record an appauling attitude over several seasons and overtly demanding fans. We are at rock bottom. Cartwright has arrived and I think he will be really good but he's probably come to support his dad and not because we are a great proposition. As for Asiata lets face it all he talked about on signing was making a future for his family so in the end at his age, its a good pay day and who could blame him.

I'd like to know who some fans feel is a realistic proposition for us, who would come? It almost has to be someone no one else wants. We could even offer transfer fees that a club might like but who's to say the actual player would come?

We have chased and made great offers to two top quality halves who I think would have changed the dynamic at the club pretty quickly but both turned us down for. I think, the obvious reason stated above, as did two top quality coaches. Let's face it would you come? I think we've done bloody well to get Cartwright and I wonder what he is thinking now watching our games week in week out.

We have, as fans, to lower our sights I feel and try and trust in our new coach who must steer the signings we bring from Australia and attempt to get the best he can cajole into coming, improve things and make us a better prospect for new players coming in in future years. .

We all want the very best for the FC and when players like Sneyd, Kelly Connor Manu Taylor and Minichiello were signing every year it was exciting and they came because of our potential and for a chance to win something, quite frankly at present we have no potential besides a host of quality young players who might or might not make it.

When Mini, Ellis, Manu, and Pritchard faced the attitude and inertia of the rest of the squad head on in the changing rooms at Widnes that night in 2016, they changed the whole dynamic of the team, by saying we came here to win things not to bugger about, they then policed it, but they also saw the potential of what we had and signed up to make the difference and a further name for themselves.
Anyone looking at our team at present must see moving here as a last resort.

Shaun McCrae, Motu Tony or Superman couldn't do any better than Myler because of the current state we are in as a club. It's not for the want of trying and having high aspirations but we are hardly attractive as a career development prospect are we?? I think for now, we just have to get the best Cartwright can persuade to come (if its Sizer than so be it), and hope he can make a difference. We are in dire straights right now and as I said earlier would you want to come??'"

I really liked the Cartwright appointment on paper as he seems to tick most of the boxes of what we need at the club. My only worry was that sometimes Aussies with no experience of the league really underestimate the competition, I know he did a season as a player but that was 30 years ago. Maybe he’s just massively underestimating what’s needed? Sezer just isn’t a player that’s anything special in SL, in fact he’s one of those rare players that’s seemingly better suited to the NRL and how it’s structured. Having him tied to a two year deal at 33 taking a quota spot is just absolute madness. A lesser extent Cust too, I feel he could offer a bit more but on the evidence so far he’s not been anything special.

Maybe the coach has just been allowed to make a couple of poor calls? Maybe he’s been offered better players but stubbornly wants people who he’s worked with? That’s just a huge guess on my part, but I’m not convinced players refuse to join because we’ve had a couple of poor seasons. It’s not stopped Wakey recruiting decent players. We’ve either not got the money or maybe just still making poor recruitment decisions.