He looked a reasonable prospect but needed to bulk up a bit, not sure how he got on in oz but as he's back inside a year I'd assume not that well.

Now with eden and the other young FB he wouldn't get much of a chance at Rovers, same at hull.

I think these young players use this as a way on living in oz and travelling for a year and who can blame them.

Be interesting to see how dave peterson is getting on as he looked like he coud of made a good SL player.

Yeah i was disappointed when he left, i did think if anyone of ours had a chance down under it was him

I really liked dp and felt he would be a quality player in time. I hope he come back to us but if hes makes the grade in oz and I've no doubt he will you cant blame him.

Yes Petersen was the one who we would most liked to have kept. People will laugh but he reminded me of Gavin Miller with his all energy perpetual motion style of play. Yes, yes, I know.....

At Widnes Sheriff in his own 20 metre zone, facing ahead threw the ball two handed back over his own head completely blind to who was there and a Widnes player unopposed simply caught it and stepped a couple of paces to score the easiest and softest try in the history of Rugby League.

In a brief moment Sheriff's understandable inexperience became unforgivable stupidity.

Almost as stupid as Billy (Best full back in the world there has ever been) Slater throwing a ball backwards over his head from the side line for a Kiwi try in a world cup final, now thats inexperience for you

Liked Peterson thought sheriffe was rubbish

With ET's departure confirmed, maybe we'll get another signing. If we get just one more (and NH said we'll likely be running a slightly smaller squad more reliant on quality), would a wing or a prop be more of a priority?

I guess it depends on how Maki and Paniu develop in a full time environment, but that is hard to judge in advance.

As things stand...

Props: A. Walker, J. Walker, Weyman, Netherton, Maki, Green. Lovegrove, Costigan and Langley can play there too, but that might create a hole in the back row.
Not bad, but the loss of ET leaves us a bit thin and likely needing at least 1 of Maki or Green to make a big impact in 2014. Poore would make this an area of real strength, rather than of slight concern, IMO.

Wing: Disco, Hall, Paniu (mixed reports on his natural position), Caro. As Hall will be needed to cover other positions from time to time, and Caro's confidence dropped away after showing some decent glimpses early on, we could really do with Paniu turning out to be a more than adequate replacement for Brown. Gleeson, Salter or Hallett could maybe cover if we have fewer injuries in the centres (which you'd hope is likely). I'd probably be slightly happier to make the best of that and get a prop - but if we could get a good wing who is also a very good goal kicker, then the choice is harder.

Why are you and other people thinking they are first team players?

They have been signed BY Stanley FOR Stanley in his new role at Gateshead.

There may be longer term benefits for Rovers in the event that they one day develop into full time professional players at elite level.. which they are currently a million miles from.

Honestly these guys are not even going to enter Craig Sandercock's thoughts and they are not going to be registered as first team players. Why would they be? They are part time players who have only ever played in a tiny third world country competition.

Costigan, Mead and that big No. 5...they are all from the NRL. These two are Stanley Gene projects nothing more and good luck to them but Maki & Paniu are here for their own development & to help Stanley out at Gateshead.

If I was a betting man I'd say neither of them are ever going to wear a first team shirt for Rovers. But I'm not, so I'll stick with certainties.....it'll take a massive injury crisis the like of which we have not seen since 2013 and before that 2012.

Have the rules changed, a lot seem to have been but not been announced, because overseas players couldn't play for dual reg clubs last season.

Kolpak and non quota can. Only non EU and kolpak passport holders require work permits.

That isn't how it has been presented. You may be right, and they'll certainly be projects, possibly starting out at Gateshead (it is just quota players that are excluded from that, Sheldon). But 'tiny' PNG has a population more than 20 times that of Samoa and Tonga combined (though there's a big Polynesian diaspora, of course). It's a good bit more populace than New Zealand. RL is their national sport and national wealth is more an issue in developing rather than producing talent. I'd be pretty surprised if we don't register them, to say the least. Squad numbers in the 20s perhaps. Unless you've been told different?

Not sure, wasn't Kylie Leuluai not allowed to play? Not sure of his passport tbh.

I'm genuinely apologetic if I gave even the slightest suggestion of disparaging PNG as a nation that isn't where I was coming from.

It's their Rugby League competition that I meant was tiny and by any measure it really is.

Playing in the PNG comp is like playing for Dockers, quality and fitness wise. If that's all you've ever played in...well you're a Stanley Gene project.

You think Sandercock signed these players? Give over!

Stanley has picked out a couple of hopefuls who might help him out at Gateshead. They won't even be single registered never mind dual registered if that answers Sheldons question.

There's no way we are going to waste 2 non fed spots on these guys. For goodness sake!

Surely can't be as bad as you're making out to make the png squad who's national sport is rl? Add this to the quotes that have said that maki could even make it in the nrl suggests that at least one of them aren't bad