Sandon next week

[ism22]

He might not have to , been in the middle you get more help / assistance the being in the halves and outside backs . But yea his tackle count will have to greatly increase which may diminish his attack.

Jeez the knoghts are in a world of hurt at the moment.

1.4 mill apiece for brown and kalyn who plays about half a season , awful recruitment .

No coach and all the big contracts locked in... or are they?

IDK! Wouldn't personally be signing with them if I wanted stability or career outcomes. However like Watson... if you're a #14 (or maybe NSW Cup player) and $600k a year over a few seasons is on the table then it'd be stupid to turn it down.

Worst case scenario you bank ~$3m, pay off a house, buy 1 or 2 investments and then go to France for a $300k a year paid holiday afterwards.

I reckon he'd be stupid not to take the offer as he could be relegated to NSW Cup next year, earning say $130-150k in Sydney (which is **** all money when a modest house in Ashfield costs $2.5m these days) and quietly shown the door if he's injured or stagnates.

Dare I say here's a situation where it's probably not bad having Chad Townsend in your ear saying 'bro just stick it out and keep training hard... been there... people shit on me but I own a mansion in Cronulla, have a hot wife and am financially set for life!!! You can go from premiership half to reject in the blink of an eye without doing anything wrong... form's a biatch. Modern players don't have to be a Cooper Cronk or Cam Smith to end up VERY comfortable in life... just gotta keep training hard and play your cards right, mate'.

[Bates]

Dylan Brown will be on $1.4 million a year next season. How ridiculous!

He's a middle tier half who's now playing in the centres for the Eels and has always struggled with consistency.

Some clubs have no idea how to manage their cap! Knights are investing $2.8 mill in Brown who is average and Ponga who's always injured. You can put a line through the Knights 2026 already.

Success starts with ones front office in the NRL.

[bondi.boy]

Robbo - you know it makes sense, Sandon needs to be on the bench next week! Shania Twain off to NSW Cup with Connor starting.

Sandon can and has played that utility role and we can’t afford to have a half go down again and have no impetus in attack.

I’ve been Sandon’s harshest critic but he has it in spades over Shania who had another average game.

Comments/Remarks/Reflections

Benny is basically an inexperienced rookie, learning to play first grade, doing a job for his coach and the team.
He cannot be expected to be a superstar at this stage.

[Roosterfarian]

Benny is basically an inexperienced rookie, learning to play first grade, doing a job for his coach and the team.
He cannot be expected to be a superstar at this stage.

I'm not asking him to be one right now. That's not the point of my post.

The point is that I think Sandon can do an admirable job filling in for 20 minutes at hooker, but more importantly if one of the halves goes down (and we know Sammy's history with HIA), we have one that can step right on the field and cover.

[Steakface]

No coach and all the big contracts locked in... or are they?

IDK! Wouldn't personally be signing with them if I wanted stability or career outcomes. However like Watson... if you're a #14 (or maybe NSW Cup player) and $600k a year over a few seasons is on the table then it'd be stupid to turn it down.

Worst case scenario you bank ~$3m, pay off a house, buy 1 or 2 investments and then go to France for a $300k a year paid holiday afterwards.

I reckon he'd be stupid not to take the offer as he could be relegated to NSW Cup next year, earning say $130-150k in Sydney (which is **** all money when a modest house in Ashfield costs $2.5m these days) and quietly shown the door if he's injured or stagnates.

Dare I say here's a situation where it's probably not bad having Chad Townsend in your ear saying 'bro just stick it out and keep training hard... been there... people shit on me but I own a mansion in Cronulla, have a hot wife and am financially set for life!!! You can go from premiership half to reject in the blink of an eye without doing anything wrong... form's a biatch. Modern players don't have to be a Cooper Cronk or Cam Smith to end up VERY comfortable in life... just gotta keep training hard and play your cards right, mate'.

Well said.

Presumably the market was scoped out, and the Knights were the best option.

Good on him - he should take the cash as he isn't in the elite echelon, and you never know when injuries might strike that could put the career in jeapordy.

He is only 22 years old, and despite having some big flaws in his game he really isn't that bad.

I don't rate him as a hooker yet, because his defence just isn't there. But if he can sort that out, he has potential to be decent there.

As a half, if he can improve his decision making, and ability to generate line break assists, I think he can turn into a tidy half - albeit not near the elite tier.

I like him, but I think we've certainly made the right decision with Savala/Smith.

And yes, I'd prefer him on our bench v the Sharks.

[Bates]

I will always remember Sandon's 2025 Anzac Day performance.

He was outstanding!