Rugby League players who could have/could make the switch

[WorkingClassRugger]

I'm a bit surprised by the prevailing attitude to drugs expressed above, since normally I find this forum to be quite liberal. I'm not sure there's any evidence that a drug like cocaine or marijuana is anywhere near as bad for users or their community as a drug like alcohol or tobacco.

There's a strong moral argument against using drugs because you're knowingly supporting the business model of actual criminals (and ultimately the exploitation and murder of Colombian coca leaf farmers, for instance), but that's born of the illegality of drugs rather than drugs themselves.

And re: the "he signed a contract" idea, there are plenty of occasions in which I think employers use the negotiating imbalance inherent to employment contracts to require unfair conditions. It's obviously a legal defence of the club's actions, but I don't think it makes them fair.

Anyway, that's my $0.02. I think he was pretty hard-done by.

The history of DV, on the other hand, makes me absolutely not want him in rugby.

I'm actually all for the legalization of otherwise commonly thought of as recreational drugs like Marijuana and even a number of party drugs as a means of regulating, controlling the quality and composition of these substances. I see a regulated industry that is accountable for their product as a preferable situation to the current system where many of these substance are made in suburban makeshift labs and cut with god knows what.

There's also the opportunity to generate taxation revenue that then could be used in education and/or prevention programs in regards to drugs as a whole but also in particular the more anti-social substances such as Ice etc.

My objection to Barba is more a history of indiscretion and misconduct.

 

[p.Tah]

Kayla Ponga is rumoured to be signing a $3.6m 5 year deal with the knights. He's 18 and played 2 NRL games. That's $720k a year. The Knights are barking mad if true.

He may well be the next Thurston but he didn't hit his straps until his mid 20s.

http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.a...t/news-story/48e8f04a093afc8cd9a834425bed6264

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Kayla Ponga is rumoured to be signing a $3.6m 5 year deal with the knights. He's 18 and played 2 NRL games. That's $720k a year. The Knights are barking mad if true.

He may well be the next Thurston but he didn't hit his straps until his mid 20s.

http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.a...t/news-story/48e8f04a093afc8cd9a834425bed6264

The Knights are bloody desperate. That's what that is.

 

[Sully]

I thought they were broke?

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[Jeeper]

Knights are owned by the NRL, no such thing as broke!

 

[Strewthcobber]

NRL Prodigy Kalyn Ponga Credits Year 10 Highlights Camera Guy For $4m Contract



Club legend Andrew Johns voiced his excitement at the move today and has offered his services to mentor the young gun during his time in the city.

Speaking on Triple M this morning the 8th immortal said “I’m bloody excited mate, this kids real good. I tell yah, he will get away with whatever he wants up here. Just give me 6 months with the little fella and all the boys at training him will be calling him Kalyn Pinga instead of Ponga.”

http://www.betootaadvocate.com/spor...ear-10-highlights-camera-guy-for-4m-contract/

 

[Mustafa]

The Knights are bloody desperate. That's what that is.

I watched a few of his games and he was ok but nothing spectacular. To be worth this sort of $$$$ is plain dumb by Newcastle who don't even have a proper playmaker or a fullback. He has gone there for the $$$$ only as the club itself with its coaching won't help his footy career

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

I watched a few of his games and he was ok but nothing spectacular. To be worth this sort of $$$$ is plain dumb by Newcastle who don't even have a proper playmaker or a fullback. He has gone there for the $$$$ only as the club itself with its coaching won't help his footy career

A crazy amount of money for such a young bloke who is still largely untested.

 

[Highlander35]

Stupid money.

Be even stupider if he didn't take it though.

It's one thing to turn down 4 years at 330k for 3 years at 275k or something. $3.6 million starts to set you up for life after footy by 25 if you've got a modicum of financial sense. Following on from that, you can more or less chase whatever you want. Euros in the Top14, pounds in the Super League, Yen in the Top league. A Wallabies jersey or an All Blacks one if you desire it. NRL titles. A life in Brisbane, or Sydney, or Auckland or Melbourne.

 

[TOCC]

Just hope he has the right guidance, money isn't everything, that is a massive level of expectation and responsibility placed on young shoulders

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Stupid money.

Be even stupider if he didn't take it though.

It's one thing to turn down 4 years at 330k for 3 years at 275k or something. $3.6 million starts to set you up for life after footy by 25 if you've got a modicum of financial sense. Following on from that, you can more or less chase whatever you want. Euros in the Top14, pounds in the Super League, Yen in the Top league. A Wallabies jersey or an All Blacks one if you desire it. NRL titles. A life in Brisbane, or Sydney, or Auckland or Melbourne.

Good on the lad for taking the offer. It's a big win for him and considering that as a professiomal sportsman your career is only one serious incident away from ending everytime you run out on the pitch you cannot begrudge him anything when offered the opportunity to as you mentiom potentially set himself up.

When I was younger and in the Rugby system I received interest from several league clubs. I am a Rugby fan through and through but my old man always told me, if the right offer came in. Take it.

It's just an amazing amount of money to bet on a young kid still yet to play a full season.

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Just hope he has the right guidance, money isn't everything, that is a massive level of expectation and responsibility placed on young shoulders

With tjat sort of money comes a great weight of expectation. Which can either make or break a player.

 

[TOCC]

It's easy to sit on the outside and judge, but I tend to feel he would have been better off signing with someone like the Broncos or Storm in the short term. Be a small fish in a big pond surrounded by players you can learn from in renowned development systems.

Newcastle Knights are a basket case, at one stage in 2016 they were on a 16 game losing streak, and Ponga is now there highest paid player.

 

[wamberal]

The thing in his advantage is that Newcastle is very much a rugby league town, the whole population, seemingly, loves the game.


Plus the place is small enough to be very liveable.


He could go alright there, I reckon.

 

[Braveheart81]

This seems like the NRL putting a lot of eggs in their Ponga basket hoping he can be the centrepiece of an improving Knights team that they can then offload as soon as possible.

With the way the Knights have been going they certainly have to pay over the odds to get anyone good there.

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[papabear]

Good contract for the kid, if anything you kind of have to play him firsts now...

 

[WorkingClassRugger]

Good contract for the kid, if anything you kind of have to play him firsts now.

Couldn't afford not to.

 

[wamberal]

Good contract for the kid, if anything you kind of have to play him firsts now.

No pressure!!!

 

[wamberal]

A lot will depend on his family's attitude. If he is under pressure from his relatives we could be looking at another SBW situation.

 

[Up the Guts]

Has anyone seen the highlights going around of Semi Radardra playing for Toulon? He's got an incredible fend and just runs over people like Rene Ranger used to in his hay day. Don't think we need to go after him with the talent we've got like Koroibete, Hodge etc. but he's the sort of guy who puts bums on seats.