It is a mystery what has gone on, that is for sure.
The timeline in published sources appears to show that Joey has wanted to leave since the start of the season; that he needs to return to Australia and heavily hints have been dropped in that Grima or a close family member has a serious problem, perhaps a medical one, which they do not want to disclose.
Grima has been involved with the club just over a year and although history will show just one league win in about twenty games he has always been an entirely decent guy trying his best to rebuild the club, just has Tony Rea did, really working to repair the damage done from the leadership above him.
If you look at a very well run club like Leigh, they have managed to get their recruitment pretty much perfect by cherry-picking players from their best part-time rivals, getting in for the better SL players released in their Geographical catchment area of Lancashire and Yorkshire with a sprinkling of club developed players also in there.
It is also true they have been building up for for 10 seasons in the same league and have incrementally improved.
By comparison, rather than follow this model, we have as a club gone a long way away. From a retention perspective, senior players were offered reduced contracts whilst club-trained players a deal without the included housing. Yet again the cupboard was bare when it would not have been implausible we could have retained some players who left, though as a club we have been generally foolish over the past few years, such as the disgraceful decision to release Oliver Wilkes for Jarrod Hickey and to release Andy Ellis whilst keeping on players well past their best.
We seemed to have signed players based on international Rugby League games, like the European Championships, whilst in one or two cases old mates of Joey seemed to have rang up and asked to join. I'm sure they may have a point to prove, but they don't all look like proving their point.
We've been left with a very ecletic mix of players from many places and leagues many of who look less keen on the blood and thunder Rugby League on a freezing Yorkshire afternoon with a less conditioned but sizeable player in their face.
If we looked at Joey's recruitment and retention he has about half a squad of good signings with Brad Dwyer, Rhys Williams and Rhys Lovegrove who are all Super League standard plus of course Mathers and Harrison, whilst Naiqama has been quiet so far and Riley has been unfit. Slyney, Jon Wallace and Dollapi are probably the best players retained altough Wicks, Everett, Macani and Walker all have potential.
If we are to build for Super League, especially if our partner is a near-certain Super 8 rival, then we cannot count on the player being available should we make the top 8. Needless to say all supporters would rather win with borrowed players than lose to a team with let's say 4 or 5 on loan by not taking advantage of the rule, but it is not sustainable as a foundation.
In the halves where we have unproven youths and of the two senior players one has a long term injury and we were told by the RFL not to sign him and look elsewhere whilst one didn't play well pre-season having previously been a shocker on our shores. There's no one of our own with a good kicking game. I can imagine rival clubs looking at us with disdain having to use Dual Registration with what looks like poor forward planning.
Most of the players I've not mentioned by name have not shown they are better than mid-to-bottom end Championship standard.
Moving forward, I would hope the new manager introduces more aggression to the side; more battle-hardened players.
I don't mind Andrew Henderson getting a shot, he's got some winnable games coming up too.
Cheers
Mark
