Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 8:13 am  

The Dentist Wilf wrote:

Well that's it I guess having watched that, we are pretty much at rock bottom now, although that may yet come on Saturday, with a somewhat resurgent London eying another two points but the one big hope (that in truth and all logic we were never ever going to pull off I mean would you come and play for us if you were that talented?) hasn't happened but as always in those situations its the hope that has killed you, but we are, despite a few scatter. gun signings and some outstanding youth, really in a hole and for this fan the end of the season can't come quickly enough. Years of under investment and replacing class with also rans season on season has come home to roost. The saddest thing of all is that you don't have to look far in this City to see what can be done with incremental year on year improvement and a bit of investment at the right time. We are all still behind our club for where else can you go but its all pretty heartbreaking at present and we really do need a lift.

No where near rock bottom, things were defiantly worse at the start the of the season.

Smith as coach
Full cap squad and all quota places used
No sign of any investment
Games over by 20 mins

Whilst now we have some great youngsters who have proved they are SL standard
New coaching staff
Better players coming in
No huge loss of quality players next season
Money available to spend on players including marquees.

Rovers are a good example it took them 4 years to get where they are where nearly relegated in 2019 and finished bottom in 2020, they have built and it will be similar for Hull, although we are in a much better position than what they were with the young players coming through.

Think there are a lot of positives at the club (negatives too) but we have come along way in 6 months, but it will be a long journey yet, which the club and Myler know.

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 10:04 am  

Anyone know. Is Lam seeing out his contract or extended.

From what's been said it sounds like he's just seeing it out?

Maybe the clause was just for nrl after all?

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 11:20 am  

I was hoping no announcement pre game yesterday we were in with a chance of signing Lockie, till I saw Cartwright and Lamb exchanging pleasantries, then I kind of thought the game was up.

But we have shown our hand on investment possibilities, and that alone is an absolute silver lining, perhaps we could now use a bit more nouse regarding any future dealings and if possible keep it under wraps until any deals are signed sealed and delivered, this last carry on near killed me. Like lambs to the slaughter.
Hopefully we can beat London and avoid that bottom position, and all the whispering that go with it.

And personally would like to see Danny one more time at home to pay tribute to this guys outstanding service.

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 12:11 pm  

The Dentist Wilf wrote:

Well that's it I guess having watched that, we are pretty much at rock bottom now, although that may yet come on Saturday, with a somewhat resurgent London eying another two points but the one big hope (that in truth and all logic we were never ever going to pull off I mean would you come and play for us if you were that talented?) hasn't happened but as always in those situations its the hope that has killed you, but we are, despite a few scatter. gun signings and some outstanding youth, really in a hole and for this fan the end of the season can't come quickly enough. Years of under investment and replacing class with also rans season on season has come home to roost. The saddest thing of all is that you don't have to look far in this City to see what can be done with incremental year on year improvement and a bit of investment at the right time. We are all still behind our club for where else can you go but its all pretty heartbreaking at present and we really do need a lift.

To say this season has been a long haul is an understatement! Reckon it's down there with 1991/92 and 1999 as the worst I have seen in my time supporting the club (with 86/87 and 94/95 not far behind). Like you say, unfortunately this is a result of the past 5-6 years of the club steadily drifting backwards each successive year, a combination of lack of investment and poor decision making by various personnel.

The climb-back has to start now, we simply cannot afford to go any further back from our present position, although I do worry that Saturday afternoon may see another embarrassment come our way. One more step back and we are over the cliff edge to oblivion.

I think what's needed, even more than substantial investment, is brains at the club. We need people who are capable of making the right decisions in the key areas which are fundamental to any successful business. People who make the right choices at the right time leading to improvements and hence success. Think it goes without saying that those type of people have conspicuous by their absence in recent years at Fc.

Whilst monetary investment is obviously needed for any sporting club, it is not necessarily the only answer to the problem. As an example, Manchester United have money beyond most club's reach, but they have under-achieved for more than a decade, primarily due to spending their untold millions very badly whilst becoming a rather badly run sporting organization, so simply throwing money at an issue is not always the solution.

The key people for us, as we attempt to change direction, are Myler and Cartwright. They are the people who have to make the right decisions in the key areas in order to get this club moving in the right direction once more. Signing Lachlan Lam, whilst a welcome boost to fan optimism, would not have solved our problems on its own, our problems go way too deep for a single signing to alter that completely.

The brains trust at the club has to be smarter and more decisive than it has been since 2017. They have to make the right calls at the right time concerning the right people. If they don't, we will be having this same conversation in twelve months time. We cannot afford to repeat past mistakes for much longer. Those in charge of the club's affairs have to start getting it right, and they have to start that process right now, or we are doomed.

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 3:26 pm  

Dave K. wrote:

No where near rock bottom, things were defiantly worse at the start the of the season.

Smith as coach
Full cap squad and all quota places used
No sign of any investment
Games over by 20 mins

Whilst now we have some great youngsters who have proved they are SL standard
New coaching staff
Better players coming in
No huge loss of quality players next season
Money available to spend on players including marquees.

Rovers are a good example it took them 4 years to get where they are where nearly relegated in 2019 and finished bottom in 2020, they have built and it will be similar for Hull, although we are in a much better position than what they were with the young players coming through.

Think there are a lot of positives at the club (negatives too) but we have come along way in 6 months, but it will be a long journey yet, which the club and Myler know.

It didnt take HKR four years to turn the corner
The appointment of Peters as head coach in 2023 turned the corner for them.
He came with a plan,make them hard to beat by getting the players ultra fit and putting in place a defensive structure.
The plan worked,then coupled with some proactive recruitment they are now top of the league.
If Cartwright lives up to his image as a disciplinarian and vow to get the squad fitter than they have ever been then thats a good start.
My concern is the bang average fillers Myler has brought in probably before Cartwright was appointed.
We have to hope that Cartwright is working hard in the background to bring in the quality halfback,a decent centre and a big forward that we need.
We need that third quota spot so i wouldnt be resigning Tuimavave

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 3:36 pm  

bonaire wrote:

It didnt take HKR four years to turn the corner
The appointment of Peters as head coach in 2023 turned the corner for them.
He came with a plan,make them hard to beat by getting the players ultra fit and putting in place a defensive structure.
The plan worked,then coupled with some proactive recruitment they are now top of the league.
If Cartwright lives up to his image as a disciplinarian and vow to get the squad fitter than they have ever been then thats a good start.
My concern is the bang average fillers Myler has brought in probably before Cartwright was appointed.
We have to hope that Cartwright is working hard in the background to bring in the quality halfback,a decent centre and a big forward that we need.
We need that third quota spot so i wouldnt be resigning Tuimavave

If Los becomes non quota then I would definitely give him a year, he's been pretty good since coming back. Myler came in after most of the domestic recruiting had been done. Lingard even stated that the domestic recruiting for 2025 was mostly done end of 2023/start of 2024 and most signings announced have been known throughout the league.

It does make the NRL quota signings very important though

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 3:56 pm  

Irregs#16 wrote:

If Los becomes non quota then I would definitely give him a year, he's been pretty good since coming back. Myler came in after most of the domestic recruiting had been done. Lingard even stated that the domestic recruiting for 2025 was mostly done end of 2023/start of 2024 and most signings announced have been known throughout the league.

It does make the NRL quota signings very important though

I like Carlos but its unlikely that this non quota rule will come in for next season.
If it did i would also keep him but move him into the second row.
Dont think fans realise how strong he is and i think he would transition well into that position

[Chris71]

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 7:57 pm  

bonaire wrote:

It didnt take HKR four years to turn the corner
The appointment of Peters as head coach in 2023 turned the corner for them.
He came with a plan,make them hard to beat by getting the players ultra fit and putting in place a defensive structure.
The plan worked,then coupled with some proactive recruitment they are now top of the league.
If Cartwright lives up to his image as a disciplinarian and vow to get the squad fitter than they have ever been then thats a good start.
My concern is the bang average fillers Myler has brought in probably before Cartwright was appointed.
We have to hope that Cartwright is working hard in the background to bring in the quality halfback,a decent centre and a big forward that we need.
We need that third quota spot so i wouldnt be resigning Tuimavave

I get what you’re saying and don’t disagree to an extent however I think we as a club and to be fair to Myler we were in no mans land and in a catch 22 position with Rowley not signing. It likely was a case of do we hold off signing available non quota players even longer and risk losing out altogether until we secured the Coach, putting us in an even bigger hole or pull the trigger on some signings.
We were already in a hole due to poor recruitment & retention by Radford, Hodgson & Smith along with Clark. So to miss out even more on the small pool that was available at the time would have been an even worse situation. Thankfully we have hopefully got a top notch coach who will make a big difference. He seems to be a firm believer in fitness and discipline and doesn’t appear to stand on ceremony for the sake of it, so the easy way of life will be consigned to the exit door.

If money is available then I don’t see any reason as to why we won’t/can’t see players under contract moved on at the end of next season if others become available that will improve us even further.

To make a genuine fist of the changes from this season and the recruitment so far we need quality in the remaining quota spots such as an out & out running half and a centre at the very least and probably another British forward pick up like Ashworth or Aydin would do nicely.

As for Carlos I’d only offer him a deal if he was to classifies as non quota as we really need to maximise the remaining spots.

Re: Lockie Lam : Mon Aug 12, 2024 9:10 pm  

I can't believe people are seriously suggesting we renew carlos contract. He's barely strung half a dozen games together in the last 2 o3 years and his hamstrings re shot