OK you can tell its been a while since anyone had some rugby. There is alot of rugby to be played before anything is definative and that IMO goes for all players. So with that proviso in mind.

Wellens ~I can see a rolling one year deal. Personally I'd do this at the moment if he finds a new role. I think we need to give someone the chance to make a play for FB for the long term benefit of the club. But he may have a stormer so who knows.

Soliola/Meli/Wheeler~for me all three are connected. Dixon to but to a lesser extent. We need a new centre. If wheller does not step up and take it then the club have to look elsewhere. If they can get anyone better then Meli will get another year. If Sia signs then we cant go NRL and that limits the centre field even more. If Sia goes then we need cover in the second row therefore increasing dixons chances of a new deal. If Wheeler steps up and takes the centre spot then Saints will be keener to keep sia as they will not need his spot for the centre position.

Flannery ~ hardly played recently and at the moment would struggle to get a bench spot in the starting 17. But the formation of the team will be all important. ie loose forward who will play here? back on the bench policy? how gaskell lance and lomax will fit together? So flannery may still be decent but time to give his spot to an up and coming academy lad.

Dixon ~tough one went well in 2010 less so last year but I was really impressed in the GF he ran some of our best lines tackled well and gave us some penetrating runs. If he can increase his fend and or offloads could be a diamond in the rough. For me he's a keeper at least one year but if he storms it then performance will determine the size and length of contract.

Clough ~ Injury will determine whether he cuts a new deal. We need props but who knows who the club have a long term eye on.

Hale? needs to get some games to prove anything. he is a bit of a srodingers cat. is he good is he not. we'll only know if we open the box.

Wheeler ~for me he could be a skillful centre but needs to get injury free. heart has nothing to do with it. at the moment he would be no major loss. but then neither was keith mason at the time and he went on to be a very hany prop. we need them at the moment.

Its all very long winded but contract negotiations arre rarely done based on one player. we have no idea who saints are targeting from out side. what new players will impress both at saints and in other teams and what players are asking for and what intentions players have to go elsewhere?

I agree with this but if I was saints I'd look what other quality backrows that are available before giving sia a new deal. I like sia and I thought he had very good season last year but I think he lacks slightly with ball in hand, I don't think saints use him proper to be honest, someone with his size, strength and pace (for big man) should be breaking the line more.

If nothing was any better, I'd have no probs giving him 2 year deal.

Anyone suggesting we get rid of Clough really needs their head testing!

He has been injured a lot last season, so people forget what he can really offer.

I suspect that now Graham has left, Clough's metronomic if unspectacular go forward will come in very handy.

I'd also suggest that with the arrival of Flash, Flanders isn't going to be getting an awful lot of action until we get some injuries.

He looked awful when he returned from injury last year, I except he'd been out injured but he looked really really poor.

I'd see how he goes this year, I like clough and hope he gets back to the way he was two years ago.

He was naff last season. He needs to step up quite a few gears this season to be offered a new contract IMO.

Totally agree.

Not making the headlines every week doesn't automatically constitute being naff.

He makes good yards 9 times out of 10 and puts in a good stint defensively. Solid but unspectacular. Every team needs one or two of these in the squad. We cant have 5 James Graham clones unfortunately.

Fully agree with all above points. Would personally re-sign Clough as he was unlucky with injury last year but a very good and underrated forward imo...

Also think a very good point is made on the Soliola/Meli/Wheeler situation as I would re-sign Soliola regardless, but would only offer Meli another year if Wheeler fails to show he can stay injury free and that he can cover the centre position as well.

Would be awesome if we could recruit Jamie Lyon at the end of 2012 (I think that is when his contract at Manly is up) and if we lost Flannery and Meli should have space on the cap and quota for him!!

get over it, he aint coming back

A forward pack of Jammer clones with Roby in his usual Role!!!! Anyone thinking what i'm thinking?

I think we need our own version of "Godwin's Law" applied to all Saints sites whereby any thread that mentions the "L" word gets automatically locked and closed...

People STILL under-rating Clough.

Anyone with half a RL brain can see what he offers our team. A dead cert to get a new contract and rightly so.

Think I,m one of those that don,t rate him, he needs to step up a gear. I know he has his injury problems last season. But for me he,s not aggressive, very rarely makes a break or an offload. What I don,t like is the way he turns his back to the opposition on contact, which tells me he has surrendered momentum.
Hope Royce changes his style in offence, he needs to start the season with a bang and get on the front foot with momentum, if he stays at the same level pre injury, then in my opinion he won,t be good enough for another contract.

I like him, but I would not say a dead cert for a contract. Anyone who was a dead cert for a contract has already got one. So unless he's holding out for more money ( unlikely given he has no form due to injury to back this up), in all likelyhood those who start the season with no contract are either not going to get one, or are going to be playing for a new one.

The only player I can see holding out for other offers or a better contract is Sia. He has performance and age on his side. Performed well last year and is stil young enough to go back to the NRL. Whether he is wanted is another matter, unless you were previously a bit hit in Oz, then players very rarely go back from SL to the NRL. Not sure what image he had over there before he left.

I don't see a problem with that because it allows him to bounce off the tackler and get more yards or force more tacklers into the picture.

Seriously, I know Clough has been injured but how anybody can talk about dumping him on the heap when prior to last season he was the prominent young forward we had. He's just about to start entering his peak years (he's 24) and unless a horror injury strikes I expect us to be locking him into a three year deal or similar.

Swap deal Roby&Higham

and sell Lomax to Wire.

Throw a roof section in and you've got a deal.

I think it was in the 2008 season he looked prominent and I was optimistically seeing him as a similar player to Andy Platt. Was better under Anderson but looked a bit flat under Potter. This season could be make or break for him. Hope he steps up to alleviate the loss of Jammer.

What clough has lost, is that great leg drive for them extra few yards. He used to pump them legs and make good meters but the clough of late goes down to easy.

2011 stats suggest (even struggling with injuries) he made more metres per carry than LMS, his yardage has never been a problem, he makes excellent ground.

His defence and discipline are very, very good indeed too.

You won't get a better prop for the price, I'm sure of that. He's only 24 too (couple of years younger than LMS?) so has improvement in him.

He's a fine player, will get better and is a local lad. A sure fire keeper.

Fortunately it's not his mind he's lost.

For me, I'd give Clough another contract as we don't know how much Perry will offer us this year, given his injury record last season

Id give Clough another contract because he warrants one.

When we had Bryn as well I always said Clough was the one to keep hold of, he goes under the radar a lot of the time but battles in defence, makes the hard yards and has age on his side too... as Don Brennan said he warrants a contract extension for these attributes alone