Must remember to run potential recruits/imports past Smokey to see if they can be classed as 'top quality'.

Sorry, will remember next time!

What would you class as a lot

Given that Wakefield have had ten years in SL but the first two were without any SL money. The number of juniors produced has steadily been increasing.

Hust a few off the top of my head are:
Westwood
Ellis
Brough
Feather
Mason
Houghey
Blaymire
Applegarth
Snitch
Ferguson
Spicer
Handforth
March
March
Stephenson
McDonald
Pitts
Bibb
Murphy
Griffin

There's sure to be more from the past and I know there are a few coming through.

As has been said the reasons behind this signing are pretty extreme and well documented.

As a club Wakefield have dipped into the championship for players probably more than any other club in the SL.

We have as good a track record in junior development as any club outside of Leeds, Sts and Wigan and probably better than some.

you can say that all you want, it doesnt make it true, you have 10 overseas players in a squad of 25, thats not faith in youth, nor it is it faith in british players,

if you were giving british players a chance you would have 40-50% fewer overseas players

if your claiming brough, you cant claim, Griffin, March or Blaymire, and that isnt a particularly impressive list is it? for 11 years of Super League rugby?

it is nowhere near as good as Bradfords or Hull FCs, or Cas or Wires track record either

but maybe its better than Salford, Hudds, and Quins, and Hull KR

so at least its better than an expansion club (who at the moment have more players from their academy in their squad than Wakefield, and have more British players in their squad than Wakefield) A club who have been in SL for half as long as wakefield since promotion, one which is in its first year since promotion, and one which is in its third year, wakefield meanwhile have been in SL for 10 years

also all of Quins, Hudds, and Salford have fewer overseas players than Wakefield

well they clearly arent 'top' quality, the same as donald and Lueluai arent, how do we know this? because they were only ever fringe NRL players, Top Quality players acheive more

And so would every other team! In an ideal world the Super League would be made up entirely of players from the home nations and France without a single import in site! Thing is, we don't live in an ideal world. We've had to deal with the death of a player, a player being diagnosed with a terrible illness and then the near death of another player, obviously this has left us short in numbers when added to the players out through injury. If JK does not feel any players available in the UK are up to standard at the moment (including the academy products at all clubs) then what option does he have?

Who's to say Winterstein won't add anything to the game? For all anyone on here knows he may be an international in the making, then again, being impartial, he may be a let down. However our let down won't cost us as much as the likes of King has Warrington who was gunna bring the hous down with his move to the UK. For me its a calculated gamble, something Kear has done very well with, with British talent from the lower leagues.

Why exactly?

Brough, Blaymire and March all came through the academy system at Wakefield. Griffin fair enough. Although it shows that the club is willing to peruse the amateur scene when looking for recruits as oppose to just taking punts on NRL fringe players.

I do find it interesting how an apparently innocent question has turn into a Trinity bashing thread by Smokey et al.

a fair few do!

no we wouldnt, in an ideal world we would have a smattering of top quality imports in every side, we would have squads with 3 or 4 world class international imports, and squads of 21 british players, Top Class imports are good for the game, players like Winterstein are papering over the cracks of a failling youth policy, if Wakefield cant put their mind to it and bring through a prop better than a 2nd/3rd string NRL player, they dont deserve to be in SL.

how many other clubs have 10 or more overseas players?



he suffers the consequences of his inability to find and bring through quality young players, whether that means not bringing in another 3rd string NRL player, or losing one of those he has



thats the point, he will probably come over and do a job, but all that does is paper over the fact Wakefield havent brought through enough talent through their academy or from elsewhere in britain to be sustainable,

until they suffer the consequences of this, they will never give youth development the attention it deserves,

March started at Cas did he not? and didnt blaymire and brough leave without making an appearance? the same as Griffin did at London?

Really

So finding a young British player like Griffin and develoing him into a player worthy of the England train on squad does'nt count.

Bringing players through the Academy from their early teens does'nt count.

No neither of the March's started at Cas

Back up that statement and show me the list of players from Bradford, Hull FC, Cas, and Warrington that is significantly better than Wakefields.

10 years in Super League for Wakefield, and as I stated it takes time to develop a SL quality youth system, you don't get one off the shelf at Tesco fella.

Your motives for being in this discusion have become way too transparent with some of these claims.

Both March twins are Wakefield products, Brough was ditched due to him trashing a mini bus, nothing to do with talent. Blaymire suffer a bad injury (knee reconstruction) and then went to Australia before coming home before playing for York then to Wakefield two seasons ago.

How long do you need to develop a quality youth system?

How does bringing in a young reserve grader from the NRL improve your British talent development?

There was a time that relegation avoidance was an excuse for such recruitment. Much less so now.

No doubt he will be on the internet looking to discredit your post or prove we are miles behind other clubs!!! Not that he has any anti wakey agenda!

l dont know? Do you?

How does your club stack up over the same time span re youth development???

I was very pleased that we beat Catalans with only 2 overseas players and I would be very disappointed if after a decade of continuous SL presence the Giants started signing NRL reserve graders. it would be a backward step.

% of Wakefields squad that are overseas = 37%

% of Leeds squad that are overseas = 20%

Not as wide as I would have thought.

Classic way of avoiding the question.

To be fair, Huddersfield do have one of the best academies in the league…………






Wigan.

Well Done, so your Academy is now starting to bear the fruits of its labour! How long has it taken??

It is funny that you were not making the same points re imports last year, or the year before or the year before that! l wonder why that was???

Nothing avoided old dear. Your guy said wakey had been in SL 10 years and developing a system takes time i asked how long.

Our system has been steadily improving. More international honours across age groups / better performances from 18s and reserves and the recruitment of excellent coaching staff.

I would be appalled if we were taking NRL reserve gradersafter 10 years in SL - very poor.

When was the last time we recruited a guy with only 4/5 NRL appearances in his whole career? i am not sure this board existed back then



Say what you like, recruiting a NRL reserve grade player after a decade in SL and with no relegation pressures is very poor.

Going to just ignore the questions then??

Feel free to start a thread on your questions. Go nuts.

This thread is about wakey signing a reserve grade overseas player after 10 or so years in SL. It is a backward step. If you think it is good for the game, so be it.

Actually the thread has turned into the relative successes and failures of clubs to produce its own players over a given time span!

So again, l will ask, are you going to answer the questions that are relevant to this thread and about your own club?

If you want a thread on that...start one



This thread is about a relegation free SL club of 10years or so with bags of cash (ie the Bird offer) opting to sign a reserve grader from Oz. It is shameful.

Cut the crap troll, your parasite club (you know the one that body snatched Sheffield) has no room to talk. Even if any of your current Academy make it you will move them on and buy another Rod Jenson.

Also what do you think about Hudds getting rid of a promising British coach and replacing him with a non achieving Aussie - backwards step?

Still if you think having an Aussie coach is good for the game so be it. Shameful I call it.