That is exactly my point, you have read my mind. Lee Briers has performed year in year out (often in some very weak sides) and that is why none of the names mentioned will ever have such an impact on our team. Bloody legend.

Regardless of how good we all think Lee is and how big a servant he has been to the club. We have to turn our thoughts to his replacement as he can't go on forever. There will be a time sometime soon when he isn't in the squad. So what are we looking for in his replacement and is there a current or upcoming player who would fit the bill?

as he says we need be realistic,lee as a 1 year extension,for me this would be a year in which anyone new coming in could learn from him,i wouldnt want to wait till he stops before replacing him.

No thanks.

Ideal replacement would be Benji Marshall, but more realistically someone like Kyle Eastmond, Kevin Brown or Thomas Bosc. Maybe a wildcard like Stefan Ratchford as has been mentioned in another thread, depending on salary cap pressures and the availability of others.

There is a dearth of creative ball playing halves in the Northern Hemisphere, which is why it will prove so difficult to replace him. In fact even in the NRL there is a lack of quality stand offs atm, I'd say New Zealand have two of the best in Marshall and Kieran Foran.

Canterbury have a cracker in Ben Roberts. It all seems to point to an overseas signing, regardless.

Kevin Brown

Bobbie Goulding?

Good shout. He's certainly an excitement machine, never quite fulfilled his potential IMO but would be a top stand off in Super League.

Plus with his cousin Tim Cahill living nearby, this should help him settle in the North West.

It would be nice to sign a British player to fill the void Briers leaves. But with a young inexperienced player at scrum half we really need a stand off that can come in and immediately take a game by the scruff of the neck. We have already seen that Myler is not that sort of player (maybe he will become one when he gets older).

Looking at the current stand off's in SL who could fit the bill

eastmond - he is so good, the fact that he is also young and experienced doesnt really matter.. would he come here? rugby union will be a more likely destination.
brown - probably the stand out candidate behind eastmond... but is he good enough?
bosc - not good enough

we should be looking to improve not replace.

I am expecting TS to bring over some real quality from Australia.

One out of left field a bit - Leon Pryce?

Is he any good?

Have we got big hopes for him, like we do with the winger Williams?

I'm not a fan of Roberts he doesnt seem creative enough for me...Noddy probably takes care of all that though...

I like the look of the young kid Ben Barba...but he's just signed an extension with canterbury..he would appear to be a stand off in waiting so roberts may be available in a season or so...

Barba may be available. I mean, it isn't as if Canterbury would forsake a player like Thurston to retain a player like Anasta, is it?

I don`t know if anybody else agrees but their seems to be a lack of quality stand offs worldwide, in the NRL nobody has really pushed Darren Lockyer for Origin or test selection for quite a while.

Lockyer has been one of the best players ever to set foot on a rugby pitch but he`s nowhere near the player of years gone by, he`s little more than a distributor these days as the pace that took him through gaps isn`t quite their anymore.

Ive not seen a stand off for a long while that has made me think "wow" thats the next Darren Lockyer, Brett Kenny or Leon Pryce.

Jarrod Summat.

Do so many people on here honestly believe that we will just go and sign one of the hottest prospects Saints have got with no bother at all?

IF Eastmond leaves Saints it will surely be for the NRL or RU, not a sideways step (at absolute best, everyone bar us would undoubtedly regard it a step down) in Super League.

I wouldn't. We are a team on the up and i have alot of believe that in the upcoming years we will achieve success. Everything is in place and for the first time in a very long time i can finally say "the future's bright, the futures primrose and blue".

So you wouldn't be suprised if the brightest young British talent left his very successful side, where he's come through the academy, who are about to move into a new stadium and where he's regarded as the main player these days, to a side where you already have a young scrum half and have won 1 trophy in however many years when saints have won numerous, instead of going to RU where he can earn more money and take part in a much higher profile and competitive international game?

I'd consider that a massive shock, IF he was going to leave Saints it'd be either to the NRL or to leave Rugby League completely and go over to Union. Like one of the other posters said its a sideways step at best to go to Warrington, but why would be risk everything he's worked for at saints to just go to a side who haven't been that successful thus far and that he doesn't support anyway?

This isn't a dig at warrington, before people come back with the "yeah but how many trophies have Wigan won lately" etc etc. I just don't get why everyone on here mentions Eastmond as a realistic transfer target. You are a side on the up, but why would players from Wigan/Saints go to play for you except for the money. Leeds players will obviously consider if for Tony Smith, so as unrealistic as a potential Sinfield transfer is, you could at least understand a reason for that.

No i wouldn't consider it a shock...Money talks.

But why would you be able to offer more money than Saints would? And then if he was to leave Saints for money wouldn't he just go to RU?

Possibly because we are the richest club in SL

We can't offer any more money than any others, despite what others may allude to.

not everyone does.

That's what I thought.

You may well be the richest club but there is still a cap, and i'm sure Saints and ourselves at least (as well as Leeds etc etc) can spend up to the full amount. We'll both have more space free in the next few years than yourselves anyway I think, plus he's a wigan fan so surely if we put the same money on the table as yourselves etc etc.



Apologies, generalising.

i agree but on a similar note, the Tomkins bros are Wire fans