That's good thinking!


I got a text from my mate, asking me whther I had heard anything, as he heard this last week. I hadn't heard nothing up untill he text me. He said one of his Saints friends had told him.

i dont believe that

Don't believe it then?

no i mean i dont believe you have mates

We have signed him as a halfback, whether at 7 or 6 I don't know. But he will be a starting halfback for us. He will provide valuable experience to our young players but he also has utility value and so might cover fullback if Wello is injured or hooker, since he has also played both positions. But I'm happy with the signing because we need cover at halfback and given the dearth of experienced halfbacks available anywhere just at the moment, I think signing him has been an astute move by Saints. As a Kiwi he should settle well into our little Kiwi community here in St Helens.

I sincerely hope we do NOT let Puletua go. Flannery could be the more likely.

Incidentally, Meli doesn't count on the quota at all as he has been with us long enough not to be subject to the new rules.

Like I said, don't believe it then?

Hohaia has played in the halves more than he has at fullback over his NRL career. I think he's OK but not a world beater. He always struck me as the type of player who would come over to SL and play for someone like Castleford or Harlequins, I wouldn't have had him down as a Saints type of signing. But times have changed, I would have said the same about Royce Simmons a few years ago as well. I don't think Saints are in danger of meltdown but they are not as high up the food chain as they were.

PS: At the moment, Castleford are top of the league.




You reckon?

Saints have two needs going into next season: a halfback to replace Kyle and a utility player to cover for injuries to our backs. He will be a starting halfback and offer utility cover. He has experience of both. He will also be one of just two players in Superleague who has a world cup winner's medal. So he has ability and international experience. He has only just turned 28 so he's got a few good years left in him and he's a Kiwi, and we like signing Kiwis/South Pacific Islanders.

How then is he not a 'Saints type' of signing? Not Mal Maninga you mean? Or Jamie Lyon? (Who was written off in the NRL due to internal head issues, and many thought he was a naff call at the time ...)

but if he'd have signed for wire..i suppose he'd be a world beater then eh?

ha Lyon was never written off, everybody knew Saints were getting quality with him

I was thinking guys in the calibre of Lyon, Britt, Albert etc but in fairness Saints have also signed lots of other guys like Meli, Flannery and so on who were more in the category of player that Hohaia is.

I think the difference is, in the key positions, Saints never had to sign anyone because they had the best British players already there: Wellens, Long, Pryce, Cunningham, Sculthorpe. Three of them have gone, one is not the force of old. So to keep parity Saints would be needing to sign from the top of the tree not the middle branches. The middling type 'good' players are OK when they are supporting top class. What Saints are going to become soon is what they were in the decade before SL started....a team of good players with no star quality. In fairness they grew most of that star quality out of their own ranks and picked up a couple of good signings in Scully and Long.

people have been saying this for over a decade, saints are on the decline.... just have a little peak at the league table for me to confirm how the we compare to your team of "stars"?

And you think that fans should vote for their team in a poll on RLFans

I didn't even bother readign this post and I know it will be utter rubbish.

I didn't refer to his ability, but to his mental state. In competitive sport, you can have all the ability in the world but if your head isn't in the right place, it is useless.


That's right. So you are really making a mockery of your own statement! And we wouldn't have had to sign Hohaia either had Kyle Eastmond decided to stay with us. I think we have done just fine and I for one see him as a better signing than Meli, who while he is a real threat 10m from the line, is a liability in defence and lazy to boot.






Nah, we've let Warrington be that team.

chomp chomp chomp

I think a little peak at your trophy cabinet over the last few years is a much better gauge of where your at these days, thats if you still have the need for one.

As for the signing of Hohaia, i'm chuffed to bits for you as he's improved into a very good full back these days.

Now that your replacement for Wellens is sorted, whose replacing Eastmond next season ? Will it be Pryce and Lomax or will you go for a quality half back ?

I see where you're coming from, but the sad thing is, I dont think this is the case.

i imagine sally throwing a 3 pointer into the waste paper bin..... then treating himself to a cup of coffee after your bite on 'RLfans voting for their team'.

But it wasn't a post looking for bite's, it was serious. It's obvious that it was serious due to how thought out it was and that's why it was worringly daft.

doh!

You can carry on acting like this but your inability to think out a reasonable and appropriate response shows you think exactly the same as me, you're just trying to save face for your fellow poster.

So do you not think the thread was a sarcastic dig at Warrington's 'we know more than Tony Smith' fans?

It could very well of been to be fair. If it was sarcasm then I won't of picked up on it, I deal with numbers and struggle to grasp sarcasm to be quite honest. If it was sarcastic then I will hold my hand up as I haven't got a clue about sarcasm.

no i wouldv'e been pretty ed off to be honest, probably as ed off as i was when we signed mickey higham, cos i'm not a fan of him either.

but thats quite understandable, he's pap!

He's certainly no Jon Clarke, that's for sure.