Perhaps its nothing devious and the club wants to free up an overseas spot??

Saying that, we still have one overseas spots free now, solomonas from last season and now Hodgsons has been given away as we've only brought in Big Roy...unless there's another signing that hasn't been announced?

Solomona didn't count towards the quota.

Better than Brian Johnson??.... Not a chance, Johnson was a fantastic all round full back and but for Australia having 2 truly world class number 1's in Garry Jack and Gary Belcher, would have been an Aussie regular at a time when their side was really a great one.

I concur about Johnson but didn't wanna say.

Hesford best kicker we have ever had
Johnson and whitehead two best fullbacks
Don't think Hodgson would get in top six imo

No probs with your alternative points of view.

I did say ''the best full back we've had since Hesford and Whitehead IMO and I'm not sure then who would come out on top.''

Stats can give an indication (these taken from Wikipedia and other sources so could be slightly out)
Whitehead 1969–79 274 17 713 21 1516
Hesford 1980-86 ? 17 508 18 1092
Johnson 1985-88 ? 48 0 0 192
Hodgson 2011–13 74 39 311 2 792
Hodgson compares favourably here

But it doesn't take into account the defensive effectiveness or the differences in playing in a winning team verses a mediocre one.
Also it doesn't show the guidance given to the rest of the team from this position.

I did raise my eyes when Padders said Hodgson wouldn't get in the top 6 though ! Can't really think of another 3 ahead of Brett since '69.

I would agree that Hesford is the best kicker and I'd take any one of those three at their prime as fullback now.
Johnson was very very good and I'd have him up there too.
I think Hodgson's organizational ability was the best. (Man of Steel before he came to us but still at the top of his game with us).

Onward and upward.
Ratch looks like he's going to be given a half back role, so our 'new boy' at 1 has a lot to live up to.

Hodgson was a World Class full back who played state of origin.

He was a world class goal kicker as was Hesford, Johno wasn't

He was world class at taking high balls as was Hesford, Johno was good but prone to the odd error

He was world Class at joining the attacking line and creating overlaps and tries for himself or other players. Hesford and Johnno were not creative fullbacks maybe unfair as it wasnt their job back then
Brian Johnson was world class at joining the line at full pace and creating breaks and tries for himself.

Hesford and Johno were two of my favourite ever players, but Hodgson was the best I've seen by some distance.

I also Liked Dave Lyon and Paul Ford ( who kept Johno on the bench in the 86 final) but not in the memory of man are those two better than Hodgson. So I'm at a loss to think of six better than Hodgson.

I think the role of a full-back changed significantly from when Johno (a personal favourite) played to when Brett (and the likes of Lockyer) have risen to eminence.

The modern day FB is like a third half-back and joins the line much more frequently so it's not exactly a like for like comparison. Both wonderful players, excelling at different facets of the game who gave huge enjoyment.

Mention of Dave Lyon reminds me of the tactic we employed whereby he'd receive the ball on the first tackle and immediately kick downfield. He had a huge kick on him and the tactic was to play the percentages and trap the opposition in their 25, and it often worked.

I recall the purists on the terraces being unhappy about it, but it was pretty much ahead of it's time, and I seem to recall the idea came from Johno's time as coach. One of the players at the time once told me he (Johno) had some brilliant ideas but some of the players struggled to put them into practice. I guess this was borne out by the fact he rose to be one of the leading development coaches in Australia.

Note Hodgson and Johnson played at 4 points a try.

Whitehead played 2 points for a drop goal until 73.

Hodgsons defence was like a revolving door

Fullbacks as in playing the position not including kicking
in front of Hodgeson I would put in no order
Whitehead
Hesford
Johnson
Lyon
Ford
Davies
then Hodgeson who's defence was aweful imo

Billy Aspinall?
Keith Affleck ?
Lee Penny?
Chris Eckersley?
Derek Finnigan ?

Davies played the majority of his games for us at Centre - certainly in 93-94. If you're saying David Lyon was a better full-back that Brett Hodgson then your credibilty is up for some serious questioing. Lyon was ok at best, and didn't look spectacular when he went playing for Saints either.


Hodgson is far an way the best full-back i've seen playing in the P&B in my time watching - one who would win you games, and did so on a regular basis.

Brett Hodgson turnstyle in Defence Oh my giddy loving god......!!!!
you could find a hundred clips of Billy Slater being goosed one on one while hes the last line of defence ....
even more of Sam Tomkins. you cant judge a full back on that



Is it the same Brett Hodgson who was key to us having the best attack and Defence in the league in 2011

I'd think about putting Hodgson into my best ever top 3 Aussie players we've ever had....

this kind of thinking doesnt bode well for any tries scored down Kevin Penny's wing next season ...all his fault again i'm afraid........

maybe the club could put little tips on the general understanding of Rugby League on bottom of the pint pots so more people would have a fecking clue what they are on about..........

I liked Lyon and Penny but couldn't put them above Hodgson.
Davies could play anywhere in the backs (and one of my fav players) but didn't play much as fullback for us so didn't include him.

Still, nice to dismantle the reputation of another ex-player and continue the theme of "He wasn't really that good was he?" that started before Briers tears were dry on his GF shirt.

I well remember standing on the fletcher end during Phil Blake's first stint (22 tries in 19 games), watching in astonishment as Blake took the ball chipped the defence, regathered, sidestepped the FB, lost a boot and outpaced the cover to score for what was a fairly regulation try for him. As the wires faithful went crazy, some guy next to me harrumphed and said "all he can do is score tries, can't tackle to save his life."

Beginning to think said person is alive and well on this forum.

This. I'm willing to bet that there are a few people who've said exactly that on this thread, who until two months ago wouldn't have said a word against Brett Hodgson. As for comparing him with players from yesteryear, there isn't any point. Hodgson is (or was) a completely different type of player from all the others, so how can they be compared? For example, both he and Derek Whitehead were fine goal kickers and both won the Lance Todd Trophy, but how else can you compare them?
Hodgson was a fine signing (one that I disagreed with at the time, but I was wrong), and did well for us, but time was starting to catch up and he took one knock too many. Good luck to him for whatever he does in the future.

I could write a book with some of the pearls of wisdom I have heard in the south stand this year!

You missed out Gary Hulse. Didn't he play full back for a game or so. Surely he's ahead of Hodgson in your view.

Can you move onto props next please? Start with our worst ever - Morley and Carvell - and work up the list to the likes of Teitzel and Fogerty etc.

Go on, you know you want to!

No way. And not even a mention of Mathers or Reardon!

Don't start him off, it'll be centres next.

That's his all time favourite subject. Don't think he needs any encouragement from me.....

I wasn't old enough to see some of those players on PADDERS list, but I assume from that you mean they were crap?