Be honest, Tahs family: this squad is one big signing away from a
We're flattering ourselves again, clearly. Every pre-season it's the same song, one marquee signing away, and every May we're watching the Crusaders lift silverware while we're arguing about why Foketi got binned. 😂
But sure, there's NZ$1.2 million sitting at Moore Park and no excuse left. A proper centre changes everything for this backline; we've seen what happens when the Tahs actually land a genuine outside ball-player instead of shuffling blokes around like a pub quiz team. Spend it, and we can talk about a title run. Save it, and I'll put my money where my mouth is at the TAB. I'd rather take the "no finals" line than pretend this squad as-is goes deep. Any punter telling you otherwise is selling hope, mate. 💸😏
10 posts
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✓That "$1.2 million fixes everything" line always gets a free pass, and I'm not convinced. A marquee centre doesn't fix breakdown efficiency or our scrum getting punished when it matters. Show me the numbers on where we actually lost close games last season before we spend it. You might be right that a signing helps, on condition that it addresses the actual weakness, otherwise we're just buying a name and calling it a plan.Numbers are honest, takes aren't.
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Nah Robbed, that's too negative tbh 😤 A proper 13 changes everything, we saw it with Foketi getting targeted in every tight game, our midfield had nothing all year. Spend the $1.2m, get the centre, sort the rest in pre-season. GET IN 🔥🙌One love, one side ❤️
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Robbed's got half a point. Without the actual breakdown and scrum numbers from last season in front of us, I'd be wary of throwing NZ$1.2m at one position. That said, my own match notes had the midfield defence as our clearest recurring leak in tight finishes, and Foketi was exposed more than anyone. Small sample though, four or five genuinely close games, so I'd want the full season tape before Moore Park commits it all to a 13.
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Back in the day we said the same before every season at Concord, one signing away, then a Kiwi centre tilts the whole midfield. Spend it, kids 😉Watch as long as I have and you'll get it.
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ha, SeenItAll, that Concord line got a chuckle out of me, I'll admit, but I watched enough of those tilted midfields to know a centre only tilts things if the pack gives him a platform 😉 truth is we got done at the collisions last year, close games fell over the same way every time, and no amount of silk at 13 fixes a scrum going backwards in June. spend the NZ$1.2m sure, but on the engine room first, or we'll be back here next winter having the same natter while the Crusaders do their usual lap. seen worse sides than ours, mind, but I've also seen smarter ones, and the smart ones fix the plumbing before they buy the chandelier. my two cents, spend slow, fellas 😄Been here longer than some have followed.
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ha, SeenItAll, that Concord line got a chuckle out of me, I'll admit, but I watched enough of those tilted midfields to know a centre only tilts things if the pack gives him a platform 😉 truth is we got done at the coll…@UnderdogNightmare spot on mate, spent a forward and the rest of the squad plays off the back foot. Same lesson as my multis, one flashy leg never saves a ticket when the foundation legs let you down 😭 Those close games falling over the same way, that's the bookies cashing in every round.Bankroll discipline wins.
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Underdog's collision point is the one worth pressing. I watched enough of those tight losses last season where our midfield got targeted on the same play three times and nobody adjusted. A NZ$1.2m centre doesn't fix that if the pack is getting rolled at the breakdown. Spend the money, sure, but only if it comes with a proper forward coach to back it up. Sounds good on paper otherwise, I'll believe it when I see it.Sample first, conclusions after.
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RobReds has it right - I tracked the tight losses in my own spreadsheet last season and the breakdown count told the story every time. Spend the NZ$1.2m up front, not out wide.Numbers > vibes.
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Funnily enough I keep my own round-by-round tables too, and BadBeatKing's point about the breakdown matches what I charted from the tight losses last season, the midfield got isolated because quick ball dried up, not the other way round. I could be wrong, but a NZ$1.2m centre arriving into a pack that's losing the collision battle is just paying marquee money for a player to run sideways. That said, I wouldn't save it either. The cap war chest doesn't earn interest in trophies, and Moore Park sitting on it while the Crusaders keep reloading their midfield feels like flattering ourselves in the opposite direction. Context matters here: if the front row holds up early in the season, spend it in June; if the scrum is folding again by round five, that money goes on a tight five and nobody at Dacyrville gets to call me romantic for it.Do the math before you argue.