Have had another crack (slightly more realistic one) at this. Be interested to see what anyone else can come up with. NRL have approached you to put a team together to compete in the NRL next year, you have to be realistic in chosing your team and what you will pay them. Most of my players are off contract, have been enticed back from England or I think I can get their clubs to release them from their contracts.
1. Mark McLinden ($225,000) - Macca would thrive playing at fullback now, bringing him back from England wont be as hard as many think, he has unfinished business here, see him as a Kurt Gidley type player for my team.
2. Colin Best ($155,000) - Off contract at the Raiders would be a usefull addition to the backline, nice a tall and fast so he can compete in the modern day NRL.
3. Ben MacDougall ($130,000) - Taking a risk on MacDougall, has just come back from union and has missed the entire NRL season with injury, was gun when he played for the Storm a few years ago. Think I might help Melbourne ease their salary cap concerns by taking him off their books.
4. Matt King ($320,000) - We've had to pay overs to secure his signature, he is our star signing after we heard he was unhappy in England. Has also been offered the captaincy.
5. Pat Richards ($200,000) - Third player back from England, we reckon he has unfinished business here and could crack state of origin with soem hard work. Will also be the team's goalkicker.
6. Josh Lewis ($100,000) - Clever half with a good kicking game, we have plucked him from the Queensland Cup after the Titans agreed to release him to us. Back up goalkicker also.
7. Luke Walsh ($130,000) - Offloaded by the Knights after they re-signed their young halves, impressed scouts with a series of impressive performances in 2007. Has an excellent kicking game.
8. Ryan O'Hara ($150,000) - Former state of origin prop should be coming into his peak years as a front rower, with some good luck and hard work could become a leading NRL forward again rather than waste away in the lower grades for the Tigers.
9. George Gatis ($90,000) - Personal favourite of the coach, always been impressed with this creative dummy half, has an excellent kicking game out of hooker too. Currently playing in the local Townsville comp, we think it wont tack much to entice him here.
10. Shane Tronc ($160,000) - We persuaded this Cowboys hard man to join the club with an offer to lead the forwards. He's the type of prop every club needs and this metre eater is at his best running hard and straight.
11. Neville Costigan ($230,000) - A get out clause in his contract with the Raiders has allowed us to offer him some good money to join us, a slight risk given his history off the field as well as injury problems. He's a good player so it's worth it.
12. David Stagg ($200,000) - Another player we have had to pay overs for, former Broncos back rower has come to the club to get another crack at origin. He's a workaholic and we expect him to be making 40 tackles per week without fuss.
13. Glen Turner ($150,000) - Under rated forward from Canberra, we had to pay more than we anticipated to get him but he was a top target and we werent going to let him get away.
Interchange
14. Mitchell Sargent ($100,000) - His career has been in freefall since being sakced by the Cowboys. Hasn't seen much game time for Newcastle but we feel we can bring out the best in him and turn him into a rep player again.
15. Mickey Paea ($150,000) - faced strong opposition from Canberra and Penrith to sign the former Roosters prop but we really wanted him. Big strong lad who is going places.
16. Clint Newton ($185,000) - Fourth player we brought back from the UK, got him cheaper than anticipated as he believes he has unfinished business in the NRL. Is likely to be a key performer and is a valuable 80 minute player when needed.
17. Ian Lacey ($90,000) - Second chance in the NRL after being sacked by Brisbane last year, showed enough talent to suggest he's up to this level, will need to play a lot of minutes depending on the fitness of George Gatis.
Extras
David Seage ($100,000) - Former Newcastle fullback has had his career destroyed by injury, currently playing in the Queensland Cup he has shown he might be over those injuries, we are giving him another chance to make it at this level.
Scott Bolton ($120,000) - Former Cowboys hard man will be a good addition to our squad, we identified big props as a key area for our recruitment and Bolton fits the bill. Has improved in recent seasons to be a star performer in the Queensland Cup.
Blake Green ($115,000) - Went to the Sharks to get a crack at playing in the NRL and has had very limited chances. We picked him up after Cronulla were revealed as over the salary cap after signing Trent Barrett. Green is a clever half and is certain to get some game time depending on the form of Lewis and Walsh.
Shane Neumann ($90,000) - Relatively unknown outside back from Manly who impressed our scouts. Made his first grade debut straight from Jersey Flegg in 2007 and looks a good prospect for the future.
Nat Barnes ($90,000) - Former Tweed winger picked himself up a one year deal with Souths in 2008 but hasnt been given a chance in the top grade. Another one of the coaches favourites and was one of the first players signed. Will be a future NRL star.
Shane Rodney ($150,000) - Was looking for a new challenge and we were happy to provide one. Will be a good squad player as he can cover any number of positions. The club are very happy with this get.
Michael Hodgson ($145,000) - Off contract at the Titans we were very interested very early. Runs hard and tackles well. Goes about his work without much fuss and is a good team player, is likely to play a lot of matches.
Phil Morwood ($125,000) - Manly were keen to keep this big prop but money talks and we just offered a bit more. Has had big wraps on him for a number of seasons and will finally kick on for us in 2009.
Coach: Stephen Kearney
Team is costing us $3,905,000 a year
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