Recruitment and Retention for 2028

[Red]

Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

‘Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

www.foxsports.com.au

I simply can't believe his teammates "confronted" him about where he is going to sign but the mail about the Roosters has been building for a long time now. It will be a real shame. He's our best player by far. But I feel it's time to get used to the idea he's leaving. I would have let Hammer and Bostock go in order to keep Herbie but I think Herbie made his mind up some time ago.

Lemuelu and Flegler are also off contract. Don't forget that. I wouldn't be in a hurry to re-sign either. Because Pouniu is set to play in the backrow for the next 10 years and because Flegler has been so ordinary since he came back from injury even though we don't have an obvious replacement for him.

 

[mr_c]

connie staying

 

[mr_c]

Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

‘Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

www.foxsports.com.au

I simply can't believe his teammates "confronted" him about where he is going to sign but the mail about the Roosters has been building for a long time now. It will be a real shame. He's our best player by far. But I feel it's time to get used to the idea he's leaving. I would have let Hammer and Bostock go in order to keep Herbie but I think Herbie made his mind up some time ago.

Lemuelu and Flegler are also off contract. Don't forget that. I wouldn't be in a hurry to re-sign either. Because Pouniu is set to play in the backrow for the next 10 years and because Flegler has been so ordinary since he came back from injury even though we don't have an obvious replacement for him.

lol james pissing in wind again

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

I dont really believe it either.

However, Hooper released it on this tiktok like grab.

Hooper is trying to revive a career after his missteps. And this is a great way to create relevance.

So no, I dont believe the whole story.

However, The Roosters have lost so many, it could set them back a year or two. They have a heap of money, do I believe they would go hard for Herbie and pay him over what we are willing to offer? Yes. So i think there is probably a verbal agreement there.

In relation to Hammer. I believe, and its just an opinion, the Fullback role is more important then the centre role. I prefer stability there. Whilst I have said I think Herbie is a must resign, I do believe it's more important to have a stable spine. So it would be hard for me to say I would sign Heribe over Hammer. Id suggest they are probably as important as each other, with the Fullback role edging it in terms of importance.

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

Just an opinion.

In a salary cap sport. I believe wingers should be paid the lowest, followed by centres.

In fact, blooding youngsters into a team should be done through those positions.

Ben Creagh was a great example. Back rower, who first played for the Dragons on the wing.

Bostock was a fullback as a youngster from memory. Blooded on the wing at the Dragons, slowly moved to the Centers, and he probably eventually wants to move to fullback.

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

With Bostock and Herbie left to resign.

I remind everyone, this window will be hectic.

And things can change day by day.

Great example, with Best saying he is off, the Knights have approached Bostock, as have the eels.

Just be comfortable in the fact, that we arent losing a 7. Its a centre. We will be able to replace them.

 

[Red]

Just an opinion.

In a salary cap sport. I believe wingers should be paid the lowest, followed by centres.

In fact, blooding youngsters into a team should be done through those positions.

Ben Creagh was a great example. Back rower, who first played for the Dragons on the wing.

Bostock was a fullback as a youngster from memory. Blooded on the wing at the Dragons, slowly moved to the Centers, and he probably eventually wants to move to fullback.

In the modern game, are wingers more valuble than centres?

 

[257Matt]

Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

‘Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

www.foxsports.com.au

I simply can't believe his teammates "confronted" him about where he is going to sign but the mail about the Roosters has been building for a long time now. It will be a real shame. He's our best player by far. But I feel it's time to get used to the idea he's leaving. I would have let Hammer and Bostock go in order to keep Herbie but I think Herbie made his mind up some time ago.

Lemuelu and Flegler are also off contract. Don't forget that. I wouldn't be in a hurry to re-sign either. Because Pouniu is set to play in the backrow for the next 10 years and because Flegler has been so ordinary since he came back from injury even though we don't have an obvious replacement for him.

See Flegler comment on the Fanatics page making a fool of Hooper which at last time I looked liked by Knowles, Donga and Herbie himself. Flegler and Herbie have the same manager.

 

[SwoopAE]

General consensus seems to be we are losing both Herbie and Bostock but hopefully that's wrong and we retain at least one of them

Remember dce to the Titans, Fifita to the roosters etc, backflips do happen

I guess one of the main things is even if they do leave that we get behind them to make sure the team is united to win the title in 2027 as we are in a win now window regardless of what happens for 2028

I assume if they do leave lavender will be one of the long term centres probably. I wonder if we would be interested in Best if we are losing both although I'd imagine our focus is going to be on retaining one of them and if we do by 2028 hopefully lavender is ready to take the other spot

Regarding next year's retentions the three vital ones are Katoa, Plath and Donoghoe obviously then the rest are expendable, is say JMK too potentially but at his age he's lower priority than the other three obviously

Penrith built a dynasty keeping the core intact for as long as they could if we can do the same we can fill in the pieces around them

Hoping for good news that at least one of Herbie and Bostock is staying would suck to lose both but we get one more season with both of them regardless in a window where we could win our first premiership and we have good juniors so we will be okay if we can retain the core but it does make 2027 a win now window if we are going to lose both in 2028 without a clear replacement for either

 

[mr_c]

End they day we not losing them just foe what we have in. The 30 i would say we going gain a decent back n. If herbie goes it be the same n don't see Hammer in centeres

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

In the modern game, are wingers more valuble than centres?

Interesting question.

I dont honestly know, because I am not an expert.

Generally i would allocate the smallest portion of my cap space to wingers and centres. The difference between the two would be minimal.

I would not be paying a centre or winger half back money, full back money (hence Mitchell switching to full back at the Bunnies), Prop/9/13 or 6 money.

Just my opinion.

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

I went and did a search

Here is a break down for you

Its behind a pay wall, So ill put the summary below.

Hierarchy of Salary Cap Spend Per Position
The traditional spending model prioritizes positions responsible for playmaking, decision-making, and territorial control.

Position Tier	Position(s)	Estimated Share of Cap	Market Characteristics & Elite Salaries
Tier 1: High-Impact Playmakers	Fullbacks, Halfbacks	25% – 35%	Highest demand. Top 5 fullbacks average $1.24M, and top 5 halfbacks average $1.18M. These individual marquee stars eat up 10–14% of a club's total cap on their own.
Tier 2: Core Engine Room	Props (Front Row), Locks, Hookers	30% – 40%	Rising rapidly. Elite middle forwards now secure seven-figure sums. Top-five props command over $1.05M on average, bridging the gap with elite playmakers.
Tier 3: Edge & Outside Backs	Second-Rowers, Centres, Wingers	20% – 25%	The balancing act. Premium edge second-rowers pull marquee money, but outside backs (wingers and centres) are historically lower-paid. Teams rely heavily on lower-cost or club-developed talent here.
Tier 4: Roster Depth	Bench Utilities, Minimum Wage Reserves	10% – 15%	Cap fillers. The bottom 8–10 spots on a roster are typically filled by young players or journeymen sitting close to the league's minimum wage ($140,000).

Note, that is as of 2025

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

Connelly Next

The Dolphins are ramping up their retention drive on the eve of November 1, with a star second-rower close to inking a new multi-year extension with the Redcliffe-based side.

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

Very important quote from the article above. In relation to Wingers and Centres. I'll bold the bit i'm talking about.

The balancing act. Premium edge second-rowers pull marquee money, but outside backs (wingers and centres) are historically lower-paid. Teams rely heavily on lower-cost or club-developed talent here

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

So whilst the media loves these stories, and the fans PANIC at losing centres, those positions are generally the windows to first grade at the lowest cost.

I get Herbie was the best this year. And even I said he is a must sign. But not at the cost of the wage structure. Same with Bostock.

Bostock is the best example.

He was fucking shit at the Dragons, I know, they got rid.

He got a crack on the wing after a short time, he developed, and through hard work has become a rep player. He has every right to cash in, I don't begrudge him that. But I don't want him to do that at the expense of our club.

Herbie is the same, fill your boots with cash, but a winning formula in a salary cap sport, isnt having your highest earner in a position considered around the league to be of the lowest value.

 

[SwoopAE]

I do think centres are a bit underrated, you can see what having terrible centres does to a club with how the Titans have gone the past decade with consistently having the worst centre pairings in the NRL for a lot of that. Yes the club had other issues too but stuff like Kelly's defence at centre (and before him Marsters type players, Watkins, Sarginson etc) were just making it impossible to defend because they would consistently misread plays

Meanwhile if you look at who's won the comp who is the worst centre who has won a comp in recent years, it would have to be either Tago (before he got shit) or Savala

Shibasaki is an obvious answer if we look at his career as a whole but he was having a standout year in 2025 even though he is back to being bad now

Teams need at least reasonable centres to win a comp. Yes you can win a comp without Herbie and Bostock but if you plug Esan Marsters and Dan Sarginson or whatever this year's equivalent into this positions we are going to struggle to even make the top 8, the replacement centres need to at least be able to defend and if they can't create points themselves the way Herbie and Bostock can then you need to have invested heavily in a spine that can score points.

Wingers matter, but as long as they are competent in the air and can do the one handed dive to finish a try and don't get completely folded running the ball back you can probably get away with having average wingers. Obviously having elite wingers (or one tall winger good in the air to target) helps but I think having elite centres is clearly more important

Look how good the Souths halves and Latrell have made Alex Johnston look over the years when he's a very average winger overall and if he played for the Titans or Tigers he would be an absolute footnote in the history books instead of a top tryscorer of all time

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

‘Didn’t go down great’: Dolphins’ shock Mad Monday ‘beef’ as superstar’s looming exit revealed

www.foxsports.com.au

I simply can't believe his teammates "confronted" him about where he is going to sign but the mail about the Roosters has been building for a long time now. It will be a real shame. He's our best player by far. But I feel it's time to get used to the idea he's leaving. I would have let Hammer and Bostock go in order to keep Herbie but I think Herbie made his mind up some time ago.

Lemuelu and Flegler are also off contract. Don't forget that. I wouldn't be in a hurry to re-sign either. Because Pouniu is set to play in the backrow for the next 10 years and because Flegler has been so ordinary since he came back from injury even though we don't have an obvious replacement for him.

This got me thinking.

He kind of left the broncos weirdly.

Then during these negotiations, they asked Terry Reader about it. He said Herbie was a different cat, that he just signed one day.

It got me thinking about his personality. Maybe he is very different, and maybe he doesn't get on with all types. Maybe it could be true.

When I look at all the boys, they seem to get on well.

Whilst i am squarely in your court. Maybe on the surface it looks rosey, but maybe he is a little different and it rubs the rest the wrong way. Hooper did allude to the fact it was Herbie against the rest type thing.

 

[Red]

This got me thinking.

He kind of left the broncos weirdly.

Then during these negotiations, they asked Terry Reader about it. He said Herbie was a different cat, that he just signed one day.

It got me thinking about his personality. Maybe he is very different, and maybe he doesn't get on with all types. Maybe it could be true.

When I look at all the boys, they seem to get on well.

Whilst i am squarely in your court. Maybe on the surface it looks rosey, but maybe he is a little different and it rubs the rest the wrong way. Hooper did allude to the fact it was Herbie against the rest type thing.

He's renowned for, "not being a talker". That might be a code word for difficult personality. Otherwise he was a perfect candidate for C.

 

[Liverbird with Phins up]

He's renowned for, "not being a talker". That might be a code word for difficult personality. Otherwise he was a perfect candidate for C.

I didnt know that.

Makes it a little clearer

 

[Red]

I didnt know that.

Makes it a little clearer

I don't know him personally but I've heard from a few people, "he isn't a talker". If that means anything more than, "He's too quiet to be a captain", it's pure speculation on my part.

TBH, it's a bit depressing but it looks to me we are going to lose Herbie and Bostock.......