What I don't get here is that everytime an NRL doesn't live up to the hype it is because he is unhappy - what rubbish.

If the NRL is so far in front of SL these supposed top NRL players Monaghan and King should stroll it in SL - their have only been two in recent times Jamie Lyon and Trent Barrett that have really took this competition by the scruff of its kneck and shook it up.

Players like Monaghan and King look great in a great side if either of them went to a lesser in the NRL would they be thought of in quite the same way?

Monaghan was so good Manley brought in Orford to replace him which speaks volumes for what Manley thought of him. As soon as they could offload him they did.

From what we see of the NRL there are some fantastic player far superior to their counterparts but these are the minority rather than the majority. The players we get in SL come from the majority and it shows. Monaghan's defence is a joke and is exposed almost every time he steps on the field no wonder he wants to go home.

Graham Murray was inverviewed on a rugby phone in last week when asked where he thought the top sides in SL would finish in the NRL he said they would not be challenging to win the comp. but they would not have a problem making the top eight.

Murray is a retired coach, good bloke he may be but its just his opinion and he may one day want to Coach in England again so he is likely to be polite

He had just over 50% win loss rate in the NRL and was sacked from 3 of his 4 clubs with the one other Club being rubbed out totally.
Leeds were wiped out by Manly in a 10 minute flurry in the WCC where are Manly now in the NRL?


You don't rate
Matthew Gidley
Brent Webb
Shaun Berrigan
Scott Donald
Clint Greenshields
Adam Mogg
Pat Richards
Kylie Leuluai
Ali Lauitiit
Amongst others.
None were on the way up in the NRL when they left but most are better than the local player they replaced.

You sound like Christopher Biggins

Not buying that with Greensheilds and Mogg both was at top there games when they left.
If wigan or Leeds wanted a player from NRL any player they would get them and there would nothing any NRL club could do about it they have money than any NRL sides.

This isn't true, the same year that Manly signed Orford (2005) they also resigned Monaghan on a 2 year deal. They moved him to hooker and he was one of the top players in the NRL there.

He hasn't performed at halfback for Warrington, no denying that, but his defence isn't a joke, defence is about the only good thing he does. He's one of toughest tacklers from halfback in the game...problem is Warrington brought him over wanting more than just good tackling.

Really - funny thing that almost everytime they do some analysis on Warrington's defence they highlight Monaghan's fraility.

To say Monaghan was one of the hookers in the NRL is simply laughable - it is not coincidence that Manly started to make great strides once they had shipped Monaghan out.

Yep, was gonna pick up on that point too.

To be fair though, at times he does miss the odd simple tackle, where somebody just walks over him. He usually is spot on in this department though.

Greenshields was hardly likely to be picked for NSW was he though?
He averaged 12 games a year for St George before joining Catalans.

Mogg is an honest battler that surprised everyone when he got picked for 2 games for Qld in 2006 but he was a stop gap when Inglis was injured. He is one of the oldest players to make an Origin debut.

Your last comment makes me smile.
Why is Cam Smith, Billy Slater and Greg Inglis not being picked up then?

Other than Lyon who was locked out of the NRL and King who was paid far more than any NRL club thought he was worth who else has Super League bought that the NRL Club wanted to stop but could not afford to?

Only players like Gidley and Berrigan who are at the back end of their careers and are offered above their worth amounts paid creatively in tax free offshore accounts on longer length deals than an NRL club is prepared to offer them have left.

The changes to the taxation rules and the half hearted reduction in the overseas quotas will see the imports dry up in the next couple of years.


Menzies is 35 years old and is still head and shoulders better than any other Bulls player.

Trent Barrett would be an obvious case

Greenshields was playing full back for St George in the semi finals of the NRL the year before he left for France. I saw him play then and immediately realised that the man had great talent. However Australia is awash in fulll back talent ad the fact that the very young and inexperienced Clint Greenshields was not likely to be picked for NSW (who could choose from the likes of Anthony Minichiello, Brett Hodgson etc.) meant nothing against Clint's talent.

Menzies is planning to play another year after this one, and Manly want to sign him up again for next year! Manly could not pay him what he was worth for this year, because of the salary cap, and Bradford outbid them. Now they desperately want him back!