This.

Everyone has lambasted the club for years that we can't recruit "high profile players" .. we now do so at the expense of an average (yet loved) footballer, and now the club is making a massive mistake?

Double standards.

Who wasnt available for Australia?

Not matter what anyone says , I think White is sh*t and he will stay that way even if he wears the green of Canberra

Purts got the same sort of response as Thommo. Being a great bloke doesn't win premierships.

I'm not convinced on White, but he's an upgrade on what Thommo offers now and next year. Thommo would be behind Shillo, White, Tilse and TLL as our props, then we have the likes of Miller and Thurling, and beyond that you'd dip into the Souths Logan stocks (Skinner?) rather than carry an extra in the top 25. Unless Troy was going to play for minimum wage, whats the point of having him there?

I am happy for the club to have signed an International front rower. White is an old school hard man type of prop. He will not be intimidated and needs no motivation to show competitive aggression. He has played at the highest level and will be good for the young props within the club in terms of the preparation and mental attitude needed to be successful. Our pack has a number of Gentlemen within it, which is good, now it has a dash of mongrel as well.

I also feel for Thommo. In all honesty, I expected Loges to retire and Thommo to be retained. No one can doubt Thommo's commitment to the team. He played with so much strapping last year and again this year that he was obviously playing with injury. This was likely an important factor in the decision imo. There would have to be severe doubt of his ability to play a majority of matches within a season even before the season has begun. There are always a number of unexpected long term injuries within a season (Tonguey this year being a prime example) so to have a player in the Top 25 who is known to be unlikely to be available is courting disaster and is cap space better spent on players who at least start a season healthy. A hard choice for DF, but in the tough world of professional football, the correct one.

DF also mentioned they are still in the market for an outside back

Has Blake Ferguson signed with a club yet?

White is one of my most hated players, along with Gallen, Bird, O'Donnell et all.


However, anyone thinking White for Thompson is anything other than an upgrade needs to think again.

While he may not have been the most deserving NSW prop to receive an Origin call up, you don't get one for no reason. This is a signing we've been waiting for, that has the potential to be the catalyst for more in the future. This shows big game players want to play here. It also creates potentially one of the most devastating forward packs of the modern era. I doubt we'll see many complaints next year if White actually comes here.

All due respect RR, Shillo and TLL are men who will not back down. Add Thurling and Miller in to that mix as well. I think our pack has enough aggression already.

The argument pro and nay for White are all subjective. We can argue until the cows come home, and thats the wonder of free speech. Time will tell how astute this signing is, and that is the wonder of hindsight.

I feel sorry for a club stalwart like TT who has been at the club 16 years to be treated like this. If we were signing Petero or Matt Scott I would feel better about it, but Brett White........

TT also hasn't been offered (publicly at least) some sort of role in the club either. I think that stinks personally.

Its my humble opinion that the club just wants some more "name" players on the books. Nothing wrong with that, but when you trade off local, lifetime and popular players to include said name player, it reeks of shallowness and I feel that the players may not be thrilled about this either.

The people defending the signing are the ones saying "time will tell". Most of the people bagging the signing have already written him off as a hack before he has even played a game in the lime green, while some have already suggested that this will lead to a massive exodus of players because the club won't have the money to sign them based on this one signing.

Brett White

Season stats/Ave per game:
App Try Gls Pts Mins LB LBA TryA Off TBrk Err Pen /Mins Runs Mtrs Tcks Miss Inef
9 0 0 0 398 0 0 0 0 7 6 3 /44.2 11.3 86.9 20.7 2.1 0.6

Career stats/Ave per game:
App Try Gls Pts Mins LB LBA TryA Off TBrk Err Pen /Mins Runs Mtrs Tcks Miss Inef
122 5 0 20 5437 14 4 2 47 160 53 39 /44.6 11.3 89.1 21.2 1.7 0.9

VS.

Troy Thompson

Season stats/Ave per game:
App Try Gls Pts Mins LB LBA TryA Off TBrk Err Pen /Mins Runs Mtrs Tcks Miss Inef
11 0 0 0 395 0 0 0 6 10 3 2 /35.9 9.7 76.5 23.7 0.7 0.8

Career stats/Ave per game:
App Try Gls Pts Mins LB LBA TryA Off TBrk Err Pen /Mins Runs Mtrs Tcks Miss Inef
156 6 0 24 6376 11 8 5 133 118 72 52 /40.9 11.3 87.5 21.9 1.2 0.8

There seems to be not much difference over their careers, but this season White takes 9 more minutes to make 1.5 more runs and 10 more meters while making one less tackle and 0.5 a missed tackle. Make of it what you will...
Source:http://203.166.101.37/NRL/index.html

As has been said, I wouldn't read too much into the Storm's individual stats this season...

I bet the stats of other significant players on the team are down...

Personally think ahnyone who rates White at all is the close minded one.

In other words: blah blah blah I think Brett White is good becauise he played Origin and tough because he knocked out Steve Price. He won a premiership so he's a better player than someone who hasn't.

I'll treat your opinion from here on in with a bit more than extreme caution.

White's stats for the last 2 seasons are just as horrific. He's a prank prop./

People who's opinions are currently held in more regard than any of ours rate him. That raises our potential to sign other proven players. That alone is enough of an upgrade to pack poor Thommo's bags I'm afraid.

How many are/will chase Thommo?



I think this is one of the biggest factors. Thommo has always struggled with injuries and it would be a brave man to sign a 31 year-old injury-prone forward who doesn't rank in the top three props already at the club to a contract extension.

I agree that it would be nice to see him looked after with an off-field job but let's face it, it wouldn't be a coaching role, so what would it be? Robbo's job on game day?

Hang on isnt White the SOO rep , Test player? If he is that good youd imagine a few clubs would be knocking on his door. Or even his own club hanging onto him despite their salary cap drama. But they resign Norrie ,other clubs are chasing Blair and Lima. Tandy and Tolman got picked up by the Dogs, they didnt want White. So in reality the Storm are short of experienced props but they let go there most experienced one. Why? Because he is ineffective ( sh*t )

Hasn't Craig Bellamy been quoted as saying he'd keep White if he could?

I've heard that the Panthers, and possibly dogs are chasing him.

On the assumption Logan plays on

would White be in the top 4 props in the club?

Shillo
TLL
Tilse
Logan


White

Therefore carrying only 4 props into the game he wouldnt be in the 17.

Nope....that's not it at all. It's not that I have a high opinion of White, it's just that Thompson is a reserve grader.

It's really not a hard decision to make.

Sure, I realise Thompson has a funny little column which endears himself to the fans, but as a footballer, he's average. And that's the bottom line.

And yet Thommos stats are still better than Whites, not bad for a reserve grader hey

And the Whitey has the Thommo and the Thommo has the Whitey,if you like to see the Thommo the Whitey has the play, the good + the 1/4 of the nothing.

And the thommos run into whiteys and whiteys run into thommos and the greenhouse runs into one of those moments in time.

THUD.

You are such a pompous ar5e.

Are you a better judge of a footballer than Craig Bellamy? Is he 'close-minded' or any other name you've ascribed to someone who doesn't agree with your opinion of Brett White being a 'hack'?

Also needs to be reinforced again that Storm's 2010 stats mean fark all. They have nothing to play for, the backs can take the piss with fancy passing and kicks, the forwards can't really do anything. Also if people want to look at stats, have a look at what David Shillington's were at his last year at the roosters.

Furner knows how to get the best out of forwards, I trust his judgement (and Craig Bellamy's) on this one. Can't wait to see him really harness that aggression.

Bellamy did a great job with the NSW Origin side aye.

I stand corrected.

Craig Bellamy couldn't win a series against arguably the best QLD team in Origin history, which makes him just as much of a 'hack' as Brett White, and certainly not the judge of footballing talent as Julian87 and yeh raiders.

Keep on calling White 'pathetic', 'a hack', 'the worst prop in the competition' and whatever else you can think of. It's going to make next year even more enjoyable.

When you look at the once in a generation side QLD, they should have one nearly every game by 20+.

But yeah Bellamy has no farken idea and you are a rugby league god.

It helps when you pick players like Beau Scott, Brett White & Kidley at Fullback.

You and Julian87 are better judges of footballers than Craig Bellamy and certainly David Furner, Brett White is a hack and anyone who disagrees with either of you is obviously a close-minded ignoramus.

End of discussion.

I can't **** believe management are going to sign a NSW and Australian representative forward! His stats for a few games this year (from the bench) have been ****, which means he is ****!

The last thing this club needs is a high-profile player who is highly regarded amongst players!

I also want a halfback. But not Orford, Kimmorley or anybody with experience.

We should sign up Josh Lewis and Craig Stapleton instead.

i dont know if its a sad state of affairs or the bloke can play or what..

NSW stats for origin:

G3 09 11 runs 89m
G1 13 runs 70m
G2 10 runs 82m (best of the forwards bar Gallen)

then they decide to drop him.. he put in a better performance than Learoyd Lahrs from basically the same amount of carries..

I'm not bagging Tommy either, I'm just saying on his day he can perform well and its not like he is only making 3 or 4m a run.. he is making 7 or 8 sometimes more..

whats wrong with that..

I wonder if the people saying you shouldn't hold this years stats against him have actually checked his stats from 2008 and 2009..........

btw Thommos stats are worse than Whites

Thommo, i'll be tremendously sad to see you go.

I trust the club here. If the gaffer feels he can get more out of White than Thommo then I have to back him. I feel we have the side to challenge in the next 2 years and if DF thinks the prop rotation is better with this bloke then so be it. It doesn't mean i'm not extremely sad about this and to be honest none of us could understand how hard it was for the coach to call in the most popular player at the club and tell him it is all over after so long. That is ballsy imo and shows his focus on the goal. This is the nature of the beast.

Wow, now I have to steel myself for Thommo's last game at Bruce.