James graham : Wed Jun 17, 2020 11:05 pm  

Wants out of dragons contract for return to super league, saints bound or should we go for him?

Re: James graham : Wed Jun 17, 2020 11:14 pm  

OSWire1993 wrote:

Wants out of dragons contract for return to super league, saints bound or should we go for him?

Dragons releasing that statement will mean its nearly done and it makes little sense for Wire to sign Graham but a lot of sense for St Helens to sign him. Thompson replacement, final swansong for boyhood club etc. Well past his best but he’ll probably do well for a couple of seasons given the standard of SL is so far below the NRL and there are very few good props around.

Re: James graham : Wed Jun 17, 2020 11:38 pm  

MPhil12 wrote:

Dragons releasing that statement will mean its nearly done and it makes little sense for Wire to sign Graham but a lot of sense for St Helens to sign him. Thompson replacement, final swansong for boyhood club etc. Well past his best but he’ll probably do well for a couple of seasons given the standard of SL is so far below the NRL and there are very few good props around.

There might not be now, but I'd imagine Wakefield are a little susceptible to a bid or two and they've got two brilliant forwards. Same with Cas, they'll hardly be rolling in dough, it'll probably cost them thousands just to cut the grass that's grown in their stands over the summer.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 8:49 am  

Not seen much of Graham since he went to Oz. What is his discipline like ,ball handling etc like generally? Everything else we know he gives 100%.
Any improvement on discipline & ball retention would be a plus for us even for a 12 month contract.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 10:13 am  

Only place I see him going is Saints.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 10:24 am  

The timing says Saints.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 12:43 pm  

ninearches wrote:

Not seen much of Graham since he went to Oz. What is his discipline like ,ball handling etc like generally? Everything else we know he gives 100%.
Any improvement on discipline & ball retention would be a plus for us even for a 12 month contract.

Discipline not to bad. Had a lot of injury problems in recent years though. Nowhere near the player he once was.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 12:58 pm  

Lord Tony Smith wrote:

Discipline not to bad. Had a lot of injury problems in recent years though. Nowhere near the player he once was.

He's apparently done 170 and 140 metres with the ball in games this season and is averaging 100m at loose. He used to regularly do 80 minutes or close, I'd imagine if he's doing 40 in Super League he should be okay, this season at least. He was never the most dynamic player, he didn't smash players left, right and centre it was the volume of effort that made him such a good player. He'd outwork the starting props, then outwork the subs. I'd imagine we'll have him come off after 20 minutes these days.

I do wonder if this move is dependent on De Bellin's court case. That's coming up soon isn't it?

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 1:22 pm  

OSWire1993 wrote:

Wants out of dragons contract for return to super league, saints bound or should we go for him?

Turn the clock black 5 years+ ago and I’d say most definitely, and SJM tried too, more than once...apparently. Stay clear of signing props 33-35 years of age.
The peak age of a prop is around 27-29. They very quickly fade from 31.
Let’s Saints have him.

Re: James graham : Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:17 pm  

Saddened! wrote:

He's apparently done 170 and 140 metres with the ball in games this season and is averaging 100m at loose. He used to regularly do 80 minutes or close, I'd imagine if he's doing 40 in Super League he should be okay, this season at least. He was never the most dynamic player, he didn't smash players left, right and centre it was the volume of effort that made him such a good player. He'd outwork the starting props, then outwork the subs. I'd imagine we'll have him come off after 20 minutes these days.

I do wonder if this move is dependent on De Bellin's court case. That's coming up soon isn't it?

Don’t get me wrong it’s a really good signing for Saints. He’s still a solid player. I’d have took him here for a season without a doubt. He’ll do a job for you guys. His leadership and winning mentality alone will be an asset.