There’s no doubt the list of domestic based players off contract was slim pickings this year, maybe we have just had to make do.
Let me flip this a bit on it’s head though, assume there wasn’t this teaser of potential investment in the club which of the new signings do we think we wouldn’t have been able to previously make under Pearson and Clark? I’m not sure any of them signal any change in intent or ambition to me at the minute.
Granted, everything hinges on the overseas market. If we pay off Ock, Pele and possibly Ligi and bring in 3 quality players then the landscape changes massively. But that’s a huge if, and until we see it I still see us as the whipping boys way behind even sides like Wakefield, Cas, Hudds, Salford, Leigh.
The talk of players having to live within a certain distance of the training ground is fascinating and would be a bold move. It’s hard not to like the idea and you’d think it’s the opposite of the laid back approach at the club in recent years. Hull is the hardest place in the world to try something like this though, it’s not the Gold Coast or Brisbane. Rovers must have built a great culture and as far as I know don’t have such a rule so not sure it’s necessary, but it’s hard not to be impressed by the noises surrounding Cartwright. Fans have called for a change in this respect and it looks like it’s happening.
