2018 Player Contracts

[shasta]

Phil Kearns as Rat’s Arse CEO? God help us!!!

To be fai Alison, Kearns was in the "don't cull the Force" camp. He even upset Clyne, who had a public dummy spit over it, by saying Clyne should "grow a set". Another example of the chairman playing the victim.

[Bakkies]

There are some massive IFs in there aren't there?

IF the Force players don't crack the shits and go overseas
IF they can capture the same spirit and teamwork under a different administration
IF they can gel with the few existing Rebels players
IF they don't get big heads

and after all that

IF the Melbourn public will actually go out and watch a Rebels game even IF they win the title.

- Off field the Rabble haven't changed. The boys club plus Cattermore are still on the board.
- There are going to be a players stuck in club Rugby next year so I can see contract releases and Twiggy will be actively signing players.

[F Man]

I dunno, when they're riding top of the Australian conference next year with all of our players and coaches I think they'll be feeling pretty good about themselves.

[Bakkies]

Whose to say they will. They have to beat the Waratahs and Reds along with winning in SA to do that. The Brumbies took 9 points from that trip and the Force won in BA

[The InnFORCEr]

Joe Bakarat, Kevin Foote and Shaun Berne have all joined Dave at the Rebels.

[jargan83]

I dunno, when they're riding top of the Australian conference next year with all of our players and coaches I think they'll be feeling pretty good about themselves.

Rebels paying $51 for the title next year...

[The InnFORCEr]

Any odds on them being Australian Conference winner?

[GIGS20]

Rebels paying $51 for the title next year...

And paying 98c for brokest club in the comp.

[shasta]

And paying 98c for brokest club in the comp.

Did Rat"s Arse get out of the ongoing payments when the put option was executed?

[jargan83]

Any odds on them being Australian Conference winner?

Not yet, well not with Sportsbet.

Crownbet has them at $67 to win the title.

[Bakkies]

Joe Bakarat, Kevin Foote and Shaun Berne have all joined Dave at the Rebels.

I wonder if the likes of Pie Guts, Hilton, etc were paid out?

[Alison]

Joe Bakarat, Kevin Foote and Shaun Berne have all joined Dave at the Rebels.

Will Markwick too.

[Sheikh]

Not yet, well not with Sportsbet.

Crownbet has them at $67 to win the title.

That's got to be worth a cheeky $20.

[Kalahard]

Brumbies to top the conference. Incoming players Pocock, Naisarani, Arnold, Verity-Amm and Peni to bolster their squad nicely. A backrow of Pocock, Naisarani and Valenti looks deadly, Powell and Lealiifano to steer them round nicely, a back 3 of Speight, Banks, Peni and Verity-Amm will find the tryline. All of this on top of a near international tight 5 makes a niely balanced team.

Waratahs will continue to struggle until they replace Daryl Gibson. The players do not play for him. More of the same coming.

Reds will show signs of a turnaround as Thorn starts the long overdue regeneration of the playing list with youth instead of aging stop gap players. Switching coach so late in the piece has also nullified any chance of recruitment.

Rebels have been engineered to be successful but will continue to struggle. Off field issues will continue to plague this basket case with a lot of resentment from other states and an ASIC investigation to steal the headlines from the Rebels winning 5 games. The thing the Rebels haven't been able to steal from WA is backs to the wall, siege type mentality that drove this years Force. The Force had total buy in from the chairman to the fans and it was a collective push by all that started to turn the tide, this cannot be transferred. They also have no money, no sponsors and no crowds that will continue to keep them in a negative profit/loss position to bring added heat from the other states. Turning around the culture of the Rebels from an entitled, spoiled, complacent cruise to a chip on the shoulder, hungry beast will be Wessels biggest challenge as most players who followed him to Melbourne only did so to keep their 2019 RWC hopes alive. Also there is no high performance academy to underpin the competitiveness of the intrasquad positional battles therefore more complacency is bound to happen. But most importantly, the players and coaches who went to Melbourne do not want to be there. Being forced to do something rather than wanting to do something almost always has a detrimental effect on the psyche. This coupled with a soon to start interstate slanging match iniatiated by jealous NSW will derail this embarrassment of a franchise. My prediction - The VRU to fall apart as their board is put under the blowtorch of ASIC and public opinion, and players looking to leave as the excesses afforded this mob disappear. The whole franchise is built on quicksand that they can't escape.

[BLR]

^^^^ I hope you are right.

Death comes to all things but the Rebels & VRU have a painful one coming to them after their misdeeds.

EDIT: With Kafe & Kearns in bed with the ARU they can get on with being dickheads & Fox Sports will spin it too the good. Control the media, control the message and people will believe the shit spouted. Smart.