It compounded the mistakes with other Bulldogs, O’Meley, Anasta and Myles.

So I agree that he has to go, but by that, I mean, not just not train, but leave the club. Currently, he is just sitting on his tail getting paid!!!!! take the medicine and move on. Alternatively, get him on the paddock and run the crap out of him till he moves on. the parking option sends the wrong message to the squad. But as I write this, I am astounded that such a basic mistake has been made!!!! How many other unwanted, highly paid players have been parked or are currently parked in the NRL?? Zero.

As for Carney, I have no choice but to wait for the seaosn to commence or even 6 months.

So, who ever has made these decisions on Willie and now Carney, when carney falls off the wagon again, and takes the club with him, they should fall on their sword. lets start with Politis. He is fully implicated in both. Then, if you are correct and O’Sullivan is seleecting the players, he is next. (personally, I cannot agree or accept that a coach would coach a team of players which has been selected by someone else.)

Would a CEO run a business without his team with him in the critical positions? Nope. PMs and Leaders of the Opp all choose their own cabinets. Even the NSW labour party now allow the Premier to select his/her team!!!!!

LAS, POS was signed by John Ribot and Chris Johns originally as a talent scout and was quickly promoted to GM of Player Recruitment. He re defined the job role and had a big influence on these guys being paid appropriately as you cant win without the cattle. Sure the coach will have input but the finding and signing is the responsibility of the Recruitment boss and so it should be. It is a fundamentally different skill to coaching and O’Sullivan has been key in that being recognized.
Lets talk again in 6 mths about Carney, but as far as Willie is concerned he has been a heart breaker. Everyone knows the talent he has but he continues to cruel himself on and off the field. He is a lazy trainer and basically not someone who you would want in your trench. What more can I say, let it go. Do u honestly think that all the clever people at the Roosters would let him go if they didnt think the negatives out weigh the positives?
Merry Xmas

Smith has agreed to join a club with a play maker who is a dsciplinarians’ knightmare!! Even If he had no say in that decision, why would be join such a compromised outfit. secondly, why did OSullivan and Politis agree to the signing of Carney???? Personally, i believe he had a say in this decision.

friend, a Hooker, and hence a play maker himself, has clearly got problems. But they came out again under Smith, and during preseason, i.e. no pressure from the comp!!!

Your final point: Sure every coach has problem players, but rarely does a coach present themselves as such disciplinians and who hand picks the squad after dismissing the incumbents, only to find that there is a serial drug dealer amongst the hand picked!!!!

Were I smith, i would have been much lower key, promising less, delivering more. But the question remains, what is going on with Willie? as they say, please explain!!!!

Sullivan has been around for at least 2 seasons, by my recollection. His expertise, at least at the Storm, was to identify young players (Inglis etc) not sign first graders.

I agree that Smith Inherited many over paid players: My point is that Politis and Sullivan (more recently) has presided over the debacle of hiring these players and offering them the money they receive. Anasta, Myles, OMeley, Mason to name a few.

Sullivan and Politis were around when carney’s name came up and he was signed. This is a ridiculous decision.

Carney has T-r-o-u-b-l-e as his middle name.

Why would Smith, the supposed disciplinarian, change clubs, breaking his contract with NK, to join a club with Carney as its lynchpin? Either he was running away from NK’s before he was exposed, or he isnt really the disciplinarian he says he is.

Sullivan and Politis were around when Ryles was signed!!!

I cannot accept that Smith, with his reputation, would come to a club and yet have no impact on signing the wayward playmaker who has the potential to derail the whole club on and off the field and secondly, an expensive front rower like Ryles.

So you are saying that sullivan just recruits players wihtout reference to the coach? I dont think so!

That Sullivan and Smith agreed about the treatment of Mason is not the point. The treatment is wrong. whether they agree or not is irrelevant. what happens when the season commences and Willie is still sitting in clovelly gettting fatter and fatter and being paid full freight by the roosters. he will not be able to play, even if the coach and the player wanted him to.

Ryles may represent. it would have been better to take this year as a fully fledged rebuilding year, not a continuation of the Roosters retrirement village for the flotsam and jetsom. how many young props could you sign for Ryles money?

Carney the next lockyer? Hmmmm. Nope. Not even close. Carney is a serial offender and will again self implode when the pressure comes on. Lockyer is one of the great players of this generation, season after season. having the talent is not really the point. using it is the point and to use it, you have to have the brain and attitude. Its all above the shoulders when it gets to these dizzy heights.

Roosters have lost Shillington, Tupou and one of the Paea’s (i think). Very, very good young players.

I can only presume that you have not attended Roosters games and heard the few faithful pay out on Myles with nick names such as Pillow. Anasta is over rated and has been over paid for years.

I am interested that there are young players coming through. Sullivan has been there long enough for this to now be occurring. I just dont know them.

I have not bagged Carney. I have just hilighted his rap sheet and the likely pressure he will be under when the forwards dont deliver.

I have the opportunity to observe the roosters as they go about their business at the SFS. Things are rotten!!! body language is poor. there is a clear split between senior and junior players. Not good.

5. “Why hire Ryles” is a question not a fact. Perhaps understanding this would go a long way towards stopping the self contradiction that is ever present in your work.

4. Here is a fact: you can’t (we’ll you can – just not successfully or with any credibility) argue that Smith isn’t a disciplinarian and attack the level to which he has gone to remove the negative influence.

3. Yes roosters problems have continued last time I checked it was still 2009, if you are expecting cultural change and the rehabilitation of young man who clearly doesn’t want rehabilitation inside 3 months you must think NRL coaches are pioneering the Nobel prize for Psychology.

1.2 Which current coaches haven’t had a player with an off field incident “on their watch”? If you are going to go with “just the facts” at least make a token effort at representing them properly.

Did anderson stick finch on sabatical and not require him to train? Nope. anderson took his financial and PR medicine, moved him on, and every was better for it, including Finch.
Were the Eels a tight outfit in 2009? YES. By definition the trouble makers were gone or no longer making trouble? you dont have to kick them all out, they can be turned around. You dont need to remove them. Grothe (disinterested and just slack for years), Fui Fui (discipline), Haynes (getting shot at in Kings X).

And then add the hooker, a journey man who with a new playing style and youngsters like mortimer exelled.

look at the coaches. both took on young coaches: fittler and taylor. Souths supported taylor with a premiership winning coach in lang. the roosters???? No one.

1. wicks was hand picked by Smith
2. wicks and other players indescretions were on Smith’s watch
3. Roosters problems have continued
4. their dealings with Willie are ridiculous?
5. why hire Ryles?

these are facts, all of which have occured on Smiths watch!!!!!

Please stick to the facts

I was reading it and I thought to myself “this sounds like something LAS writes on the Union pages”. I went up to check the author – who else!

What overblown rubbish – show us a quote from Smith promising anything of the sort.

Carney was a done deal long before Smith came aboard.

Although I have sympathy in your criticism of Politis. The Roosters support has been dwindling over the last few years. Some games drew less than 7000 this year.

The “Sydney City / Sydney” experiment has obviously failed. The supporters are all calling out for a return to a traditional image as “Easts”. What is Politis’ response? Rebrand as The Bondi Roosters.

The problem is, the football club membership is severely restricted, supporters have very little voice.

here it is:

1. smith hand picked the NK players and presumably, as a disciplinarian, would have examined the personalities of the players as well as their playing skills.

2. Being a drug dealer is symptom: be it money worries, a gambling problem, a drugs habit or a personality trait/disorder that
precludes him from understanding the abhorence of drug dealers, the danger involved in the drugs business or simply a disregard for authority.

2. it was not just Wicks, but other players in the squad

3. The police knew for 8 months. bikie gangs dont have low profiles!!!! this one was “branded”

4. As for the Smith myth of being a disciplinarian, he couldnt control Willie, in fact didnt even try, didnt identify friend or control him or give him help

5. as the the Smith myth of being a footy coach, where is the forward pack?

He hasnt removed wilie. He has parked him on Willie’s terms pay me while i dont train!!! I agree that a new broom should remove Willie. that hasnt happened and when the pack goes missing in march, Willie, albeit unfit, will be called upon.

Mushi, I agree with your last para except that Smith is a promiser not a deliverer. and the mess is directly the responsibility of Politis. he is the chairman!!!! i havent heard an ounce of mea culpa.

So, i would be happy if politis put his hand up and acceptedresponsibility together with a plan of attack for the future: new proven coach who is at the peak of his powers, new young, bright young things roster, no dickhead pollicy. its not that hard.

e.g. Bulldogs coach Moore or Parramatta Anderson. Got rid of the dross and trouble makers, brought in youngsters and got best performances out of journeymen and incumbents.

“Yet, when asked for his response to Danny Wicks being charged with possessing and supplying drugs, he replied “Stunned,” and “shocked”.

This in bizarre in the extreme.”

How is that bizarre? Bizarre would be him saying oh of course I knew Danny was dealing gear, I figured it was good to have a source in house we could trust?

Smith’s response seems in-line with what a reasonable person would say?

Having a crack at smith for not being a disciplinarian seems very far fetched, next Wayne Bennet will be a stand up comedian and Ricky Stuart respectful after a tough loss,

You can’t criticise his inability to be disciplinarian and bring the right culture and then attack him for trying to remove who he sees as the biggest impediment cultural change because he “might” – given the perfect storm of events which hasn’t occurred for three years – be able to contribute the odd game or two over the course of the season.

I agree that our buys are head scratchers and have been for years but the type of roster restructure your asking for is typically only undertaken by a coach like Smith?