Is Foran bad for the Bulldogs' rebuild?

Barry you had my interest in your comments some quite valid then I read you pick Nu Brown over Lichaa.. lost the credibility there.. Nu Brown was the cause of every single point Redcliffe scored .. go ahead Re watch the game you will see... shocking choices and delivery.. Lichaa had 4-5 good games after he was let go and got resigned and he should not have been given another shot... should have let Lichaa and Nu Brown go and kept Woolford with JMK in rotation off the bench, but I’d still let them go even the Liddle signing would be a massive boost instead of these two...Foran was in the top 3 running 5/8 years ago but carries over his share of injuries now and can’t see him reaching the level now we need halves, Lewis and Cleeland were awesome together get him back or an upcoming gun like Kyle Flanagan, Scott Drinkwater types...

They released wood, mbye, morris twins, Eastwood etc. That's how they can afford to buy one player

The Bulldogs rebuild should ultimately start within their front office.

No one knows what to do with Foran. Playing him in reserves probably stifles the development of any good hookers they have. Playing him in firsts is a waste as his body doesn't seem it can handle the grind of a full season. They can't sack him and I don't see him saying yes to a medical retirement. The only avenue I can see that benefits the club is putting him on the coaching staff. Doubt he will say yes to that though.

He’s not one of the , three little pigs ???? ???? ???? .

I doubt he will make it through the season injury free. Pay needs two sets of halves for when Foran plays and when he is injured. Not sure on the protocol for medical retirement but surely he can't be far off if. This is his last chance at the NRL, no other club wants him and I am sure he is doing everything he can to literally save his NRL career. Dogs really need his salary and have continued to let players go. So yes he is bad for the re-build...prove me wrong Kieran

Exactly.

Unfortunately Foran is part of the group of Manly players who extracted the maximum out of their bodies over a five year period or so. Just when they could have done with a few big boppers in the team to help them they vanished. Glenn Hall, JWH and T Rex along with one or two others disappeared and the remaining dwarfs busted themselves up I believe.

I don't even know why any club would want him he's finished got no heart anymore only doing it for the money not the game total madness.

Any truth to the rumour Foran and Pay have had a massive fallout?

Based on form from 2018 season, why would you pick Foran over Lachlan Lewis?

Doggies fault for buying him,and for so long,and for so much money. He is ONLY a 5/8,who was great at it,being a great support player,and 2nd fiddle to a good to great 7. While so many clueless clubs and coaches have tried to make him a dominate 7,which he is NOT,and NEVER will be.They should have stuck with him doing what he was great at,instead of trying to chance him into something he is NOT.

It should be an option to have Foran play ISP and it could benefit both. He may rediscover his fitness and confidence, however, you're also talking ISP premiers so he still has to earn his stripes in that team. He has the skill, does he have the attitude? If not, Pay knows he can go to market with him.

You can't play Foran at lock as you said they are stacked Martin goal kicker and 80 minute man also Raymond Fatala Mariner Jackson

Yep and telling him now that as things stand he’s starting in ISP might be the best way to trigger that pre season for the ages. I think Pay would find out pretty quickly one way or the other if Foran wanted it. Otherwise there’s little incentive for Foran to do any more than he has been. Play poorly and still get guaranteed a jersey and a big fat pay cheque.

Foran is a half. His body is already battered and it wouldn't stand up to a role such as lock and he doesn't have the pace to play a hooking role. As Barry points out, in addition to Lichaa you have Woolford and Brown who are far more dangerous out of dummy half and both are strong in defence. I don't think he is the best option for the Dogs going forward, I didn't think he was a good signing at the time. His body has bene wrecked for a couple of years, and you can't help but wonder how much of it is just his physical make up and how much of it is whether he takes the requisite care of it for an elite professional athlete. Is he one of the best 32 halves (half back and 5/8's) available in the NRL? Gee I am not sure he is if we are saying JMK deserves a shot ahead of him. The UK seems like his only option, but I am not sure that would fit with his personal life. Short of putting in an offseason and pre-season for the ages, he has to start in ISP next year.

I wish I knew with Lichaa. I think Des was a big part of it. When Lichaa arrived I really liked the look of him. When I watch dummy half players I pay attention to their first movements out of dummy half. Do they go the right way? Do they draw the markers and A defender to make room for their runners? Do they choose to run or kick or pass at the right time? That first movement is critical. It can be the difference between forwards getting over the advantage line or getting smashed by the markers. Cameron Smith (no surprise) is the best I’ve seen. Robbie Farah when in form is great. When he’s overplaying his hand he’s terrible. Ennis was good too. In Lichaa’s first season at the Dogs he was really good as well. But then he transitioned to just shovelling the ball out of dummy half. He presented no attacking threat from dummy half and his forwards were getting smashed. His dummy half play should have been his strength. Hasler slowly did the same thing with Ennis. He wasn’t allowed to run, or kick or create from dummy half. When the Ennis for Lichaa ‘swap’ happened it looked like the Fogs were trading out an old hooker who was a shadow of his former self and bringing in a young gun. Instead Hasler put Lichaa in a box and Ennis got a new lease of life and handed the reins of the Sharks attack. At the end of 2017 the Dogs players threw Hasler’s attacking strategy out the window and Lichaa played his three best games for the club in succession. I thought it was a great move from Pay to re-sign him. But now for whatever reason he’s back in the box again. There was a period this year where he was dropped to ISP Cup and he absolutely killed it sharing the role with Zac Woolford and forced his way back into first grade, but then he was as crook as ever. Maybe he’s mentally scarred. I don’t know but he barely fired a shot all season in first grade while Nu Brown was super sharp out of dummy half. Great pace and seems to have a good eye of when to run and to play what’s in front of him. I guess it depends on what Pay wants from his 9. I think I might have got carried away with that response :-)

Baz I always appreciate your insights. But the idea of playing reserve grade and earning your spot back is the pick if the bunch. So often we see disinterested or out of form players picked simply because the club paid a lot of money for a player. The coach is under pressure to play them, maybe they brought them to the club. But when even the biggest names can be forced to play reserves, then everyone knows the coach is in charge. Unless you’re Robbie Farah, then you have the coach sacked, leave the club, go to another club, play reserves on big coin and then go back to the original club as the returning prodigal. Straight into first grade. Although in his defence he did significantly improve the hooking stocks. What happened to Lichaa? He was so good at Cronulla. Then Des him not to run? Was that it? Or was he never that good in the first place?

This is a really good question that I've been thinking about and still don't know the answer to even after reading this well considered article and the comments below. No doubt at his best he has a lot to offer but how much time can the Dogs waste to see if he ever gets back there. He was ordinary this year and poor for the Warriors in 2017. I thought he started pretty well for the Eels in 2016 but the wheels quickly fell off on and off the field. So it's three years since he's played decent footy. He's at his third club in that time and had numerous injuries and off field issues. It's a really sad story. I've always liked Foran and would love to see him get back to his best. The Dogs were dire at the start of 2018 and it was only once Foran was out and Pay was able to try a few combos in the halves that they improved. The Foran / Lewis halves combo doesn't strike me as a great combo on paper but then I thought Sezer and Austin were going to kill it. I know I bang on about him a lot but I don't get why Josh Cleeland hasn't been given a shot. Frawley has left so there's a roster spot open but it looks like that's gone to Cogger from the Knights. From what I've seen I have no problem declaring Cleeland a far better player. I doubt Foran can play 9. He can tackle but he has zero pace off the mark, his service would be questionable, his ability to read and control a game from dummy half an unknown but most of all I doubt he has the legs to get him around the park. I don't think he can play 13 either. We already have Jackson, RFM, Martin, Elliott and CHN in the back row. How many minutes can Foran play there and who do you take minutes away from? The Dogs finished 2017 in a flurry and gave supporters a reason to hope. But it was same old at the start of 2018...or worse and Foran was a big part of that. I'd hate to see the Dogs waste another half season trying to see if Foran still has what it takes. I think Lewis and JMK should get first crack. I'm not sold yet on JMK but the Dogs played better footy with him at 7 than Foran. Make Foran earn his way through reserve grade like players had to back in the day. Make him prove that he's still got it and show how bad he wants it. I know it's a lot of coin to have sitting in reserve grade but that's better than him playing at half capacity and buggering the attack. It could bring out the best in him too. PS I'd play Nu Brown at 9 and get rid of Lichaa too.

Why isn't Foran used in one of two roles; as a hooker or a bench player coming on to take over what ever role is required? He obviously has good play-making skills but I can't see him being the future half or 5/8 at the Bulldogs, so that seems to leave the roles I've suggested. I don't really understand why the Doggies signed him. He had some glory years but that's ancient history in NRL terms. He's certainly done little in recent seasons.