POLL: Strongest 2024 line up: Hooker

[greeneyed]

POLL: Strongest 2024 line up: Hooker

What's your strongest possible 2024 Canberra Raiders line up? That's what we are asking the readers of The Greenhouse. We're looking at the "Locks and contenders" for each position in the team in a special series of articles. Some players have clearly locked down their spot but we're looking at all the contenders for places in the Green Machine's top 17. For more contentious positions, we're supplementing the discussion with a series of polls.

In this poll, we're asking: Who should be the starting hooker in 2024? Remember, we're looking at the strongest possible team, irrespective of injuries or suspensions... not the Round 1 team.

Click here to read more: Locks and contenders: Hooker

You have ONE vote in this poll.

If a player's name who you'd like to vote for is not in the poll, just name them in a post below.

[Matt]

I want Trev. Won't happen, but that's what I wanna see.

I know who the other 3 are. None are the answer, AND, not convinced any are better than a #2 if not #3 anyway.

[Bluesbrother]

Trevilyan didn't show enough last season. I hope a big offseason and some minutes in NSW cup gets him back to his best. For round 1 Woolford is the best we have. I hope that changes as the season progresses and Trevilyan stakes his claim.

[Matt]

Trevilyan didn't show enough last season. I hope a big offseason and some minutes in NSW cup gets him back to his best. For round 1 Woolford is the best we have. I hope that changes as the season progresses and Trevilyan stakes his claim.

Trev was coming back off an ACL. So there is some rust there. This yr is yr 2, so he should be back to full strength etc. We need to finally see if we have anything in Trev. If we don't, the 9 room needs tearing down and rebuilding.

[RedRaider]

Zack Woolford easily. The team plays better when he is on the field due to his passing to both sides from dummy half and in 2023 he proved to be a rock in defence with a much improved performance in defence over 2022. I am hoping Trev will develop into the bench 9 this year. He is another who is strong in defence and has a good passing game. The issue is, has he recovered from his knee injury both physically and mentally?

Starling can only pass well from right to left. His left to right passing is poor. He does well for his size defensively but close to our line a bigger body is required. Levy?? No one knows what he is going to do including him. He is a good NSW Cup player but it rarely translates into FG performance. He is fit but is not a strong defender in FG. I still don't get the need to extend his contract last year.

[The Ang]

Woolford and it ain’t close. Our record with him in the 17 says it all.
Is it after rd 10 when Trev is available?
I can cop Starling on the bench until then

[greeneyed]

Development player contracts replaced by “Supplementary list”. $650,000 cap for at least four, maximum six players, paid $80,000, can play from Round 1. Bonus of $3,000 for any NRL game.

Read more: viewtopic.php?t=35804

[Matt]

Woolford and it ain’t close. Our record with him in the 17 says it all.
Is it after rd 10 when Trev is available?
I can cop Starling on the bench until then

As above, Rd1

[Dusty]

Trev


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[Billy Walker]

Danny Levi for me with Trev as number 2.

[Bluesbrother]

Trevilyan didn't show enough last season. I hope a big offseason and some minutes in NSW cup gets him back to his best. For round 1 Woolford is the best we have. I hope that changes as the season progresses and Trevilyan stakes his claim.

Trev was coming back off an ACL. So there is some rust there. This yr is yr 2, so he should be back to full strength etc. We need to finally see if we have anything in Trev. If we don't, the 9 room needs tearing down and rebuilding.

Is this his second ACL? I agree but he hasn't lit it up at NSW cup level at this stage. He is 22 - plenty of time. Starting him would be a big ask given the lack of experience elsewhere in the spine.

[LimeGreenMachine]

Woolford suits the team best. Then Puru off the bench if he isn't in the starting 13

Levi should never wear a Raiders FG jersey again, Starling needs to get hos act together otherwise he needs to find a new club too.

[Bluesbrother]

Xavier Caccioti is a smoky but given our plans to blood some youth he is worth mentioning. Australian schoolboys last year and a hell of a player. He has the skills of a half, speed and a lot of power for his size. EDIT. He will need to add some size to his frame as well. I expect him to play a lot of NSW cup next season and in discussions for our 2025 NRL squad depending on how he is progressing.

[Matt]

Trevilyan didn't show enough last season. I hope a big offseason and some minutes in NSW cup gets him back to his best. For round 1 Woolford is the best we have. I hope that changes as the season progresses and Trevilyan stakes his claim.

Trev was coming back off an ACL. So there is some rust there. This yr is yr 2, so he should be back to full strength etc. We need to finally see if we have anything in Trev. If we don't, the 9 room needs tearing down and rebuilding.

Is this his second ACL? I agree but he hasn't lit it up at NSW cup level at this stage. He is 22 - plenty of time. Starting him would be a big ask given the lack of experience elsewhere in the spine.

Hmmm... yeah, might be #2. Point is, we need to see if any of the Jr promise is there. The other 3 are known commodities.

[Matt]

Xavier Caccioti is a smoky but given our plans to blood some youth he is worth mentioning. Australian schoolboys last year and a hell of a player. He has the skills of a half, speed and a lot of power for his size. EDIT. He will need to add some size to his frame as well. I expect him to play a lot of NSW cup next season and in discussions for our 2025 NRL squad depending on how he is progressing.

Sounds good

[Finchy]

Evidently Billy Walker has at least 3 accounts thus far...

[kiwi raider]

Woolford but I wouldn't be all that surprised if Puru ends up being our best 9 by the end of the year

[Billy Walker]

Evidently Billy Walker has at least 3 accounts thus far...

Just one - but maybe the loud, rude voices might reflect that there are other views they drown out. Don’t care if you don’t agree with my view but respect that people can hold a different view to the echo chamber.

[Botman]

It should be Woolford with Puru in the 14 imo
However Levi will start because Stuart is nothing if not stubborn
And quite simply he is not an nrl standard footballer. He’s established that over 100+ games and 8 years of career.
Coaches want to believe in him and give him opportunities because I’m sure he’s a lovely bloke and probably works his **** off

But abilities and talent has to matter at some point.

[Raidernation]

Trevs performances were very average last season but he keeps getting opportunities so the coaches see something there but he hasn't shown it. Ditto Levi. Starling is just so inconsistent it's hard to see him putting it together.
That leaves woolford who is consistent, good defender but has holes in his game.
I've said that I'm confident Levi would get the spot because he is quicker out of half and has a professional attitude but he can move to 13 and play 80 if needed which compliments starling a little more and gives Stuart more options during a game but I don't think anyone is rusted on for 9 so pre season performance will matter.
No one even knows if Puru can even play 9 so I'm not sure if he should be in the convo because he wasn't looked at in NSW cup dispute the lack of talent. From memory may have played 2 or 3 games and then shifted back into the forwards.

[Finchy]

he can move to 13 and play 80 if needed which compliments starling a little more

Levi: “Oh Tommy you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind, hey Tommy!”

[dubby]

I want Trev. Won't happen, but that's what I wanna see.

I know who the other 3 are. None are the answer, AND, not convinced any are better than a #2 if not #3 anyway.

Agreed.

[BadnMean]

Woolford but I wouldn't be all that surprised if Puru ends up being our best 9 by the end of the year

I'd be interested to know if he spends any serious time training there in the off season.

It was trialled briefly last season but seemed to be abandoned before too long.

The scope for a Havilii style role is there- maybe better hands and a bit less power but another way to play the role.

[The Ang]

Woolford but I wouldn't be all that surprised if Puru ends up being our best 9 by the end of the year

I'd be interested to know if he spends any serious time training there in the off season.

It was trialled briefly last season but seemed to be abandoned before too long.

The scope for a Havilii style role is there- maybe better hands and a bit less power but another way to play the role.

Kris at fullback was also abandoned at the end of the season, yet there are reports that he’s the front runner for fullback spot this year

[kiwi raider]

Woolford but I wouldn't be all that surprised if Puru ends up being our best 9 by the end of the year

I'd be interested to know if he spends any serious time training there in the off season.

It was trialled briefly last season but seemed to be abandoned before too long.

The scope for a Havilii style role is there- maybe better hands and a bit less power but another way to play the role.

admittedly i've only seen a few games of his at hooker in NSW cup but i thought he showed a bit on talent in terms of opening things up for players around him and being able to commit defenders by holding up the defense, the pre season reports of him being the fittest at the club is also a good sign for a hooker and i just reckon he could take big strides forward this year, plus most other options are fairly average although i want to see more of Trev as i thought he also showed more ball playing ability than the other options.

[Bluesbrother]

Woolford but I wouldn't be all that surprised if Puru ends up being our best 9 by the end of the year

I'd be interested to know if he spends any serious time training there in the off season.

It was trialled briefly last season but seemed to be abandoned before too long.

The scope for a Havilii style role is there- maybe better hands and a bit less power but another way to play the role.

admittedly i've only seen a few games of his at hooker in NSW cup but i thought he showed a bit on talent in terms of opening things up for players around him and being able to commit defenders by holding up the defense, the pre season reports of him being the fittest at the club is also a good sign for a hooker and i just reckon he could take big strides forward this year, plus most other options are fairly average although i want to see more of Trev as i thought he also showed more ball playing ability than the other options.

Agree with this. The guy is an impressive player wherever he plays and he has the work ethic to make it work. I'm not sure he can be taken seriously as a middle or edge forward at 177cm and 92kg. He is up against Horse and Smithies who are origin and international players respectively. The coaching staff should be straight with him in saying that if he wants to be a long term NRL proposition he needs to get into the hooking role.

[Botman]

No one even knows if Puru can even play 9 so I'm not sure if he should be in the convo because he wasn't looked at in NSW cup dispute the lack of talent. From memory may have played 2 or 3 games and then shifted back into the forwards.

You are correct
He played there a handful of times in nsw cup and acquitted himself very well in my view

It’s fair to say we don’t know if Puru is an NRL footballer. Based on limited minutes I’ve been impressed but it too limited. We can say he has the skill set required to play hooker, we’ve seen that. It’s now about figuring out what of his very wide set of skills and abilities translates best at nrl level to determine where his NRL future lies

But what we do know is this:
Danny Levi and Tom Starling aren’t nrl footballers. Those players have been given ample opportunity to show they are up to that level and have consistently fallen short.
If Puru flat out can’t play, we can always go back to Danny Levi, he’s not going anywhere. No one would take him and do us that favour

Woolford should start and we should give opportunities to Puru and Trevilyan over Levi and Starling so that we can better understand what we have in those two players

We know what we have in Levi and Starling. No need to revisit that unless we are forced too and yet I bet those are our 9 and 14 come round 1 next year. When watching those two play hooker it reminds me of an early scene in Gone in 60 Seconds where Donny is trying to teach the young girl how to drive

“You can't pass properly. You can't kick. You can't read the play and direct a forward pack. Hell, you can't play, honey!”

[Raidernation]

No one even knows if Puru can even play 9 so I'm not sure if he should be in the convo because he wasn't looked at in NSW cup dispute the lack of talent. From memory may have played 2 or 3 games and then shifted back into the forwards.

You are correct
He played there a handful of times in nsw cup and acquitted himself very well in my view

It’s fair to say we don’t know if Puru is an NRL footballer. Based on limited minutes I’ve been impressed but it too limited. We can say he has the skill set required to play hooker, we’ve seen that. It’s now about figuring out what of his very wide set of skills and abilities translates best at nrl level to determine where his NRL future lies

But what we do know is this:
Danny Levi and Tom Starling aren’t nrl footballers. Those players have been given ample opportunity to show they are up to that level and have consistently fallen short.
If Puru flat out can’t play, we can always go back to Danny Levi, he’s not going anywhere. No one would take him and do us that favour

Woolford should start and we should give opportunities to Puru and Trevilyan over Levi and Starling so that we can better understand what we have in those two players

We know what we have in Levi and Starling. No need to revisit that unless we are forced too and yet I bet those are our 9 and 14 come round 1 next year

Puru played one good game at 9 and was average in the other at a NSW cup level. The only saving grace is maybe he hadn't trained in the position but even the NSW coaches moved him pretty quickly out of 9 which says a lot.
I've said before that based on trevs performances last year he is way back in the pecking order. His falls off tackles, can't compete in the grapple and is slow to get back in the line, all of the above destroy a team. Considering he has been here for a few years now I don't see it getting much better, was lucky to get a new contract imo.
I think Levi and woolford will be given equal opportunity based on pre season but I'm sure they think they are a better team if Levi can reach an NRL level.

[julian87]

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a forward as out of their depth defensively in the NRL as Trevilyan was last season. I know it’s on the back of an ACL but he was an absolute liability.

I’ll be very, very surprised if he’s the answer.

[dubby]

Woolford is arguably our most consistent 9. He does struggle a bit with defensive contact, and has the occasional shocker of a pass, but I like how he brings players on to the ball.

Starling 'could 'fill that Havilii role; he has good acceleration and is pretty damn strong. He just can't pass at NRL level.

Levi, well as Nick said, he's had 8 years and 100 games but there's a reason he's a journeyman. levi just looks lost out there with ball in hand. By all accounts he's an absolute top guy, brings a high standard to training and rehabilitation, and is liked by all, but if we're fair dinkum he's not our best option.

Trevilyn is my favourite 9. He does everything well, especially his service from the ruck. He's one of those players that can read the game and he looks calm, settled and plays with plenty of time on his hand. (Unlike Starling and Levi who look frantic).

[Botman]

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a forward as out of their depth defensively in the NRL as Trevilyan was last season. I know it’s on the back of an ACL but he was an absolute liability.

I’ll be very, very surprised if he’s the answer.

IIRC it wasn’t just an acl but also a shoulder reconstruction in the off season
He wasn’t physically ready for nrl footy last year that’s for sure

[The Nickman]

As sure as the night follows the day, we're all locked in for the Danny Levi experience again in 2024.

Lock it in, Eddie.

[Matt]

No one even knows if Puru can even play 9 so I'm not sure if he should be in the convo because he wasn't looked at in NSW cup dispute the lack of talent. From memory may have played 2 or 3 games and then shifted back into the forwards.

You are correct
He played there a handful of times in nsw cup and acquitted himself very well in my view

It’s fair to say we don’t know if Puru is an NRL footballer. Based on limited minutes I’ve been impressed but it too limited. We can say he has the skill set required to play hooker, we’ve seen that. It’s now about figuring out what of his very wide set of skills and abilities translates best at nrl level to determine where his NRL future lies

But what we do know is this:
Danny Levi and Tom Starling aren’t nrl footballers. Those players have been given ample opportunity to show they are up to that level and have consistently fallen short.
If Puru flat out can’t play, we can always go back to Danny Levi, he’s not going anywhere. No one would take him and do us that favour

Woolford should start and we should give opportunities to Puru and Trevilyan over Levi and Starling so that we can better understand what we have in those two players

We know what we have in Levi and Starling. No need to revisit that unless we are forced too and yet I bet those are our 9 and 14 come round 1 next year. When watching those two play hooker it reminds me of an early scene in Gone in 60 Seconds where Donny is trying to teach the young girl how to drive

“You can't pass properly. You can't kick. You can't read the play and direct a forward pack. Hell, you can't play, honey!”

Hell! I can't swim. So, I stay the hell out da pool.
love the ref!

[Ultima]

Woolford for certain. Would love us to sign someone else but we haven't even re-signed the best hooker we have while throwing cash at known b graders (Levi, Starling).

Woolford has even shown some ability to kick and mix it up but I'm certain Stuart is working hard to turn him into a predictable one dimensional player to comply with his five crash balls (with no other player movement around them even, have to keep our forwards fresh by making them stand as still as possible) then give it to the halfback to hope for a miracle.

Stuart's coaching style is very "half-backs are the only hero you need" but then he insists on over coaching them and having a rigid game play which suffocates any adhoc play. I worry even if we signed a great hooker he would coach it out of them within a year or two like he did with Hodgson.

[Roger Kenworthy]

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a forward as out of their depth defensively in the NRL as Trevilyan was last season. I know it’s on the back of an ACL but he was an absolute liability.

I’ll be very, very surprised if he’s the answer.

I didn't see anything out of Trev last year that suggested he's a solution at hooker. Year one back from a couple of shocking injuries so I have that in the back of my head, but he just seemed well behind the pace of NRL.