On the button though

Sam Obst?

No thanks!

Can I just clarify:

We are signing two FORWARDS.

Not backs.

Canturbury forward Grant Millington on 2 year deal (played 6 games for the Bulldogs and scored 1 try)
Warrington forward Lee Mitchell on 1 year loan (played 32 games for the Wolves and scored 3 tries)

Lee Mitchell was DR at Leigh in the past two seasons. Quality player. Loose Forward or 2nd Row. I prefer him at 13 personally.

Let's just take a moment to reflect on RW's comments from only a few months ago.

1) We will appoint a coach that can bring at least 6 top class players to the club!
2) We will be looking to sign quality....not quantity!

.....and the outcome is a guy that has played only 6 games for the Bulldogs, and another guy that most will be scratching their heads and saying who's he then, that name doesn't ring a bell?

Either way though...welcome to the club, give us 100% of whatever you have to give...and you'll be made most welcome by the fans!!

Millington is 6 foot 4 and almost 17 stones. For a second row that is big! I think it's what we needed. The lack of games last year is a worry but the Bulldogs have 2nd rowers like Corey Payne, Frank Pritchard and Mickey Paea so he would have to be bloody good to play every week. Looks like a decent prospect. Just hope he has the aggression of Sampson or Wardy and isn't another Chris Feather.

Lee Mitchell, again fills a hole nicely we have at 13. I think we just have to trust Basil on this one. I really hate these 1 year loan deals though. Lets make a player better then give him back!

The bit I am not liking so much is the full shoulder reconstruction that he hasn't recovered from yet! It is suggested that he is expected to miss the first few games on the season.

Yea, just read that too. It's a gamble but at least he is on the right side of 30!

Not sure these two are any better than what you've already got in your starting 17 but they will give you depth. Mitchell has potential though the jury is still out on him and Millington is a solid forward, nothing spectuacular, a 'job-doer'. His injury was a bad one though and a lot depends on how his recovery goes.

Does this now conclude our squad for 2012?

To be honest I was hoping for a little more with our recruitment, I know money has been spent on the Chase, Owen, Milner etc extentions but I'd imagine Widders, Fozzard, Aspinwall and Isa would each have been on higher salaries than the players that replaced them, add to this losing loan players and I thought we'd have the budget to sign a higher quality of player.

I can't even see 3 of the 4 recruits making it into the first choice 17.