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Message: [QUOTE="Big Pete, post: 3501309, member: 1899"] The point I was making is that halfbacks don't necessarily come into first grade as 7s. So players like Isaiya Katoa, Tom Dearden, Jayden Sullivan, Jonah Pezet etc. could easily find themselves in that 7 role. There are some five-eighths who are purely that, but then there's others who play more like halfbacks but have to accept a different role because of the make-up of the squad. You just have to look at players like Johnathan Thurston & Scott Prince as examples. Similarly the point I was making about them establishing themselves as a starting half was more about patience and how long it takes before clubs are ready to give these players those type of opportunities. So players of the next generation like Thomas Weaver, Tom Duffy etc. who are coming through may not get their start this year. However everyone is aware of them so if they kill it on debut it's not like they're coming from nowhere. As far as Hastings goes, he was a halfback coming through the grades who was clearly going to be in the starting halves come 2016. He spent the majority of 2015 as a bench utility and would instantly come into the halves if there was an injury - there was no risk the Roosters wanted to give him that opportunity. They gave it to him, he struggled and Manly signed him because Bozo was pulling a Gus and was signing any young prospect he could get his hands on. It was a horrible fit, he didn't get on at all with anyone at the club, and he found himself over at the ESL where he had to slowly rebuild his career. Point being, Hastings has been on the radar for years. He was the best halfback of his age group, things went horrifically but he got back on track at 26, even shifting Luke Brooks from halfback to five-eighth for a time (then Doueihi came back and to fit them all in the team, Hastings went to 13). I actually had a different method of illustrating how clubs have gone about their starting #7 spot, which is probably why my original post was so scatter-brained. I have it saved as a doco, but it'll need some adjustments. [/QUOTE]

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