As you tuck into the Christmas ham, try to dodge the worst of the chat around the table and open the presents, NRL clubs will also be hoping they can score plenty from the most festive day of the year.
It's time of year when the NRL seems to stand still. Players are on leave, clubs go quiet and the signings - for about the only time all year - slow down.
But it won't stay that way for long. Clubs have turned their long-term attention towards their 2025 squads, while pre-season training will be back shortly ahead of the season kicking off in Las Vegas, which itself follows pre-season trials from the middle of February.
So, what does your club want for Christmas ahead of the 2024 season?
On behalf of the entire Zero Tackle team, we wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas, and safe holiday period.
11. Eels: Forward pack hits potential consistently
The Eels have a forward pack with enough big names in it that they should have been a top eight side in 2023, and yet, after making the grand final the year before, they fell short of the top eight.
A chunk of that was simply down to the consistency of that forward pack.
A part of that in itself was down to some of the strategy decisions made by Brad Arthur too, who demonstrated at times he doesn't understand how to use the interchage bench and now must surely be under pressure for his job if the Eels fall short of the top eight in 2024.
But the likes of Junior Paulo, Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Shaun Lane and Ryan Matterson must stand up as the forward pack leaders, while the younger players must also continue developing.
