The Manly Sea Eagles suffered a disastrous collapse to round out their 2022 season, losing seven games on the trot after the infamous jersey debacle.
It left the side missing out on the finals, and, after a season where they had battled without star fullback Tom Trbojevic who missed most of it due to injury, big changes have already struck the club.
Not so much in the playing roster - although Kieran Foran has headlined the departures after he signed a two-year deal to move to the Gold Coast Titans - but off the field is where the biggest change has occurred.
Des Hasler is no longer head coach of the Northern Beaches-based side, with Anthony Seibold taking over, joined by Shane Flanagan who headlines the assistant coaching team.
The side have, as mentioned, barely made changes to the playing roster, and so they will be relying on the same group to flip the script in 2023.
But if they could steal any player in the competition without any salary cap or contractural worries, who would it be?
Current squad
Josh Aloiai, Morgan Boyle, Ethan Bullemor, Daly Cherry-Evans, Ben Condon, Lachlan Croker, Viliami Fifita, Zac Fulton, Reuben Garrick, Morgan Harper, Sean Keppie, Tolutau Koula, Karl Lawton, Haumole Olakau'atu, Brad Parker, Taniela Paseka, Jason Saab, Josh Schuster, Toafofoa Sipley, Ben Trbojevic, Jake Trbojevic, Tom Trbojevic, Kelma Tuilagi, Christian Tuipulotu, Alec Tuitavake, Raymond Vaega, Kaeo Weekes
Analysis
Manly have plenty of obvious problems staring them in the face as they prepare for the 2023 season under the coaching of Anthony Seibold.
Kicking off with the parts of the team which are set in stone and will form the nucleus of their 2022 charge, Tom Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans will need to lead the side through what could potentially be a tumultuous year ahead.
Jake Trbojevic as well is locked in at number 13, although there is a school of thought following his appearances at representative level that he should potentially be shuffled to prop.
Regardless, he is a strong middle forward leader, while the arrival of Kelma Tuilagi will mean the second row is also in a strong spot, with Haumole Olakau'atu undoubtedly one of the best edge forwards in the NRL after a barnstorming 2022 campaign.
Jason Saab has at times struggled in various elements of his game, but is far from Manly's worst problem, and will line up on the wing alongside the goal-kicking talent Reuben Garrick, who has fast become one of the club's most important players following his move from the St George Illawarra Dragons before he had made his NRL debut, much to the disgust of fans at the joint venture.
Tolutau Koula is another emerging talent on the Beaches and will likely confirm himself to a spot in the centres during the 2023 campaign.
But the rest of the team is up for debate at Manly.
Brad Parker and Morgan Harper have shown solid performances without being exceptional and will likely fight for the other centre position alongside Koula, but it's plainly obvious that neither player brings the star quality of some of the competition's other centres to the table.
Josh Schuster is also set to move to five-eighth this season, and while he has more talent that anyone would imagine, he struggled last year. Not only that, but his best position appears to be the second row, captaining the New South Wales under-19 side from the edge a few years ago.
That said, a talented five-eighth arriving to complement Cherry-Evans in the halves could take Manly in a completely new direction.
Lachlan Croker is another player who has proven how strong he can be in the middle third. A former half, he transitioned into the number nine role, but needs support at the club.
The middle third is the other issue for Manly. Jake Trbojevic is backed up by Josh Aloiai, Taniela Paseka, Toafofa Sipley, Sean Keppie and Ethan Bullemor, but their depth on top talent in particular is extremely skinny following the off-season departure of Martin Taupau, who was out of favour at the back end of 2022 and is still yet to find a new club.
Options to steal
Option 1: Dylan Brown (Parramatta Eels)
If the Sea Eagles were to go for a number six, the type of player they would be after is one who is not overly dominant on the ball and used to playing with a halfback who takes the majority of touches.
For that reason, someone like Cameron Munster is immediately ruled out of contention.
Brown feels like he would be an instantly good fit at Manly - and this one could ultimately be a reality if Schuster doesn't work out given half the NRL are rumoured to be chasing the Kiwi.
The Parramatta five-eighth was average in 2021, but had a career-best year in 2022 and is so important to Parramatta's push, ultimately playing in a halves combination alongside Mitchell Moses who made the grand final.
Five-eighth
Try Assists
Tries
Kick Metres
Option 2: Harry Grant (Melbourne Storm)
Lachlan Croker, as mentioned, has performed admirably at the Sea Eagles throughout his time in the number nine jersey, but the chances of the club winning a premiership with him in the role seem stunted.
Not to say they can't, but an upgrade wouldn't look out of place for a team who made the preliminary finals in 2021 during what could only be described as a chaotic mess of a season.
Grant has been strong - better than strong in fact - at the Storm, and will take over as the club's sole first-choice hooker in 2023 following the departure of Brandon Smith to the Sydney Roosters.
The Queensland Maroons and Australian Kangaroos hooker, Grant is one of, if not the best in the game, and working with Cherry-Evans in the spine who he plays with at Origin level seems like an excellent fit.
Hooker
Tackles Made
Tries
LB Assists
Option 3: David Klemmer (Wests Tigers)
The Wests Tigers have made a superb acquisition for 2023 to take David Klemmer away from Newcastle, even if it does mean giving up arguably their best player from the season just gone in Jackson Hastings.
The Tigers have a crop of talented young forwards, but what they would have lacked without Klemmer was the sort of player who can play big minutes, produce at a consistent rate and lead the forward pack.
Looking at Manly's circumstances, the same scenario could not be more true.
Jake Trbojevic is the forward leader, but isn't the big, scary x-factor that Klemmer is who will not just break tackles, but run over the top of them, while also having footwork and ball-playing skills to boot.
Prop
All Run Metres
Tries
Tackle Breaks
Option 4: Justin Olam (Melbourne Storm)
If Manly were going to go for a centre in this scenario, then power and defensive abilities should be the two qualities they are chasing.
That said, Olam is at the top of his class when it comes to both sides of the game.
He potentially was below his 2021 level throughout the 2022 campaign in a Storm side who has to battle with injuries all the way through, but that doesn't mean he wasn't excellent.
He has a tackle breaking ability like few others and reads the game superbly in defence, as most players in Craig Bellamy's system do.
Centre
Try Assists
LB Assists
Tries
The verdict
This realistically all comes down to the position that Manly decide they want to fill more than the rest.
Hooker is the easiest one to rule out - Lachlan Croker may not be the player to win a premiership as a starting number nine, but he does more than a serviceable job.
Five-eighth too, for now, can be ruled out. Josh Schuster deserves a chance to see if he can make the position his own.
Parker and Harper mean there is depth at centre too.
What Manly more than anything else is a forward pack leader. Big minutes, big production and competitive as anything.
That is Klemmer. For all the same reasons the Tigers need him, the Sea Eagles need him as they look to turn things around heading into a new campaign with the memories of a seven-match losing streak still fresh.
Be sure to check back in tomorrow as we take a look at the Melbourne Storm.
