The major NRL storyline surrounding your club in 2024

With the return to pre-season training this month, all 17 Telstra Premiership clubs, regardless of their success or lack of last year, have some important questions hovering over them. 

• 2023 NRL Signings Tracker

From roster gaps that need filling to problems which plagued them throughout last season, here are the major storylines surrounding every NRL club ahead of 2024.

Now the Broncos have lost one, are they better placed to win one?

The old adage that grand final heartache is required before you can experience the joy of winning one proved true in the case of the Panthers on their way to a run of three straight, but after coming so close in 2023 are the Broncos set up to go one better next time around? The majority of their group will remain unchanged, although there’s no doubting the loss of strike centre Herbie Farnworth and representative prop Thomas Flegler will hurt, while young stars like Reece Walsh and Ezra Mam should be better for the experiences of last season. But recent history shows it’s tough for any team not named Penrith to back up and appear in consecutive deciders and coach Kevin Walters will have his work cut out to ensure his side find another gear now that they have a huge target on their heads.

Will new backline signings breathe life into the Bulldogs' attack?

Canterbury-Bankstown ranked 16th out of 17 teams last season in terms of points scored, averaging just 18.2 across their 24 games. While also having the NRL’s worst defensive record was arguably a bigger issue, improving what they do in attack will be a means to grow confidence in the group and be a key part of removing some of the pressure they have been putting themselves under off the ball. With noted attacking weapons Stephen Crichton and Blake Taafe joining, along with the electric Bronson Xerri, they’ll certainly have more firepower at their disposal, but it’ll still be up to Matt Burton and co to put them in positions to take advantage.   

Can the Cowboys find their road mojo again?

One of the major differences between North Queensland’s 2022 campaign, in which they finished 3rd, and last year’ slump to 11th, was their performances on the road. They won just four times away from home in 2023, exactly half the number they won the year prior, and in eight trips outside of Queensland they picked up competition points just twice. Finding more success away from Queensland Country Bank Stadium will go a long way to improving their overall record next season and returning to the finals. 

Have the Dolphins got the depth to avoid another drop-off?

Who knows if the Dolphins would have been able to sustain their promising start and challenge for the playoffs in their first season anyway, but it’s safe to say that their inability to cover for injuries and suspensions ended any chance of it happening last year. After winning seven of their opening 12 games, Wayne Bennett’s men won just twice after Round 13, with Origin forward Tom Gilbert's season-ending shoulder injury the turning point. Having blooded nine players at NRL level last season and acquired frontline talents Herbie Farnworth, Tom Flegler and Jake Averillo for 2024, the Dolphins will hope to have more reliable depth in season two if injuries and suspensions strike. 

Is it time for a Lomax position switch at the Dragons?

Zac Lomax enjoyed a strong season in the centres last year, but there remains a desire for the Dragons to get one of their most talented players involved on the ball more often. That likely would require a move either to fullback or the halves in 2024 under new head coach Shane Flanagan. The club arguably has vacancies at both, with Tyrell Sloan’s undoubted attacking ability being offset by the fact that he still has plenty to learn defensively as a No.1. In the halves meanwhile, the departure of Jayden Sullivan to the Wests Tigers and uncertainty around Talatau Amone’s future means there is a gap to be filled. New signing Kyle Flannagan could be the man for that job, but the long-speculated move of Lomax to five-eighth is also a real option. Whatever the outcome, after scoring the third fewest points in the NRL last year, St George Illawarra need to try something new in 2024.

Is the premiership window still open for Parramatta?

Parra’s long-suffering fans had hoped their run to the 2022 decider would kick off a period where they would be a title contender for a number of years. That still might happen, but missing the finals altogether last year wasn’t a good way to keep that momentum going and now they are very much on the clock in terms of making the most of this current roster, which as it is has had almost a 50 percent turnover since their grand final loss to Penrith. There is a huge question hovering over who plays hooker for them in 2024 following veteran rake Josh Hodgson being forced into retirement, with the Joey Lussick and Brendan Hands – who are the leading contenders for the job – both heading into next season with fewer than 20 NRL games to their name. As they enter a 38th year in their wait for the club’s fifth premiership, Eels fans are growing less patient by the game.  

Can the Knights build sustained success?

Prolonged time as a finals team has eluded Newcastle for much of the past two decades and since 2002-2003 they have made to it to the post-season in consecutive years just once. But that sole occurrence happened under the coaching of Adam O’Brien in 2020-2021, which means there is plenty of reason to believe they can build on their remarkable run to last year’s playoffs and ensure that 2023 wasn’t just a flash in the pan. Having no questions this pre-season around the future of their coach, or what position Kalyn Ponga will be playing, will be a helpful starting point, but the loss of try-scoring ace Dom Young to the Roosters leaves them with a big gap to fill too. 

Can the next man-up keep Penrith purring?

Losing key players is nothing new to Penrith and so far it hasn’t impacted their ability to be the best side in the NRL. Conventional wisdom says that doubting the Panthers’ ability to keep calm and carry on is foolish, but they’ll have their work cut out for them replacing a couple of the players who left the building following their third-straight grand final victory last month. Stephen Crichton has been a huge part of their success and last season he was exceptional, combining brilliant attacking ability with some excellent defence out wide, both of which were on full display in the grand final when he made several plays that kept his side’s unlikely comeback alive. Ivan Cleary also loses the services of Spencer Leniu who has for some time now been arguably the best specialist interchange middle in the NRL, bringing impact and complimenting the starters perfectly. Talent like Crichton and Leniu doesn't grow on trees and while Penrith will be backing themselves to replace them, it won’t be easy.

What will Latrell deliver for the Rabbitohs in 2024?

Having the services of their best player for only half of the season last year killed the Rabbitohs, who spent the first 14 rounds at, or within touching distance of, the top of the competition, before experiencing a slow and panful decline which resulted in them missing the finals altogether. They won just two of the seven games Latrell missed between Rounds 13-21, which included defeats to the lowly Dragons and Bulldogs, and that put a huge amount of pressure on them heading into the final month. They were then struck another huge blow when Mitchell picked up a suspension for foul play in the dying minutes of a blowout defeat to the Knights, which ruled him out of their last and biggest game of the year, a must-win encounter with the Roosters which they lost to end their season. So much hinges on their No.1 man being available more often in 2024.

Will Ricky’s young Raiders rise to the occasion?

Having bid farewell to just under 550 games worth of first-grade experience last year with the retirement of Jarrod Croker and departure of Jack Wighton to the Rabbitohs, the Raiders will have a very different look and feel come 2024. At this stage Simi Sasagi, Morgan Smithies and Kaeo Weekes – who have under 30 NRL games between them – are the only signings Ricky Stuart has made, meaning he’ll be relying heavily on the next generation. The Green Machine are a good chance of having an inexperienced player lining up alongside Jamal Fogarty in the halves, while youngsters like Trey Mooney, Ethan Strange and Harley Smith-Shields could be set for increased roles too. 

Can the Roosters get consistent output from their pack?

While much of the attention surrounding their at-times underwhelming 2023 campaign fell on the likes of Sam Walker, Luke Keary and James Tedesco, the root cause sat in the output, or lack of, from their big men. Without Angus Crichton for the first two months of the season, Trent Robinson’s side were also hurt by the regular absence of big boppers like Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Matt Lodge (who ended up transferring to the Sea Eagles before the season was over). Without the strong platform they are used to – with the Tricolours instead ranking 12th in average metres gained last season – their playmakers struggled and at times became very one dimensional in good-ball situations. Roosters fans will hope the signing of Spencer Leniu, who is among the best impact forwards in the game, will go some way to addressing that issue, while they’ll also need some better luck on the injury front and less presence in the weekly Judiciary charges when it comes to their frontline forwards.

Will the Sea Eagles live and die by thy Turbo?

When Tom Trbojevic was on in 2023, the Sea Eagles were on. Sadly for them he wasn’t on the field past Round 15 due to a season-ending injury sustained playing for New South Wales and from that point on they won only five of 11 games, while scoring over 18 points in a game just twice against opposition who didn’t end up occupying the bottom three places on the Telstra Premiership ladder. In his 11 games prior to being injured, Turbo scored 10 tries, set up another eight and averaged nearly 200 run metres per game. Without him everything fell to Daly Cherry-Evans and the rest of the squad just didn’t look the same. Even if Trbojevic can get through 2024 without any injuries, he’s likely to miss time through the middle part of the season due to representative duties and coach Anthony Seibold simply must find a way to keep this side ticking without him. The acquisition of another genuine ball player in Luke Brooks could help, while they’ve freshened up their backline stocks by bringing in Tommy Talau and Jaxson Paulo too.  

Can the Sharks finally mix it with the contenders?

While the Sharks ended up making it through to the finals last year, they did so without managing to get a result against any top four side, while in the 10 games they played against eventual top eight sides they won just three of them. It’s worth nothing that they weren’t alone in that area – with the fourth-placed Warriors having similar issues in 2023 – but if Cronulla-Sutherland are to mount a legitimate title challenge next season then it starts with needing to claim a few high-profile scalps. In their last eight finals games the Sharks have come up with just one win. 

Will Pappy finally get some injury luck with the Storm?

By the time he gets back on the training field following the fractured ankle he suffered in last season’s qualifying final, Ryan Papenhuyzen will have spent the best part of the last 18 months rehabbing injuries. He’s due some good luck and if he can get through the 2024 season relatively unscathed it will be a huge benefit to a Storm side who despite going deep into the finals didn’t look themselves for much of last year. A healthy Papenhuyzen’s return to fullback would give Melbourne more creativity from the back and allow Nick Meaney – who has filled in admirably there in the meantime – to return to either wing or centre, where he will significantly strengthen that part of the field.

Can Des turn the Glitter Strip Titans into title town?

For the first time in their history the Titans have a premiership-winning head coach at the helm. Boasting a 56.3 percent winning record as a coach, with five grand final appearances and two titles to his name, Hasler has a track record of success that is matched by few current NRL mentors. But can he achieve what no other coach has been able to on the Gold Coast (with the Titans or prior franchise iterations) by guiding the team past the preliminary finals? They have some genuine superstars in their squad and can score points at will, so the ingredients are there for one of Dessie's special recipes.