The 2023 season now seems like it ended many, many months ago.
With a large number of players returning to pre-season training, attention has quickly and firmly turned to the 2024 campaign.
With a new season comes new hope, new opportunities and most importantly of all, new recruits!
Today I'm going to rank the ins, outs and re-signings of each of the clubs who played Finals footy in 2023.
Of course some of the top sides don't need to undertake a big recruitment spree, focusing instead on retention, while others need a few changes to take that next step.
Not every player will be mentioned, just the ones I see making an impact.
6. Cronulla Sharks
Major ins: None
Major outs: Wade Graham, Matt Moylan
Re-signed: Kade Dykes, Nicho Hynes, William Kennedy, Sam Stonestreet, Siosifa Talakai, Braydon Trindall, Teig Wilton
The Sharks recruitment heading into 2024 is both easy yet difficult to mark. They didn't really... Do anything.
No names of note join a club who regressed in a big way from 2022 to 2023. I'm sure Craig Fitzgibbon knows he needs to strengthen in the forwards yet has taken no steps toward doing so.
In losing Wade Graham the Sharks lose a leader and a club legend. That said, his time was coming to an end and I was happy to see him go out on his terms.
The club moved quickly to upgrade and extend marquee man Nicho Hynes. William Kennedy was also quickly extended.
They've also nailed down three members of their long-term future in Teig Wilton, Kade Dykes and the massively talented Sam Stonestreet.
Truthfully if I had put this together a week ago, the Sharks were being slapped with the dreaded "F" grade.
Moving on Matt Moylan, with Conor Tracey also joining him, shows the Sharks know there are issues and are making moves to correct them.
The Sharks re-signings were strong and have ensured plenty of options moving forward. That said, if they enter 2024 without a big middle man, then fans can't expect any different to last season.
Grade: D+
