Inside the battle for the Northern Pride’s starting No.9
The expected retention of a fully fit Denzel King will give the Northern Pride plenty of hooking options in season 2020.
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The expected retention of a fully fit Denzel King will give the Northern Pride plenty of hooking options in season 2020.
King’s signature is yet to be announced, but it is understood the experienced campaigner will suit up for the Barlow Park club next year.
King provides the Pride much-needed experience in the position, and, more importantly, his style of play is a mix of the men with whom he will battle for the coveted No. 9 jersey.
Quinlyn Cannon and Patrick Gallen both made their Queensland Cup debuts this year after incumbent hooker Connor Jones left for Featherstone Rovers and King suffered a fractured arm which kept him out of the game for three months.
Cowboys allocation Kurt Baptiste missed most of the season with a knee injury.
Jack Campagnolo, who just helped Italy qualify for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup, also spent time at the position.
Pride football operations manager Chey Bird said Cannon and Gallen debuted earlier than most fans might have anticipated, but that taste of Queensland Cup may be enough to push them to a higher level.
“It’s no secret that Quinlyn and Patty both got an opportunity this year before a lot of people expected,” Bird said.
“Those guys were given that opportunity, not before their time but before they probably expected themselves. They’re still some pretty young heads, it’s a pretty important position and they’ve still got a lot of learning to do.
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“While Denzel hasn’t had a massive amount of on-field experience at an ISC level, he’s still been a part of systems and he’s been training all of those years as part of those systems, he’s just been caught behind some really handy hookers in his time, including club captains and now Super League players.”
Bird said each player provided the Pride something different.
“Patty’s a real organising type of nine, Quinlyn’s a real eyes-up (player) and capitalises on opportunities, and Denzel’s probably a blend of both of those guys,” he said.
“Between the three of them, they’re a good mix.”
The Pride held its player induction on Saturday, and will return to the training paddock this week for their first sessions of pre-season training.
Originally published as Inside the battle for the Northern Pride’s starting No.9
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