It remains unclear whether North Tamworth will regain the services of big names Josh Schmiedel and Andrew Moodie this year, in what Bears coach Brad McManus says is potentially a season of major change for the all-conquering side.
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Second-rower Schmiedel and centre Moodie, among Group 4's very best players, are yet to re-sign with the Bears for this season.
The importance of that happening has been magnified by the retirements of Norths lynchpins Kieran Fisher and Shane Wadwell following the Bears' grand final defeat of Kootingal-Moonbi last year.
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McManus, back at the helm after a two-year break, said "there's a lot of speculation going around" regarding Schmiedel and Moodie's futures. "It's still up in the air what they're doing," he said.
"I've said what I've wanted to say to them. If they come and play, which I hope they do, that would be great. I'm giving them their own space and their own time, and they'll make their own decision."
Schmiedel told the Leader in December that he was in a "pickle" in terms of whether to re-sign with Norths or join Gunnedah, where his father, Mick, is the new coach, or retire. Last week, he said he would soon make a decision on his future.
It has been speculated that Moodie will return to Pirates, whom he left to play with the Bears last season. The Leader sent him a text on Wednesday asking him if he had made a decision on his playing future, but he did not reply before this article was published.
McManus said: "You lose four of your best players and something has to give eventually. And it's not gonna be an excuse for us either. We're not worried about that. We'll move on. We'll just have to work that little bit harder."
He described Fisher's retirement as a "huge loss" for the club. The veteran mentor, who guided Norths to three of their unbroken run of six-straight premierships, has earmarked new Fijian signing Tevita "Tex" Peceli, as Fisher's halfback replacement.
Peceli is one of six Fijians who joined Norths in the off-season. They work at Teys abattoir.
"This young Fijian we've got [Peceli], he's looking good there at the moment," McManus said. "So, we'll go with him to start with and see what happens from there. But I'm pretty happy with what I've seen at the moment."
