Congrats Brooks

[earl]

How good has he been ? We've seen the elite passing and creativity and against Penrith we saw the game management.

I picked him for a big season and he sure is delivering.

It gives me a warm feeling inside.

 

[hank37w]

How good has he been ? We've seen the elite passing and creativity and against Penrith we saw the game management.

I picked him for a big season and he sure is delivering.

It gives me a warm feeling inside.

That's still heart burn from all the previous losses.

Just for the record, I thought he was going to have a big season on the back of all the Sheens and Benji talk.

Didn't have much of a preseason, so a bit of a slow start, but hopefully this is the start of something good.

 

[The Ladies Man]

How good has he been ? We've seen the elite passing and creativity and against Penrith we saw the game management.

I picked him for a big season and he sure is delivering.

It gives me a warm feeling inside.

Go back and watch the game, he seriously didn't play the best game he ever has Earl.
Hopefully it's the start of something tho. Hoping he builds on this. Didn't Bula get the 3 points or was it Klem?

 

[Telltails]

He did good. He showed leadership and decisiveness with the ball. His first 40/20 was a cracker.
Needs to back it up this week with the same level of maturity and not go back to looking like a rookie.

 

[batboy]

Go back and watch the game, he seriously didn't play the best game he ever has Earl.
Hopefully it's the start of something tho. Hoping he builds on this. Didn't Bula get the 3 points or was it Klem?

Reading here you'd be convinced he's never played a decent game....

 

[TrueTiger]

Reading here you'd be convinced he's never played a decent game....

No doubt he has played some decent games,but also some very ordinary games for a highly paid PLAYMAKER in the NRL for over a decade and no finals appearance...

 

[earl]

No doubt he has played some decent games,but also some very ordinary games for a highly paid PLAYMAKER in the NRL for over a decade and no finals appearance...

The problem is mate all the haters keep stating he is the sole reason we have been poor for so long and that he has never played a decent game etc.

That narrative is stupid.

 

[TrueTiger]

The problem is mate all the haters keep stating he is the sole reason we have been poor for so long and that he has never played a decent game etc.

That narrative is stupid.

He has a decent forward pack and with Wakeham as a partner NOT overplaying him is now showing his TRUE ability...its taken a hell of a lot of time and hurt for us all.

 

[jirskyr]

The problem is mate all the haters keep stating he is the sole reason we have been poor for so long and that he has never played a decent game etc.

That narrative is stupid.

No I think most people are saying he has generally been playing poorly, as a constant in a team that itself has been playing badly.

I have no doubts at all that Brooks has the potential to be a quality halfback, and at times he shows that, and winning the Dally M a few years ago is no fluke. I suspect if Brooks had better support (e.g. a stable 5/8th partner and good backrowers, some strike in the centres) for longer periods, he would have overall better output. I also suspect that if Brooks was to play at a team like the Storm he'd achieve his potential more often.

But the reality is this is Brooks' 10th full season for Tigers and most of those campaigns have been thoroughly underwhelming. So whilst Tigers could certainly do more to help Brooks achieve his best, he's also been given more opportunity than most NRL players ever get to achieve some level of self-consistency.

So when the fans laud a single performance, and everyone can recognise that Brooks had a great match from the first minute, that itself is damning. He's a high-profile, high-paid core member of the team, and he simply has to play that way more regularly.

 

[stevied]

He has a decent forward pack and with Wakeham as a partner NOT overplaying him is now showing his TRUE ability...its taken a hell of a lot of time and hurt for us all.

What, showing his TRUE ability after 8 games behind a quality pack? He did some very good kicks and that's about all. Still not taking control in the opposition quarter which is his job as a halfback with TRUE ability.

 

[stevied]

No I think most people are saying he has generally been playing poorly, as a constant in a team that itself has been playing badly.

I have no doubts at all that Brooks has the potential to be a quality halfback, and at times he shows that, and winning the Dally M a few years ago is no fluke. I suspect if Brooks had better support (e.g. a stable 5/8th partner and good backrowers, some strike in the centres) for longer periods, he would have overall better output. I also suspect that if Brooks was to play at a team like the Storm he'd achieve his potential more often.

But the reality is this is Brooks' 10th full season for Tigers and most of those campaigns have been thoroughly underwhelming. So whilst Tigers could certainly do more to help Brooks achieve his best, he's also been given more opportunity than most NRL players ever get to achieve some level of self-consistency.

So when the fans laud a single performance, and everyone can recognise that Brooks had a great match from the first minute, that itself is damning. He's a high-profile, high-paid core member of the team, and he simply has to play that way more regularly.

Very well said. Thoroughly agree with all of that and I could go further and say, that on occasions, he has been the major cause for a poor Tigers performance with his indecision, poor passing and ineffective short kicking when the team were in the ascendancy. One strong game does not erase all the incompetence. Well done Booksy but let's see you continue/ build on Saturday's performance.

 

[earl]

No I think most people are saying he has generally been playing poorly, as a constant in a team that itself has been playing badly.

I consider this reasonable feedback. I don't think that is what I've been reading. If it was just that it'd be cool but it's not.

 

[earl]

What, showing his TRUE ability after 8 games behind a quality pack? He did some very good kicks and that's about all. Still not taking control in the opposition quarter which is his job as a halfback with TRUE ability.

This is a classic example of what I'm talking about. True ability. What a laugh.

I've posted more than once over the past couple of weeks with clear examples of Brooks creating for us in the attacking zone.

 

[jirskyr]

Very well said. Thoroughly agree with all of that and I could go further and say, that on occasions, he has been the major cause for a poor Tigers performance with his indecision, poor passing and ineffective short kicking when the team were in the ascendancy. One strong game does not erase all the incompetence. Well done Booksy but let's see you continue/ build on Saturday's performance.

Isn't it widely recognised now that Tigers are very good at marching down-field, hopeless inside the opposition 20? We've out-metred most teams this year, especially the past few weeks against quality opposition, and we are close leading the comp in "tackles in Opp 20", both as a total count and as a % of our overall possession.

The typical Tigers 2023 match is to start with dominant field position, fail to convert (though we did score against Penrith) and then allow the opposition to score. The opposition then goes on a run of points and we have a substantial half-time deficit. We come out much more resolute and fit in the second half, threaten to hit the front, but given the lead and our urgency for points, we inevitably make mistakes that we cannot afford and fall short. You can almost rinse-repeat that blueprint except for the Broncos match.

Last two weeks, instead of chasing a big deficit, we've hit the lead via those second-half performances, and unsurprisingly we've won 1 lost 1. You win about 50% of matches where you play well and stick in the fight to the end.

So obviously, once the ball is into the attack zone the reliance on the halves increases dramatically. If anything, 2023 is an even more striking illustration of how Brooks and his halves partner are not getting the job done. Previous years you could blame the platform, but the platform 2023 is good and arguably is improving, to consider that oft-overlooked players like Twal, Pole and Klem were rampaging through the middle of the Panthers' top-tier defence.

Maybe, just maybe, given time, Brooks will adapt to the platform he's been given and start to get more and more confident, like the way he started and maintained against Penrith. You could imagine a downhill skier like Mitchell Pearce or Moses tearing up the opposition with that kind of attacking platform.

What I will say for Brooks is he still needs better options in the backrow and centres. Almost nobody runs a line for him, runs to a decent hole, which is exactly the foundation of Souths' current success (via Cody Walker) and Tigers' previous success under Benji. Brooks probably will never have that soft passing game, but since Chris Lawrence left, the quality of our attacking options out wide has disappeared.

 

[jirskyr]

I consider this reasonable feedback. I don't think that is what I've been reading. If it was just that it'd be cool but it's not.

Of course it's not "just that", and anyone who says Brooks is the only problem is fooling themselves.

But he has been a very big part of the problem, for a decade. I would love for Brooks to come good and play well every week, nothing would make me happier. But after a decade, I won't hold my breath for it.

 

[stevied]

This is a classic example of what I'm talking about. True ability. What a laugh.

I've posted more than once over the past couple of weeks with clear examples of Brooks creating for us in the attacking zone.

Do you know what I'm laughing about? Your term TRUE ability! I'd love to see Luke show this true ability more often. Sorry but your citing of a few isolated instances of creating in the attacking zone does not change my thinking that Brooks simply doesn't measure up as a first grade halfback. Regular, clear examples of creativity, together with a consistent, quality kicking game and my perception might change.

 

[stevied]

Isn't it widely recognised now that Tigers are very good at marching down-field, hopeless inside the opposition 20? We've out-metred most teams this year, especially the past few weeks against quality opposition, and we are close leading the comp in "tackles in Opp 20", both as a total count and as a % of our overall possession.

The typical Tigers 2023 match is to start with dominant field position, fail to convert (though we did score against Penrith) and then allow the opposition to score. The opposition then goes on a run of points and we have a substantial half-time deficit. We come out much more resolute and fit in the second half, threaten to hit the front, but given the lead and our urgency for points, we inevitably make mistakes that we cannot afford and fall short. You can almost rinse-repeat that blueprint except for the Broncos match.

Last two weeks, instead of chasing a big deficit, we've hit the lead via those second-half performances, and unsurprisingly we've won 1 lost 1. You win about 50% of matches where you play well and stick in the fight to the end.

So obviously, once the ball is into the attack zone the reliance on the halves increases dramatically. If anything, 2023 is an even more striking illustration of how Brooks and his halves partner are not getting the job done. Previous years you could blame the platform, but the platform 2023 is good and arguably is improving, to consider that oft-overlooked players like Twal, Pole and Klem were rampaging through the middle of the Panthers' top-tier defence.

Maybe, just maybe, given time, Brooks will adapt to the platform he's been given and start to get more and more confident, like the way he started and maintained against Penrith. You could imagine a downhill skier like Mitchell Pearce or Moses tearing up the opposition with that kind of attacking platform.

What I will say for Brooks is he still needs better options in the backrow and centres. Almost nobody runs a line for him, runs to a decent hole, which is exactly the foundation of Souths' current success (via Cody Walker) and Tigers' previous success under Benji. Brooks probably will never have that soft passing game, but since Chris Lawrence left, the quality of our attacking options out wide has disappeared.

Again, I agree with your summation of the Tigers game pattern and there is a certain 'rinse/ repeat' element to it. Several weeks ago I started a thread called 'Is the Problem the Halves or the Coaching?' and I still think that is a legitimate question. Even though, Brooks and co have floundered setting up the play (especially in the opposition quarter), I do think that our attacking patterns have been far too slow and predictable with too few players in motion and a lack of change in angles. You make a good point about players running lines but is this due to a lack of players who can do this or the failure of the coaching in teaching the skill? It's definitely a point for discussion.

 

[earl]

Do you know what I'm laughing about? Your term TRUE ability! I'd love to see Luke show this true ability more often. Sorry but your citing of a few isolated instances of creating in the attacking zone does not change my thinking that Brooks simply doesn't measure up as a first grade halfback. Regular, clear examples of creativity, together with a consistent, quality kicking game and my perception might change.

So the story changes now. Proved my point. Thanks.

 

[loklok]

If the tigers are serious about winning a premiership. He should be gone next season .

 

[earl]

Of course it's not "just that", and anyone who says Brooks is the only problem is fooling themselves.

There are a lot of fools on here then. A freaken lot of them.

But he has been a very big part of the problem, for a decade.

I'm not sure about this. We had Tedesco, Moses, Benji and Robbie as well. I don't think one player is a very big part of the problem.

I would love for Brooks to come good and play well every week, nothing would make me happier. But after a decade, I won't hold my breath for it.

I have realistic expectations of Brooks. I expect him to be an average NRL half and not a dominant one. If we can get two better halves I'll chip in $2. I just want to win.