the issue with this year was the messaging . It wasn’t coaching or lack of , it was a clear defined voice in the locker room . And clear messaging around playing style .
From the messaging and wording I’ve seen from Benji , I personally believe we will be far more structured this year , with a return to block plays and conventional 2023 football .
I believe with the rule changes , and faster play the ball , and ruck speed , Sheens over estimated the impact this would have on the game , and rightly IMO , thought up tempo , expansion type football would be the best way to expose defences .
Problem is , the ruck didn’t speed up enough and the supposed crack down died off real early , and this attacking strategy was not even remotely acceptable in even a slightly faster ruck speed nrl . So we were left at the starting blocks . And had to pivot on the fly .
I don’t think his attacking strategy was wrong , the NRL did what the NRL does , and reverted back to the status quo. Which I guess we should have predicted in hindsight .
One thing I know is the most flamboyant attacking players tend to have strong defensive strategies when they coach , and wingers and front rowers tend to be the most creative coaches . For whatever reason . I believe it’s because we all pay attention to the things we arnt good at , and don’t come easy to us . Especially in an environment like sports where the whole goal is to continually grow .
But anyways I could be wrong . But I’m far more confident that the 24 coaching staff is closer to the status quo. Where as this past year I was hoping that we were making the right choices .
