Tigers v Sea Eagles

[magpies forever]

Lol the evil trio! The brothers Sutton on field and a Badger in the bunker. You couldn’t make this stuff up!

Reckon WT should make a formal complaint to the NRL- will do no good but at least the dislike is on record. 'Stuff'ém

 

[Flippedy]

Reckon WT should make a formal complaint to the NRL- will do no good but at least the dislike is on record. 'Stuff'ém

Would only make things worse I reckon…if that’s possible.

 

[Needaname]

On form, we should roll the silver tails

What form is that?

 

[Needaname]

I agree, but on the other hand I’m sick of having a fullback who doesn’t effectively combine with our halves like what happens at every other NRL club.
No idea if that’s a coaching issue or a player issue, but with Mason at fullback it’s more chance he combines with our other halves and allows our attack to look more dangerous because of it.

How do you rate his effort from the past few weeks in the area of ‘combining with his HALF’?

 

[Stevec]

If we lose I doubt it will be because of Sutton and Badger
Yes his sin binning Luai for" repeated "offences 10 mins into a game was ridiculous. Badgers calls are 50/50 imo
Best 2 refs for a fair go for us are Atkins and Gough
If we defend like we did in 2nd half last week and attack like we did in the last 20 mins vs the Cowboys we will win ! Regardless of officials .

 

[Merlot]

With Bula sidelined, Mason stepping in at fullback and Latu Fainu pushing Luai to 5/8th there will certainly be a change in team dynamics for the clash with Manly on Friday.

Manly: Anticipated Game Plan

Manly will try to leverage their height of their outside backs and the kicking game of DCE. Mason can expect a barrage of high balls and when they aren’t peppering him with bombs they will switch to trying to get Turbo one on one with AD to create space down the wing. Their forward pack is all about their bench so if they get momentum they will try to puch down that middle corridor in the back end of the first hald and potentially to start fast int he scond if they feel they have the ascendency.

Wests Tigers: How do we win?

To counter Manly's approach we need to counter DCE’s kicking with consistent midfield pressure. Latu will solidify the edge exploited by Canberra. His defence, in combination with Bird, will create a hard edge to counter Koula. The Manly starting pack is average – their strike is on the interchange bench so we need to dominate them in the opening stanza. A disciplined defence will contain them and dynamic halves play will nullify their defensive efforts. Latu partnering Luai will provide the space and varying the attacking angles to disaggregate their defence. Mason needs to be sniffing around to make the most of every opportunity in the middle as well.

Offensively, we need to exploit the edges early; with Sam F and Bird running lines at both DCE and Brooks at every opportunity to wear them out by making them tackle time and time again. This will also run the forward pack around in defence providing opportunity later in the half to bing TDS on and work Mason back through the middle off Pole and May.

Given the positional changes in Manly's backline, attacking their right edge with swift ball movement and support play could yield scoring opportunities. Certainly something to look at but not something to focus on unless we have early success.

Where will the game be won or lost?

The performance of Heath Mason will be pivotal. His ability to handle the high ball, will be tested by Trbojevic, Koula and Hopoate. His positional awareness and commitment need to be on the money. FI he does isn't confident they will work him over.

Winning this game will come off the performance of our pack. If we pressure DCE and Brooks with good line speed and inside pressure we are half way home. Combing that with our more dynamic halves pairing and Manly will leak points,

This is a game for us to lose, if we are committed and execute well we should come home with the chocolates.

Turuva ,could swap over with Mason if he turns to water. imoa its 2points in the back for us

 

[Jolls]

Turuva ,could swap over with Mason if he turns to water. imoa its 2points in the back for us

Yep, still a short arse though against Manly's height.

I think we win this too. However, the risk will be their height and DCE's kicking game as that will be their primary attacking strategy.

Contain DCE and turn him back in at every opportunity and we are a long way towards bringing the chocolates home.

 

[Mighty_Tiger]

DCE high kicks with Turbo/Hoppa on his inside chasing in the middle will be on all game. Preparing for an absolute blood bath for Mason.

Not the kids fault but Benji has rocks in his head if he thinks Mason is even close to NRL level at fullback against that combo

 

[Lestronge]

Fullbacks in every NRL team are game breakers who can create something out of nothing and be a big part of their team creating try scoring opportunities and scoring tries.
Has that been happening for us, particularly over the past 5 games ?
He was contributing well earlier in the season, but being on a soon to be 900k per season contact he can’t escape criticism when we are not scoring tries or winning games.

LOL ! Yea righto bro . I’m not even going to go back at ya . We are just going to forget about the constant 1 on 1 bombs , the fact he pretty much scored the match winner last weekend , the constant support , half breaks , try assists .
Are you sure you’re not watching the Richmond tigers ? The Melbourne tigers ? The Tasmanian tigers ? East’s tigers ? Cincinnati Bengals …. Maybe you’re watching the wnrl . There’s a Bula in that team . Because you’re clearly not watching nrl …. Seriously 😧

 

[Merlot]

Yep, still a short arse though against Manly's height.

I think we win this too. However, the risk will be their height and DCE's kicking game as that will be their primary attacking strategy.

Contain DCE and turn him back in at every opportunity and we are a long way towards bringing the chocolates home.

chess is a lovely game with many moving pieces. I've seen us win and lose games this year because of our doggedness to stick solid with "plan A"

 

[Flash089]

Luke at 18 is interesting and I wonder if he switches him and heath around an hour before the game..

A beautiful dream, but Benji doesn’t have it in him.

 

[Vicious]

LOL ! Yea righto bro . I’m not even going to go back at ya . We are just going to forget about the constant 1 on 1 bombs , the fact he pretty much scored the match winner last weekend , the constant support , half breaks , try assists .
Are you sure you’re not watching the Richmond tigers ? The Melbourne tigers ? The Tasmanian tigers ? East’s tigers ? Cincinnati Bengals …. Maybe you’re watching the wnrl . There’s a Bula in that team . Because you’re clearly not watching nrl …. Seriously 😧

Ok mr know it all, based on your comments our attack should be worse than it has been over the next 4 or so weeks, let’s wait and see.

 

[Squater]

Fun Fact Time:

19 years & 51 weeks ago in Round 17 Wests Tigers beat Manly at LO 49 - 24
It was the 2nd win of a 7 game winning streak that helped lift the Tigers to 4th position into
T H E F I N A L 8 (I am writing this slow for those who have limited vision).
We were 12th at the time on 16 points. With the Manly game, plus 8 other games and a BYE remaining., we dropped the last 2 of the season to Melb & Penrith.

Now in 2025, there are 10 games plus a BYE remaining.

We are currently 14th on 14 points. If we can string together 7 wins from here on in we are more than a mathematical chance getting us to 30 points, with our last BYE included. So we can afford to drop 3 as 30pts in such a tight comp is gonna go close. But I feel that we can achieve greatness over the coming weeks and my gut says undefeated - tho my doctor says it's probably just the effects of drinking too much unfiltered Adelaide water. 🐯 🤪

Mate i hope your right lol

 

[Merlot]

Reckon WT should make a formal complaint to the NRL- will do no good but at least the dislike is on record. 'Stuff'ém

sh t teams get dudded ,thats a fact . Love how management have kicked dust in the NRL's face of late .Constant pressure on how the game is construed, we will just be told to shut up and start winning , or slapped and told we must fold , LOL , .Its worth the fight. To live way into the future started yesterday

 

[Jolls]

chess is a lovely game with many moving pieces. I've seen us win and lose games this year because of our doggedness to stick solid with "plan A"

I get you. We definitley have to be adaptable - but we can havea pretty good stab at what will be coming for us.

 

[Lestronge]

Ok mr know it all, based on your comments our attack should be worse than it has been over the next 4 or so weeks, let’s wait and see.

I didn’t say anything like that . And Latu is finally in … which I’ve advocating for for 2 years …. So 1 plus 1 equals 23 right ?
I’m not a know it all … what you’re saying is stupid ! It’s like someone preaching to me about the world being flat ! I’m not going to entertain nonsense ..

 

[Merlot]

I get you. We definitley have to be adaptable - but we can havea pretty good stab at what will be coming for us.

what will planA will build Club Culture

 

[tiger_one]

 

[hodgo]

Real big test for Mason could turn the kid around if he succeeds against what's coming. Kind of glad Saab isn't playing his height; it would have been a problem. Just need to keep tommy from competing.

 

[Ron Brodrick's Spirit]

Here are the stats for an ageing, over the hill Clint Gutherson, playing on busted legs in the twilight of his career, probably half the player he once was:
13 games
6 tries
6 try assists
39 Tackle breaks
15 Line breaks
169 average metres
81% defence


Now our fullback Bula, star of our team at the peak of his powers:
13 games
4 tries
4 try assists
46 tackle breaks
7 line breaks
174 running metres
83% defence.


We really do overrate our own players.