Gary_Bakerloo
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Roar talent: lethal attack will have the other contenders running scared
Phil Gould
August 22, 2011
The momentum is gathering for the Wests Tigers. They will have the other finals contenders looking over their shoulders.
Their victory over Parramatta at the Sydney Football Stadium yesterday could be best described as entertaining rather than anything of dynamic semi-final quality; but there were some brilliant passages of play that will definitely get the attention of the rival coaches.
(Yes, Wests Tigers played Parramatta at Moore Park on a Sunday afternoon - brilliant scheduling - I will come back to this in a moment.)
The thing about the Tigers is that this team has the ability to attack every possible gap in their opponents' defensive line. A football team lines up in defensive positions across the field. Every gap in between two defenders represents an opportunity. Then there is the space outside the respective wingers down the sidelines.
Behind the line there is open territory just waiting for the well-placed chip or grubber kick. Then we have the high ball ''bomb'' options to assist those teams who can't find their way through a defence. The Tigers can go through you, around you, over you, under you; and, as we saw yesterday, between your legs.
Some teams have their favourite plays. Others restrict themselves to playing down one side of the field.
The Tigers are dangerous from everywhere. When the dummy half runs it looks like it's planned. Players are there to support or it leads to a quickly constructed switch of play to the other side of the ruck area.
When a forward just takes the ball on a metre-gaining run, you sense the offload is a real threat; his teammates sweat on him passing.
All the Tigers' forwards are encouraged to pass. They are all a part of plays to create more space out wide for their halves.
The designated playmakers are outstanding. Halfback Robert Lui and five-eighth Benji Marshall are electrifying when they are on song.
All this creativity and ball movement ignites the quicker men out wide and brings them into the game more than any back line in the NRL. It's exciting to watch.
The Tigers can play the short side of the field, the long side of the field, left, right, down the middle; and often both sides in one play.
In the first half yesterday they flexed their attacking muscles and threw most of their repertoire at the Eels. They quickly posted three tries to lead 16-0 at half-time.
Until then the Tigers were the only team playing football. The Eels were in distress mode.
The second half was far more competitive. The lift in aggression from the Eels coincided with a drop in intensity from the Tigers. Suddenly the margin was cut back to four points and the Tigers had to reboot the main engines to win the match.
The Tigers managed it without too much difficulty. In fact, their last 20 minutes was very professionally executed. Tim Sheens would have been more satisfied with the control shown in the final quarter of the game when it was required, rather than the brilliance of the opening quarter.
The Eels were outclassed, but didn't shirk their task - the story of their season. They're better than 16th.
Now, let's get back to the issue of the venue. The NRL claims to have a strategy for tackling the challenges our game faces in western Sydney. It claims it has it all under control.
**So how does playing a Sunday game between two of western Sydney's major drawcards at an eastern suburbs venue fit into this strategy? Give me one good reason why this game was not played somewhere in Sydney's west? Hmmm?\
\
I don't give a damn about stadium deals. What about the future of our game? The AFL must get sore in the guts laughing at our stupidity.**
Anyway; the Tigers were far too good. They are a joy to watch on a Sunday afternoon.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/roar-talent-lethal-attack-will-have-the-other-contenders-running-scared-20110821-1j4v6.html#ixzz1Vi6mYmpT
Phil Gould
August 22, 2011
The momentum is gathering for the Wests Tigers. They will have the other finals contenders looking over their shoulders.
Their victory over Parramatta at the Sydney Football Stadium yesterday could be best described as entertaining rather than anything of dynamic semi-final quality; but there were some brilliant passages of play that will definitely get the attention of the rival coaches.
(Yes, Wests Tigers played Parramatta at Moore Park on a Sunday afternoon - brilliant scheduling - I will come back to this in a moment.)
The thing about the Tigers is that this team has the ability to attack every possible gap in their opponents' defensive line. A football team lines up in defensive positions across the field. Every gap in between two defenders represents an opportunity. Then there is the space outside the respective wingers down the sidelines.
Behind the line there is open territory just waiting for the well-placed chip or grubber kick. Then we have the high ball ''bomb'' options to assist those teams who can't find their way through a defence. The Tigers can go through you, around you, over you, under you; and, as we saw yesterday, between your legs.
Some teams have their favourite plays. Others restrict themselves to playing down one side of the field.
The Tigers are dangerous from everywhere. When the dummy half runs it looks like it's planned. Players are there to support or it leads to a quickly constructed switch of play to the other side of the ruck area.
When a forward just takes the ball on a metre-gaining run, you sense the offload is a real threat; his teammates sweat on him passing.
All the Tigers' forwards are encouraged to pass. They are all a part of plays to create more space out wide for their halves.
The designated playmakers are outstanding. Halfback Robert Lui and five-eighth Benji Marshall are electrifying when they are on song.
All this creativity and ball movement ignites the quicker men out wide and brings them into the game more than any back line in the NRL. It's exciting to watch.
The Tigers can play the short side of the field, the long side of the field, left, right, down the middle; and often both sides in one play.
In the first half yesterday they flexed their attacking muscles and threw most of their repertoire at the Eels. They quickly posted three tries to lead 16-0 at half-time.
Until then the Tigers were the only team playing football. The Eels were in distress mode.
The second half was far more competitive. The lift in aggression from the Eels coincided with a drop in intensity from the Tigers. Suddenly the margin was cut back to four points and the Tigers had to reboot the main engines to win the match.
The Tigers managed it without too much difficulty. In fact, their last 20 minutes was very professionally executed. Tim Sheens would have been more satisfied with the control shown in the final quarter of the game when it was required, rather than the brilliance of the opening quarter.
The Eels were outclassed, but didn't shirk their task - the story of their season. They're better than 16th.
Now, let's get back to the issue of the venue. The NRL claims to have a strategy for tackling the challenges our game faces in western Sydney. It claims it has it all under control.
**So how does playing a Sunday game between two of western Sydney's major drawcards at an eastern suburbs venue fit into this strategy? Give me one good reason why this game was not played somewhere in Sydney's west? Hmmm?\
\
I don't give a damn about stadium deals. What about the future of our game? The AFL must get sore in the guts laughing at our stupidity.**
Anyway; the Tigers were far too good. They are a joy to watch on a Sunday afternoon.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/roar-talent-lethal-attack-will-have-the-other-contenders-running-scared-20110821-1j4v6.html#ixzz1Vi6mYmpT
