Luke Brooks

[sleeve]

What confuses me about the whole Benji thing is that he played alongside Benji in 2019 and 2018 too and he had no issues. Not saying it wasn’t a factor but some of the blame has to go to Brooks himself. When he had the ball he certainly was doing the same things he did in years previous. No excuses at all for him in 2021 that’s for sure, if he can get back to 2018-2019 form it will do us a world of good because he was excellent in those two seasons

Amuch better forward pack and far more experienced coaching and development staff will help all players immensley this year.We are slowly catching top sides in this regard.

 

[oldschooltiger]

If we don't have Brooks who do sign
Madden is unproven and be a couple of years off being comsistant. If you look at all halves in the NRL there iant mamy good ones. Especially if Cleary can make origin.

 

[sleeve]

Not to do with WT,but if C SMIITH accepts any job at Donkeys ,Kevie will be shaking in his boots.

 

[earl]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

 

[Deleted member 3518]

What confuses me about the whole Benji thing is that he played alongside Benji in 2019 and 2018 too and he had no issues. Not saying it wasn’t a factor but some of the blame has to go to Brooks himself. When he had the ball he certainly was doing the same things he did in years previous. No excuses at all for him in 2021 that’s for sure, if he can get back to 2018-2019 form it will do us a world of good because he was excellent in those two seasons

Of course man . I think honestly it’s Grant . Robbie has his own ego so he always chose , the best option. Like I’ve said , Grant would go to benji no matter what .
I know it’s not the same thing , but I’ve played with dummy halves who have thier favourites . You could scream for the ball all you want , but he would always go the other way. I’m not saying it’s the same thing , but there is a human element to it.
Brooks 💯 can’t allow that stuff to happen anymore . But I don’t think it’s going to be an issue this year .

 

[tigerbalm]

Luke was the DallyM halfback of the year 3 years ago , our player of the year , the year before last , and had a down year last year . Some of you guys do my head in . So hard to live up to your asinine , and downright ridiculous expectations . Seriously watch the games last years . Sooo many times , Luke had the play set up , was screaming for the ball , Benji screams the overcall word , because every team has one ( basically it’s a spur of the moment I see something and it’s on . It’s to allow off the cuff footy) , so because of this the dummy half has to pass to benji , and most of the time nothing happens .
Go watch it . It got so bad , Grant actually stopped looking for Brooks first , which is what was supposed to happen , and just going to benji.

No Benji for 2021, this time next season I hope there are no more excuses on why Brooks is not performing and we are all talking about a contract extension.

Why the hell are you talking about ? What excuses ? I’m not making excuses . I’m stating facts . This whole conversation shouldn’t even be a thing ! It’s makes no sense . Go back and see how Dally M halfbacks of the year are running around right now . It’s not many .
What your saying implies that he’s been a passenger since he debuted . Which has no foundation in reality . He’s done more than enough to earn his money , and his standing in the team .

It’s like when some of you whinge about the mid field bomb. Do you hav any clue as to what it’s for ? It’s a strategy every half uses , but yet when he does it , it’s bag city .
His defence is elite for a half . His speed is elite for a half . His short ball is elite for a half . His long kicking game is average . In fact early on in his career he used to kick to the corners a lot , you know why he doesn’t do it ? Because field position is key , and his coaches want to attack with defence . And if your tackling someone who’s on the back foot , you can put pressure on them. Wingers and fullbacks are so good positionally that , you might find the grass , what one out of every 3 kicks to the corner , and then what ? 2 out of 3 times your defence is dealing with a 100kg speed machine , with a head of steam .
But cause it doesn’t look pretty people jump up and down .

Calm down fella.

My point, you clearly gave reasons on why we may not have seen the best of Brooks in 2020. That being Benji Marshall calling and controlling plays. My point was, this is now not a concern we ( by your logic) should see a better, game controlling Brooks in 2021 and as i said, i hope we do and are talking about extending his contract. Not sure how to explain that any clearer. Maybe take a few deep breaths and re read your posts before going off.

 

[Deleted member 3518]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

Mate , this isn’t true . Turn the audio up and watch re runs of games . Look at set plays down the left . Then the ball goes the other way . The only way this happens , is an over call. As it’s a set play . Everyone is set up, not just brooks . It happened a lot man , and saying it’s because benji is more creative , implies that the only way to score is off the cuff footy . It’s not true .
Sometimes it’s not about the big play . Sometimes it’s about the play to set up the big play .
I’m not an expert , by any means , but you can see it . How a set of 6 is meant to play out .
Agree to disagree I guess .

 

[Russell]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by over calling Brooks and in that instance he was the non creative one and went against the game plan.

 

[Deleted member 3518]

Luke was the DallyM halfback of the year 3 years ago , our player of the year , the year before last , and had a down year last year . Some of you guys do my head in . So hard to live up to your asinine , and downright ridiculous expectations . Seriously watch the games last years . Sooo many times , Luke had the play set up , was screaming for the ball , Benji screams the overcall word , because every team has one ( basically it’s a spur of the moment I see something and it’s on . It’s to allow off the cuff footy) , so because of this the dummy half has to pass to benji , and most of the time nothing happens .
Go watch it . It got so bad , Grant actually stopped looking for Brooks first , which is what was supposed to happen , and just going to benji.

No Benji for 2021, this time next season I hope there are no more excuses on why Brooks is not performing and we are all talking about a contract extension.

Why the hell are you talking about ? What excuses ? I’m not making excuses . I’m stating facts . This whole conversation shouldn’t even be a thing ! It’s makes no sense . Go back and see how Dally M halfbacks of the year are running around right now . It’s not many .
What your saying implies that he’s been a passenger since he debuted . Which has no foundation in reality . He’s done more than enough to earn his money , and his standing in the team .

It’s like when some of you whinge about the mid field bomb. Do you hav any clue as to what it’s for ? It’s a strategy every half uses , but yet when he does it , it’s bag city .
His defence is elite for a half . His speed is elite for a half . His short ball is elite for a half . His long kicking game is average . In fact early on in his career he used to kick to the corners a lot , you know why he doesn’t do it ? Because field position is key , and his coaches want to attack with defence . And if your tackling someone who’s on the back foot , you can put pressure on them. Wingers and fullbacks are so good positionally that , you might find the grass , what one out of every 3 kicks to the corner , and then what ? 2 out of 3 times your defence is dealing with a 100kg speed machine , with a head of steam .
But cause it doesn’t look pretty people jump up and down .

Calm down fella.

My point, you clearly gave reasons on why we may not have seen the best of Brooks in 2020. That being Benji Marshall calling and controlling plays. My point was, this is now not a concern we ( by your logic) should see a better, game controlling Brooks in 2021 and as i said, i hope we do and are talking about extending his contract. Not sure how to explain that any clearer. Maybe take a few deep breaths and re read your posts before going off.

LOL. This kills my brain . It’s not about the context of the conversation, it’s the fact the conversation exists at all . I feel bad for Luke , because he played 2 really great years of footy , got next to no love , and as soon as he loses form , is brooks bashing time again.
The whole “he needs to step up “trope shouldn’t even exist . He already has . It’s hard to soar like an eagle when you’re surrounded by turkeys .
He hasn’t had a decent centre/ wing on his side since Tim Simona .
Yet he was top 5 in the league in try assists only 2 years ago .
I’m pumped for this year as finally he gets some strike outside him , and hopefully , it opens up space for him.
Eg. Souths this year . How many breaks did we see Reynolds and Walker make , because the defence was going early on LM.

With Jimmy outside him , and Moses’ ball skills , I honestly believe we should see a resurgence .

 

[avocadoontoast]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

 

[carltonleach]

Luke was the DallyM halfback of the year 3 years ago , our player of the year , the year before last , and had a down year last year . Some of you guys do my head in . So hard to live up to your asinine , and downright ridiculous expectations . Seriously watch the games last years . Sooo many times , Luke had the play set up , was screaming for the ball , Benji screams the overcall word , because every team has one ( basically it’s a spur of the moment I see something and it’s on . It’s to allow off the cuff footy) , so because of this the dummy half has to pass to benji , and most of the time nothing happens .
Go watch it . It got so bad , Grant actually stopped looking for Brooks first , which is what was supposed to happen , and just going to benji.

No Benji for 2021, this time next season I hope there are no more excuses on why Brooks is not performing and we are all talking about a contract extension.

Why the hell are you talking about ? What excuses ? I’m not making excuses . I’m stating facts . This whole conversation shouldn’t even be a thing ! It’s makes no sense . Go back and see how Dally M halfbacks of the year are running around right now . It’s not many .
What your saying implies that he’s been a passenger since he debuted . Which has no foundation in reality . He’s done more than enough to earn his money , and his standing in the team .

It’s like when some of you whinge about the mid field bomb. Do you hav any clue as to what it’s for ? It’s a strategy every half uses , but yet when he does it , it’s bag city .
His defence is elite for a half . His speed is elite for a half . His short ball is elite for a half . His long kicking game is average . In fact early on in his career he used to kick to the corners a lot , you know why he doesn’t do it ? Because field position is key , and his coaches want to attack with defence . And if your tackling someone who’s on the back foot , you can put pressure on them. Wingers and fullbacks are so good positionally that , you might find the grass , what one out of every 3 kicks to the corner , and then what ? 2 out of 3 times your defence is dealing with a 100kg speed machine , with a head of steam .
But cause it doesn’t look pretty people jump up and down .

Calm down fella.

My point, you clearly gave reasons on why we may not have seen the best of Brooks in 2020. That being Benji Marshall calling and controlling plays. My point was, this is now not a concern we ( by your logic) should see a better, game controlling Brooks in 2021 and as i said, i hope we do and are talking about extending his contract. Not sure how to explain that any clearer. Maybe take a few deep breaths and re read your posts before going off.

LOL. This kills my brain . It’s not about the context of the conversation, it’s the fact the conversation exists at all . I feel bad for Luke , because he played 2 really great years of footy , got next to no love , and as soon as he loses form , is brooks bashing time again.
The whole “he needs to step up “trope shouldn’t even exist . He already has . It’s hard to soar like an eagle when you’re surrounded by turkeys .
He hasn’t had a decent centre/ wing on his side since Tim Simona .
Yet he was top 5 in the league in try assists only 2 years ago .
I’m pumped for this year as finally he gets some strike outside him , and hopefully , it opens up space for him.
Eg. Souths this year . How many breaks did we see Reynolds and Walker make , because the defence was going early on LM.

With Jimmy outside him , and Moses’ ball skills , I honestly believe we should see a resurgence .

Well said mate couldn’t agree anymore ay

 

[Russell]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

Don't think I blamed him for everything Avo. Just hogging the ball, overcalling and super bad defence - everything else wasn't bad.

 

[avocadoontoast]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

Don't think I blamed him for everything Avo. Just hogging the ball, overcalling and super bad defence - everything else wasn't bad.

I'm not arguing with any of those points but Brooks just had a bad season. Noone's fault but his own. He was great in '18 and '19 while Marshall was there. Hoping he finds that form in '21.

 

[Deleted member 3518]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

Yep his form is ? his own fault . No argument . My issue is 2 things .
- he shouldn’t have to worry about his job because he had a down year , when he was our best player the previous 2 years.
- in every game I watched , especially in those last 10 games , the ball never went near him, even when he was set up for it . I point to the game we won on the bell with his kick , when Liddle came on.
Liddle gave him the ball, you could see brooks barking at the team , moving them where he needed them to go. Liddle looked for Brooks first . And the team moved looked like it was following the game plan . You can say it’s 15 mins . Sure . But , how do you turn your form around when you don’t get the ball, and when you do . It’s in crap situations , because the other half gets first pick at a retreating defence . Especially when , by all accounts , it was supposed to be Brooks team .
These are all facts . I’m not making this up, I didn’t imagine it.

 

[Speed2burn]

The same Brooks bashers claimed that in 18 & 19 that the halves quality in the NRL was at an all time low lol, he can never win

I get we still didn’t make finals those years but we literally lost 3 games in 2019 due to terrible goal kicking, from memory.

 

[Deleted member 3518]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

Don't think I blamed him for everything Avo. Just hogging the ball, overcalling and super bad defence - everything else wasn't bad.

I'm not arguing with any of those points but Brooks just had a bad season. Noone's fault but his own. He was great in '18 and '19 while Marshall was there. Hoping he finds that form in '21.

Yep ?. I’m just arguing what I think are the contributing factors to this . He still needs to be accountable for his own form .

 

[JayT]

I feel like when Benji was injured AD stepped up and kept us in the game. Luke failed to create repeat sets near the end. People have told me its his job to manage the game but I feel he did poor that that. I hope Brooks kills it but I feel more confident in AD from one game alone. But go Brooks. We will see game one, no benj, no Adam either I think from suspension. No decent half partner so it will be all him.

 

[JC99]

*“The respect and experience I had for Benji in that space... I didn’t want to get in his way. That’s something Madge and I have been speaking about what to do moving forward to best help our team."*

Well, there you go. Basically confirmed that Benji got in his way and overcalled him.

(Source: https://www.weststigers.com.au/news/2020/12/08/brooks-looking-forward-to-potential-doueihi-halves-combination/)

Every fair minded supporter could see it, only the Brooks bashers and Benji lovers ignored it

I completely disagree with this idea. I reckon Grant went to Benji more but mainly because Benji was probably the most creative half in the comp last year. He was creating stuff left, right and centre.

The problem with Benji is that he was woefully inconsistent throughout the game. His defense was terrible. He came up with heaps of poor options.

Brooks also didn't play poorly because Benji over played him.

I reckon him and Douiehi in the halves can work.

He might be the more creative - however when Brooks had the overlap etc. it was the Legend that bombed the try by overcalling Brooks and in that instance he was non creative one and went against the game plan.

Brooks was awful in 2020 because he played bad - he was in awful form all year. 3 try assists and 2 of those were in one of the last games of the season (the other one being his first game).

The ball went to Benji more because he was more likely to do something with it. Even in the last game when Benji went off it was AD that stepped up and he hadn't played in the halves all year.

Don't get me wrong i'm extremely happy Benji is going but blaming him for everything is ridiculous.

I think it goes both ways. It can’t all be blamed on Benji, brooks had plenty of opportunity to create things and failed but at the same time Benji would’ve over called him a little. Fact is brooks got plenty of ball all season and barely did anything, that’s on him.

 

[JayT]

Its true, Benji would have called it alot, but i can remember heaps of times Brooks dummied or threw hospital passes. Benji didn't make him do that lol.

 

[mike]

Its true, Benji would have called it alot, but i can remember heaps of times Brooks dummied or threw hospital passes. Benji didn't make him do that lol.

Dummied and ran straight into the opposition, no one fell for it. Worst dummy in the league. He had no idea in 2020, a bit like how he speaks. Let’s hope he gets his act together for 2021.