Luke Brooks

[the_third]



I love a 1/2 who can pass higher than himself.


Needs to learn to get rid of the flat passes. His passes need to go up slightly as most of his teammates are taller than him.

It’s not just the height. He needs to put the ball a little further in front when passing to compensate for the longer arms of taller people.

 

[sleeve]

Tamou,JO,JTJ,Steff,Simkin,Madden,Cini,Kepoa,mid year Kel and? plus maybe Laurie and one other.plusSimkins.All very exciting, and wonder what our side will look like at years end.

 

[cochise]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.

 

[TrueTiger]

I think Madge had a plan when he first came in to the club and that was to get rid of the culture that existed and create a new one which he is definately showing us the way in that regard..that is his starting point,now he is asking for the players he requires to deliver finals football,Tamou,JTJ,as experienced players,a forward leader and a speed machine in the backs...Madge has seen what effect Benji has had on the backline plays and stiffling Luke,hence he wasnt offered another contract..not bagging a legend,just looking from the outside in...
This squad we have for the next couple of years and some additions will certainly scare the pants off some of the top teams and with Madge engineering the gameplans and structures,Im sure that Luke and others will finally standout as the true talented players they are..Madge has won premierships and knows whats needed,he will do his utmost best to make the WTs finals contenders before his tenure is up...we all have likes and dislikes and preferences,I prefer that we all support and get behind this team wholeheartedly this year,because I think we will be in for the ride of our life sprinting to the finals...

 

[cktiger]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

Can't agree - there's plenty of players who still shine in dud teams.
I don't think Brooks can improve but, being a supporter of the club, hope he proves me wrong.
It's a fresh new team ...maybe they'll drag him along for the ride.

 

[Lauren]

Might not be as clued in as footy as you guys and know little about the technical and tactical side of things but understand psychology and I'm sure fellow teachers can also contribute to the topic with their knowledge and beliefs on Nature vs Nurture. I could honestly do a thesis on the bloke.

It doesn't matter what natural gifts a player would have, as their team environment is just as responsible for maximising this, as well as their ability of acquiring further skills.
The fact this is even a topic of discussion tells me that many can recognise his talent. Interestingly @cochise brought up mental toughness in another thread and this is where I think we've been going wrong.
Look back to our better sides.
Despite some of these guys appearing more talented than many guys around them (in the comp), there was a very apparent lack of self-discipline and mental fortitude. Even more obvious was this reflected poor work ethic in the team - the ability to adapt or be flexible in their effort.
For me personally, I think this demonstrates Luke's resilience and the complex nature of his career. He's very lucky he hasn't gone down the same path as someone like Jarrod Mullen.

 

[Snake]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

 

[cochise]

Might not be as clued in as footy as you guys and know little about the technical and tactical side of things but understand psychology and I'm sure fellow teachers can also contribute to the topic with their knowledge and beliefs on Nature vs Nurture. I could honestly do a thesis on the bloke.

It doesn't matter what natural gifts a player would have, as their team environment is just as responsible for maximising this, as well as their ability of acquiring further skills.
The fact this is even a topic of discussion tells me that many can recognise his talent. Interestingly @cochise brought up mental toughness in another thread and this is where I think we've been going wrong.
Look back to our better sides.
Despite some of these guys appearing more talented than many guys around them (in the comp), there was a very apparent lack of self-discipline and mental fortitude. Even more obvious was this reflected poor work ethic in the team - the ability to adapt or be flexible in their effort.
For me personally, I think this demonstrates Luke's resilience and the complex nature of his career. He's very lucky he hasn't gone down the same path as someone like Jarrod Mullen.

This is an area I could talk about a little more but it gets difficult because to do so you have to start talking about people's upbringing and personality and I don't think that is fair game on a forum such as this.

In saying this I do believe that the mental toughness side of things has been a major focus for Madge over the last couple of years.

 

[Geo]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

As Great as Grant was In the 15 games played we won 5 and lost 10 a 33 % win rate..

Luke Brooks Played 17 won 6 lost 11 35%..

Was that Grants fault..I don't think so..results count..in a team game..

 

[happy_tiger]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

As Great as Grant was In the 15 games played we won 5 and lost 10 a 33 % win rate..

Luke Brooks Played 17 won 6 lost 11 35%..

Was that Grants fault..I don't think so..results count..in a team game..

You know Brooks better than anyone (including Brooks ) ...what season do you expect he will have

 

[twentyforty]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.

I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

 

[cochise]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.


I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

It is a very difficult thing to fix because the mental weakness aspect gets past from player to player. You really need the right people to come in and identify the issues and how to fix them. Now when you are turning over coaches every 2 years it is impossible to rectify.

We have the right people here now to fix it but they need to be given the time to fix it.

 

[twentyforty]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.


I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

It is a very difficult thing to fix because the mental weakness aspect gets past from player to player. You really need the right people to come in and identify the issues and how to fix them. Now when you are turning over coaches every 2 years it is impossible to rectify.

We have the right people here now to fix it but they need to be given the time to fix it.

Agree 100%, we have the right people on board now, as I previously posted, when a few were calling for Madge’s head, if you leave him in the job long enough he will get us to a GF. I just hope he and his team he is putting together, have the full support of the club.

 

[Speed2burn]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

And did we make the 8? Exactly.

Grant has an outstanding year, we miss the 8.

Brooks has an outstanding couple of years, we miss the 8

What is it?

 

[Russell]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

They played with the same dud forwards - yes.

But Grant wasn't playing half.

 

[hank37w]

Well it's been said many times before about a champion team as opposed to a team of champions, so what that says to me is that a champion player on their own probably will not be enough to make a winning team.

We've had individuals before that you could call champions and where has that got us?

I believe we are on the way to building that champion team over the next couple of seasons and I also believe that Luke Brooks can play a part in that team, whether he has has it in him to lead that team around the park or someone else like possibly a Doueihi will do that remains to be seen.

Either way, I think Luke Brooks will play a part in that champion team.

 

[happy_tiger]

Seriously, there is not a half in the world that would have looked good in the Tigers side last year.We had forwards who had little forward momentum and soft in defence.JA was our best and he was ok but not anything special.Our backline was lacking penetration and was slow.We had no fullback,no goalkicker,and a bunch of guys who would be lucky to survive in the CC comp,who we kept moving around on the hope they might make some impact.

I disagree so if the forwards were that bad last season .. why was Grant such a sensation ? You either have the the goods or not that is as simple as it gets . Yes a stronger pack makes a 7’s job easier but a 7 that has the goods will always stand out ! This rubbish about the forward pack is just falsely



Grant played with the same so called dud forwards that Brooks played with. Grant looked like a champ .. Brooks well you either have it or you don’t!
The champs stand out whether there playing with champs or chumps that’s always been the way .

They played with the same dud forwards - yes.

But Grant wasn't playing half.

He did when Liddle came off the bench ......

 

[TigerWest]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.


I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

It is a very difficult thing to fix because the mental weakness aspect gets past from player to player. You really need the right people to come in and identify the issues and how to fix them. Now when you are turning over coaches every 2 years it is impossible to rectify.

We have the right people here now to fix it but they need to be given the time to fix it.

Isn’t that a major issue for us now, time?

What is it now, 10 years?

We need to get mentally tougher players if that is the case, which brings us back to Brooks, we have basically changed the whole team while he has been here.

I still think he will be on very thin ice if he doesn’t deliver this season.

 

[cochise]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.


I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

It is a very difficult thing to fix because the mental weakness aspect gets past from player to player. You really need the right people to come in and identify the issues and how to fix them. Now when you are turning over coaches every 2 years it is impossible to rectify.

We have the right people here now to fix it but they need to be given the time to fix it.

Isn’t that a major issue for us now, time?

What is it now, 10 years?

We need to get mentally tougher players if that is the case, which brings us back to Brooks, we have basically changed the whole team while he has been here.

I still think he will be on very thin ice if he doesn’t deliver this season.

You can't change the entire team at once.

 

[TieDye]

Q. How do you turn a good player into an average player?
A. It can take a few years, but on a positive note, it’s something we have been good at.

So you don’t put any onus on the player?

It’s all the clubs fault, is it?

Don’t think so.


I don’t think it’s fair to say that Brooks’ poor form rests on his shoulders alone. You may mount an argument that we are all masters of our own destiny, but at the same time, we all behave in accordance with the expectations of others. It’s in our DNA, and particularly so in a team environment. In a team sport, just as a coach can improve performance of a team and individuals in that team, it stands to reason that a coach (or poor club culture) can produce the opposite. As much as us fans get frustrated at a players poor performance when we know he has the skill, we need to acknowledge external influences and cultural expectation.

If your club operates without organisational discipline, pays overs for players at the end of their careers, mismanages the cap to the extent that it has to buy affordable plodders or unwanted players, then yes I do think that has an affect on club morale and consequently individual player performance.

However you want to look at it, the guy hasn’t stepped up to control the side, everyone wants to blame other players except the bloke whose job it was.

I hope he turns it around, but he really does control his own game and his footy future.


I suppose the lights are shining on Brooks because of the position he plays? So which players in the team have had stellar performances throughout 2020?
I just don’t want to see Brooks get turfed when we’ve not fixed the real problem. The cause of his, or any other players poor performance?

How do we fix the real problem, the cause of all the players problems if we don't turf any of them?


Cochise, I don’t know what the real problem is, but I do know that a team’s poor performance is a reflection of it. It is a symptom, not the problem itself. I honestly believe the club has given up trying to be comfortable with mediocrity, it gets harder to justify as time goes by. I just don’t believe in wasting money moving players (with skill) on due to poor performance until we discover and rectify the issue. If it’s a deeply embedded attitude issue which cannot be changed then a change of scenery can do wonders. All that information is above my pay rate, but I do suspect there have been fairly simple reasons why we haven’t played finals for a decade? Is it the 7?
What’s your view mate?

My post was more tongue in cheek, no I don't think our problems are Brooks.

I see we have 2 real issues squad strength and mental toughness and these both manifest themselves in similar ways.

In relation to squad strength, to compete with the better team we need to be red lining, basically playing the edge of our ability the entire game while the better teams get sit in a comfortable space. This results in us making mistakes at crucial times do to having to maintain our best football for long stretches of time. This was evident in the games against Parra and Penrith last year, though while we were competitive you always knew we were going to be the team to break 1st as we were playing harder to be competitive.

This comes to the 2nd point, mental toughness, when we do break we don't have the toughness to overcome the setback. This is shown through our inability to win the big moments, both in a game and throughout the course of the season, it is the reason for our winning the hard games and losing the supposedly easier games.

Now I believe both of these are being addressed but they are what I believe to be the reasons for our 9 years without finals.


I agree, that those two deficiencies you elude to are the reason we have been losing games. What I don’t understand is why we have not addressed those issues during such a long period of time? This is the question which leads me to believe that the solution will not be found bubbling on the surface in the public domain. As previously stated, I’ve always believed that the strength of the entire organisation is on display on game day. Those players reflect the traditional values held by others in the club.

It is a very difficult thing to fix because the mental weakness aspect gets past from player to player. You really need the right people to come in and identify the issues and how to fix them. Now when you are turning over coaches every 2 years it is impossible to rectify.

We have the right people here now to fix it but they need to be given the time to fix it.

Isn’t that a major issue for us now, time?

What is it now, 10 years?

We need to get mentally tougher players if that is the case, which brings us back to Brooks, we have basically changed the whole team while he has been here.

I still think he will be on very thin ice if he doesn’t deliver this season.

You can't change the entire team at once.

Love the optimism, in truth that’s exactly
what Madge has tried to do and whether it’ll work or not remains to be seen. What I can tell you is Brooks’ head will be on the chopping block if we aren’t in contention come September