LIVE GAME Round 22 v Bulldogs

Live Game Discussion
mtd#2 said:
Luai, Api and Bula applying pressure with their turn and chase.


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The pressure confused our old friend
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It was one of the most satisfying moments of the game...

I was waiting for them to blow a penalty for Bula tackling Galvin without the ball.
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I agree, my favourite moment of several good ones.

Crichton does a handoff and Galvin pulls his hands away, despite being the only Doggies player within 20 metres. Speaks to the hesitancy that often crops up in his game. Galvin could easily have caught the footy and copped the tackle, it's not as if it was a terrible pass at his knees.
 
Flippedy said:
Yeah it’s a real dog act on Sexton, imo. Why they felt the need to fix something that wasn’t broken I don’t know. Poach Galvin if you want, but at least have the sense to bring him through slowly while he learns the ropes in a new squad.

They have no one else to blame but themselves if they derail their season by rushing this kid into the most important position on the field. That said it is only one bad game in the wet. They put 40+ on Manly a week ago with that team, though I don’t think Galvin had too much to do wth that.
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If Ciraldo had of known how wet it was going to be i think he might have gone with Sexton. Galvins style is just not suited to get down and dirty in the mud. The dogs forwards didn't have a clue without a half directing them. That was Sextons biggest asset. Oh well tough shit Ciraldo, Gus and Galvin.
 
diedpretty said:
If Ciraldo had of known how wet it was going to be i think he might have gone with Sexton. Galvins style is just not suited to get down and dirty in the mud. The dogs forwards didn't have a clue without a half directing them. That was Sextons biggest asset. Oh well tough shit Ciraldo, Gus and Galvin.
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Galvin’s issue is he isn’t a grind style of player.
In the wet it is highlighted.
Heading into the finals he could be very costly for the Bulldogs pending who they matchup against.
Galvin needs the game speed to be high tempo for him to be effective.
 
Odessa said:
Your a stats guy I just read this

The Wests Tigers have now won more games against Top 8 sides then the Bulldogs
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It's an interesting stat, I think perhaps a little overstated if we look at the draw.

By a quirk of the draw, Bulldogs haven't yet played Warriors or Storm, i.e. 2 of the current Top 4. Against the other 6 clubs they've beaten Raiders and Sharks, who are tricky opponents. Dogs then had a 2-pt loss to Panthers and a weird flogging by Dolphins. The remaining team is Broncos who have the wood on Dogs this year with 2L.

So their Top 8 form is 2W 4L. It's possible that they lose to Storm and Warriors to extend a poor record, but you can't count a result before it's happened.

Tigers form against the Top 8 is 3W 7L - over Dolphins (early season), Sharks and Dogs. So we've played Top 8 sides 4 more times than Dogs, and obviously not being a Top 8 team ourselves adds an extra opponent because the Dogs cannot play themselves. So basically we had beaten 7th and 8th before playing Bulldogs.

Dogs run home is against 4th, 9th, 2nd, 5th, 7th, which is a tough run. So I would be less concerned about Bulldogs' current form against Top 8 sides compared to their form in this run-home. I am a firm believer that end-season form is the best predictor of who will win the comp. Nearly all teams that limp into the Finals get destroyed and there's a good reason why the Top 4 is so dominant in the Finals period.

I personally don't think Dogs are that good a team and I do think that, per your stat, they make their season banking wins against lower sides. I think they are maxxing out their performances with an average roster, but with a few key elite players like Kikau and Crichton. I rate Preston and Kiraz very highly. Burton can be good. Rest of their side quite meh.

2024 Bulldogs were certainly undone rapidly in the Finals. I think Dogs are getting a little worse week on week, say compared to the Panthers, and I think it bodes poorly for their Finals aspirations.
 
mtd#2 said:
It is kinda dumb from our boys.. especially the Naden video after the game..
But this was against the doggies and galvin. The dogs social media team mocked the tigers during the week..
So if there was a week to be an idiot in retaliation, this was it..
get that up ya!!
Who let the dogs out!!!! Who who who who who!!
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I agree. I thought the PR stuff out of Canterbury through the week was low-rent and arrogant in the extreme. It might have been better had we not given them the khod or whatever it's called but there was provocation. Some of the Canterbury fans, male and female, are disgusting.
 
Batmans Parents said:
Pole is an absolute dipshit. One of the most idiotic PTB I've ever seen
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Yes I know 6 tigers had 1 error each .Pole had 2 which is a lot considering he only played 36 mins However it was a wet greasy ball and he runs hard
Willing to forgive this time .Biggest concern is he has always been a tackle busting forward but we need a forward pack who are all capable of 60+ mins
Even Terrell May lost the ball on first carry and was penalised twice .
Just my opinion I don't think Sukkar is quite up to it atm
 
Jolls said:
I think the completion rates stat says most of it. We handled the conditions better, Benji made some last minute changes to the squad that suited the conditions better and the heavy track made it tough going for the Dogs who rely on a swarming defence.

Having said that, we had more energy and were up for the game and we played with intent. I'm sure AD trains as a backup half so I don't think the late change was too much of an issue, so as much as they wouldn't have trained much it was the right call for the conditions and gave us the longer boot we needed to capaitalise on them.

The most impressive thing was our defensive game plan. We played up and in in the middle third and really hunted them back into the middle. This was partially due to the weather conditions and partially due to the defensive strategy so that was well done. The other thing I noticed was that we were able to wrestle their lighter weight forwards onto their backs a lot of the time. We were able to dominate the ruck, not something we are usually able to achieve. So that puts to bed the "we don't train to wrestle" theory. What it does demonstrate though is that we aren't as effective as we need to be on a dry track so it is something we need to work on. A couple of bigger bodies in the middle and some more focussed training perhaps.

What was also pleasing to see was the intent to try and break down Galvin's edge in attack; which was difficult task given Critta is a good defender outside him. Benji identified the weak link and worked them over in attack. The Luia pass for Sam F's try was a little forward but the deception used to get Sam F back inside one on one with the arm grabber was perfect. You are right though - our attack is still off the pace - but the development signs are there.
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Absolutely noticed our ability to roll guys on their back in the conditions. Hopefully something we see on a dry day going forward.
 
tigeress said:
All true, but I just wish they would have that motivation all the time.
Adam Doueihi always puts in 100%....I for one will be very, very upset if they let him slip through their fingers. Always one of our best players.
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Me too. It’s great to see the players working for each other, relying on each other, and I think Doueihi has been a huge part of that development. His share price continues to rise. A Balmain junior, Adam has continually been one of our best in offence and defence. He just needs to stop mentioning IM and he could be signing an upgraded contract imo.
 
Tiger Woods said:
I wouldn't be surprised if the lebanese players on our team douihi sukkar Twal were behind the middle finger salute
🫡🤣
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A guy I know in the Blue Mountains is a former referee and now an NRL timekeeper. After a Bulldogs game, I think against the Broncos, as he was preparing to leave a Bulldogs fan turned around and made a throat slitting gesture to him. Hold the outrage Bulldogs!
 
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