TEAM LIST Round 22 vs Bulldogs

[Vicious]

Yet earlier you said reserve grade would beat our first grade team...now Luai should produce his best game.
I hope he does...but I'm not sold on our forwards providing him the platform time and space that would require

Ask yourself this, if either of the Bulldogs starting props were playing for us, does that make us a much better team ?
I like both of the Bulldogs starting props as players who are no frills, but get the job done, however there is no reason why we do not have the players to more than match them.
Similar with Jaeman Salmon as their starting lock. He provides the link play and ball playing ability as a 13, but he’s not a strong ball runner or a hard hitting defender who is going help overpower us.
The Bulldogs strength is on their edges, they have big and fast edge back rowers and centres, they work off their impact if they are not making line breaks, offloads or scoring tries themselves.
You would think Taylan May is up to the task of keeping Crichton quiet, but on current form it will likely be a struggle for Seyfarth or the injured but playing pair in Samuela Fainu and Starford To’a.
Add the injured, but playing Jeral Skelton on one wing and it’s not hard to work out where we will be targeted and where we will be leaking points.

 

[GNR4LIFE]

On what pétanque court did you earn the right to say anything you want? What death defying challenges have you endured to “earn” anything?

Anyone who’s invested energy in this club over a long period, gone through stress, heartache, euphoria along the way can say whatever they like. I’m not just talking about myself, that goes for all supporters. I’ll say what I want, even if it’s negative. But at the same time, if a non supporter, or a commentator takes a cheap shot at the club, I will go them. It’s like a family member. You can be annoyed with them, fight and not get along. But if someone from outside the family takes a shot, you’re like “WTF are you?”. That’s how I am with this club. It’s how everyone should be.

 

[InBenjiWeTrust]

Happy with the team
Except seeing Toa and Turuva had that great combo in the first half of the season why not leave them on the same side ?
Rest ok except why Sukkar still in the list at 17 ?

IMHO, this is because we still do not have enough depth in forwards.
I would add two "take no prisoners" props (swap to Twal/Seyfarth ?), and two strong fast 2nd rowers,
of which one prop and 2nd rower must be experienced players.

 

[weststigers]

You know even if we lose, as long as someone can KO Galvin for me, that would be acceptable.

I think of how big Rusty Packer, in one of his final years of doing bugger all, wiped out Whatsthe Matterson in a kickoff return. We lost but there was something to salvage.

I don't like to see players get hurt, but it was nice to get that little win that day.

 

[weststigers]

IMHO, this is because we still do not have enough depth in forwards.
I would add two "take no prisoners" props (swap to Twal/Seyfarth ?), and two strong fast 2nd rowers,
of which one prop and 2nd rower must be experienced players.

Who are these props and 2nd rowers? How much do they cost? Are they available?

 

[Mighty_Tiger]

I’ve seen plenty of comments suggesting we will have no issues scoring points once we have our full spine together.
This is their chance to prove this theory correct.

Every game is a chance but I wouldn’t have high hopes.

Against the Bulldogs is a very good test, they suffocate teams and are the best defensive team at 16pts per game. They concede 2.5pts a game less than next best Panthers (huge gap).

We will need to score 24pts+ to win which has only been done 3 times all year against them. They have also kept teams to 12pts or less 8 times.

 

[Flippedy]

Every game is a chance but I wouldn’t have high hopes.

Against the Bulldogs is a very good test, they suffocate teams and are the best defensive team at 16pts per game. They concede 2.5pts a game less than next best Panthers (huge gap).

We will need to score 24pts+ to win which has only been done 3 times all year against them. They have also kept teams to 12pts or less 8 times.

We seem to have no clue how to attack this year, no real kicking game or set plays, no idea how to play together as a team lately, so I think we might be in trouble playing the best defensive team in the comp.

 

[Furious1]

You know even if we lose, as long as someone can KO Galvin for me, that would be acceptable.

I think of how big Rusty Packer, in one of his final years of doing bugger all, wiped out Whatsthe Matterson in a kickoff return. We lost but there was something to salvage.

Won't happen mate. Realistically nor should it. We're playing the Bulldogs, not Galvin. Losing the game would hurt Galvin more than any hit he might get. Unfortunately if we couldn't make metres against the Panthers, we aren't going to be making them against the Dogs.

 

[Buttface]

A Skelton big hit on Galvin would be awesome theatre!

Winning would be better.

 

[innsaneink]

I like both of the Bulldogs starting props as players who are no frills, but get the job done, however there is no reason why we do not have the players to more than match them.
Similar with Jaeman Salmon as their starting lock. He provides the link play and ball playing ability as a 13,

If we could defend like them... and Penrith... win the ruck and wrestle in attack and defense like them and Penrith.. then i would agree.
But i think thats a big reason why we can't go with them.
This gets them on the front foot giving their halves time and space.
That would help Luai produce his best game for us imo more than having Bula back.
Its been doing my head in seeing Turuva get halfway thru time and time again only lack of genuine speed causing him to get caught...still, glad Jahreem is back and looking forward to seeing how.we go but i predict it will be a carbon copy of the penrith game - they make 60m/set we make 30

 

[Batmans Parents]

Anyone who’s invested energy in this club over a long period, gone through stress, heartache, euphoria along the way can say whatever they like. I’m not just talking about myself, that goes for all supporters. I’ll say what I want, even if it’s negative. But at the same time, if a non supporter, or a commentator takes a cheap shot at the club, I will go them. It’s like a family member. You can be annoyed with them, fight and not get along. But if someone from outside the family takes a shot, you’re like “WTF are you?”. That’s how I am with this club. It’s how everyone should be.

Rarely agree with you on much but this 100%. Especially when you’ve stuck with the club through all the lows as well as the (very few) highs, attended games, bought memberships and merchandise since 2000.

You can love the club but that doesn’t mean being a sycophant and applauding mediocrity like a brain-damaged seal which we are prone to do from within the club and as a fan base. It’s that mindset that has contributed significantly to the clubs overall situation.

 

[Alex Seyfarth's #1 Fan]

You know even if we lose, as long as someone can KO Galvin for me, that would be acceptable.

I think of how big Rusty Packer, in one of his final years of doing bugger all, wiped out Whatsthe Matterson in a kickoff return. We lost but there was something to salvage.

A rib check by Dr Skelton will hopefully be prescribed. Even a few errors by rushing up and spooking him would suffice.

 

[tig_prmz]

A rib check by Dr Skelton will hopefully be prescribed. Even a few errors by rushing up and spooking him would suffice.

I don't even care if we draw an error or not. I don't even mind a sin bin for a late shot.

Just want to see Galvin get whacked once in the ribs. When Packer knocked out Matterson, I still remember the slowmo and which part of Matterson's head was hit.

I just wanna see a slow mo of Galvin's ribs getting re-arranged.

 

[TheEnz]

So, we could have a wet track on Sunday...dogs have not done well on wet tracks so far this year.

 

[Bus 2 Terrigal]

A rib check by Dr Skelton will hopefully be prescribed. Even a few errors by rushing up and spooking him would suffice.

We may be just a tad short out wide if our winger is attempting to jam in on their halfback 🤣🤣🤣

 

[TigerLouis]

This team is the best team we can have on the field. The only change I would’ve made is to switch Doueihi to the second row Sione Fainu to lock & bring in
Kit Laulilii on the bench for Seyfarth who is obviously one of Marshall’s favourite players because he doesn’t deserve to be in the top 17.

 

[weststigers]

Anyone who’s invested energy in this club over a long period, gone through stress, heartache, euphoria along the way can say whatever they like. I’m not just talking about myself, that goes for all supporters. I’ll say what I want, even if it’s negative. But at the same time, if a non supporter, or a commentator takes a cheap shot at the club, I will go them. It’s like a family member. You can be annoyed with them, fight and not get along. But if someone from outside the family takes a shot, you’re like “WTF are you?”. That’s how I am with this club. It’s how everyone should be.

But, also like family, if your drug addicted, loser brother starts to turn his life around, you don't shit on him if he's not totally perfect on the journey to success.

We are today paying the price for 10-15 years of utter mismanagement. It's going to take more than 18 games to fix it.

 

[Tim Sheens]

If we could defend like them... and Penrith... win the ruck and wrestle in attack and defense like them and Penrith.. then i would agree.
But i think thats a big reason why we can't go with them.
This gets them on the front foot giving their halves time and space.
That would help Luai produce his best game for us imo more than having Bula back.
Its been doing my head in seeing Turuva get halfway thru time and time again only lack of genuine speed causing him to get caught...still, glad Jahreem is back and looking forward to seeing how.we go but i predict it will be a carbon copy of the penrith game - they make 60m/set we make 30

Apparently this Sunday will be the first match that our spine has started together, so I hope that it all begins to gel and stay clear of injury so they get to grow as a unit. Of course, our forwards, including Api from dummy half, will need to do better in laying some kind of platform for them to have a chance to shine.

 

[Vicious]

If we could defend like them... and Penrith... win the ruck and wrestle in attack and defense like them and Penrith.. then i would agree.
But i think thats a big reason why we can't go with them.
This gets them on the front foot giving their halves time and space.
That would help Luai produce his best game for us imo more than having Bula back.
Its been doing my head in seeing Turuva get halfway thru time and time again only lack of genuine speed causing him to get caught...still, glad Jahreem is back and looking forward to seeing how.we go but i predict it will be a carbon copy of the penrith game - they make 60m/set we make 30

Probably and Galvin will probably score a double just to add to the torture.

 

[Jolls]

Game Plan to defeat the Dogs?​

Canterbury play similar style to the Riff and currently boast the best defence in the NRL. Their structure is disciplined, compact, and rolling; built around Ciraldo’s Penrith‑style system where fast moving forwards that swarm the threat.

The Dogs are elite defensively centre‑to‑centre; however, we know that Galvin is an arm grabber and is suspect under sustained pressure. We also have threats on both wings so can utlilise them early in attack to take the energy out of their mobile pack.

Identified Defensive Weaknesses​

• Galvin has been exposed in edge misreads.
• The compressed nature of their defensive line exposes them on quick shifts to the outside backs.
• Winning the ruck and shifting quickly can catch the edge defenders narrow or fatigued.
• Fast shifts can unlock the edges before they can slide enabling the edges to be stripped of numbers.

Identified Attacking Weaknesses​

• Their attack is structured but can be predictable.
• They rely on forward roll-ons and Burton bombs which does limit their flexibility.
• Galvin when pressured does make errors; however, he also takes chances that do come off so the application of too much pressure is also a risk.
• the Dogs lack spark in second-phase play — they have few offloads and unpredictable movements.

We usually struggle to win the ruck; however, with the smaller Dogs pack we should be able to maintain parity and and with effort win the ruck at times. When we win the ruck we must be on the ball to capitalise on quick PTBs to compress the defence then shift quickly to take advantage of this.

Attack​

Early Set

• Play tight for first 2-3 tackles to force Bulldogs to compress.
• Quick play-the-balls through the middle are key to unlocking their edges.

Aim: Force the markers/edges into overcommitting, allowing our ball-players to shift quickly.

Shift

• Structure the shifts with Bula sweeping to pressure the edges, especially Galvin who is prone to over read the play.
• Critter and Xeri are good defenders so the opportunity will come when they are engaged. Use our edges to commit the defence and isolate Galvin. Play eitheer back on the inside against the grain at Galvin or skip to the winger to enable Taruva/Skelton/Bula space.
• Cut-out, double lead runners and inside balls should be effective plays.

Aim: Target the areas where they leak the most points.

Kicking Game

• Use a combination of early kicks to get in behind the compressed defence to slow their defensive line and create space to attack.
• Kick long to space or high to the kick chase to limit return meterage.
• In the red zone force repeat sets rather than bombs; the Dogs defend bombs well but their highly mobile defense can suffer from fatigue when sets are stacked.

Aim: Disrupt the defensive pattern

Momentum Change

• Early kicks/touch finders to maintain or slow tempo as required. Play the game at our pace - not theirs.
• Use bench impact to change tempo as needed.
• Shift on early tackles after a momentum plays—especially off a long break or quick PTB. Royce Hunt can be the game changer this week.

Aim: We control the tempo

Defence​

• Compress in the middle third, but be ready to slide if Burton/Galvin shift early.
• Edge defence is critcal - this is the Dogs attacking strength. Strong communication and trust in the system is required. We can not afford to shoot out of the line - be quick off the line but commit to what is happening not what is perceived.
• Make them go the long way and fatigue the forwards by having to support a wide attacking structure.

Aim: Frustrate the attack and force (Galvin especially) to push the pass and capitalise on the mistakes.

To defeat the dogs we need to control the tempo of the game. They are a highly mobile team so the game will not be won in the first 20 minutes; however, if we have them constantly moving to counter our attack we have the ability to change momentum, compress the defence and take advantage of our strike players. This week is about patience; we have the troops to compete with them if we play smart.

That's my crack. How would you guys play it?