Some concerns from last night

[happy_tiger]

Further on from Tiger's comments the new rules will favour The Broncos mobile pack.

Broncos unless they have injuries are specials this year.

Look at the Cowboys pack and in particular their back row

You throw Coen Hess into that equation as well ,(kids going to be a superstar) , never played NRL and his Fantasy price is over 350 k and the Cowboys are in this up to their eyeballs as well

I think the Cowboys only issue might be back up halves / hookers with Lui leaving and Ray Thompson suffering a long term injury

 

[supercoach]

Further on from Tiger's comments the new rules will favour The Broncos mobile pack.

Broncos unless they have injuries are specials this year.

Look at the Cowboys pack and in particular their back row

You throw Coen Hess into that equation as well ,(kids going to be a superstar) , never played NRL and his Fantasy price is over 350 k and the Cowboys are in this up to their eyeballs as well

I think the Cowboys only issue might be back up halves / hookers with Lui leaving and Ray Thompson suffering a long term injury

History tells me it is near impossible to go back to back so looking at the other 15 teams it is very hard to go pass the Bronks. Great coach,so much experience,very good spine and plenty of up and comers with talent, and of course all the advantages of being the NRL's no1 rating team

 

[tig_prmz]

we are waaayyy of broncos and even parra right now.

Its a hard one to gauge. We probably got a points decision over the Sharks in our trial match, who fielded a strong side and played with plenty of gusto. This same Shark side is being tipped by a lot of experts as a top four side.

I think it is still it is really hard to know if we have a competitive team this year. One part of me says we are well off the top teams and another part of me tells me we could be in for a great year. Anyway we should have a better idea come 730pm Saturday night

we dont have the strength, the stamina or the smarts to play good teams. our best forward has big flaws like lazy marker defense and slow PTB. Both teams played a very simple game, bash it up the middle then go wide. We don't have the forwards to condense the defense to go wide.

in defense, it's just going to be about attitude and how dirty they're willing to get. we are gonna have a lot of penalties blown against us for hanging on to tackles too late and being offside.

 

[tig_prmz]

History tells me it is near impossible to go back to back so looking at the other 15 teams it is very hard to go pass the Bronks. Great coach,so much experience,very good spine and plenty of up and comers with talent, and of course all the advantages of being the NRL's no1 rating team

i think cowboys missed a trick by not signing roberts or jennings or some other explosive outside back. every other team is going to get better and they should've added something to keep themselves in front.

 

[GNR4LIFE]

Foran is nowhere near what he's cracked up to be. If anything he'll get found out not having DCE next to him running the show.

 

[happy_tiger]

Foran is nowhere near what he's cracked up to be. If anything he'll get found out not having DCE next to him running the show.

I actually think both will struggle without each other They do compliment each other

That being said I reckon Foran is the grittier dig in , never give up type

 

[matchball]

Dont worry we have Martin Tapau…oh wait Jason Taylor released him a year early :crazy

Tapau was good for 15 mins a half and really out of puff defensively. Maybe 3 good plays a game at best.
He would be a hinderance with the reduced interchange.

Yes had impact off the bench but we need more than that.

 

[WestsSupporter]

Foran is a good player, but they've hyped him up to something he isn't. He's a tough player who operates the team structure to a letter. The way Parra fans are raving over him you'd think he was some mastermind who toys with opposition teams with pinpoint kicking.

 

[supercoach]

A lot of teams season can go out the window with a couple of injuries to key players,take us God forbid but if Teddy was injured long term we would be in all sorts of trouble,GI at souths,JT at the cows and Cronk or Smith at the Storm. The Bronks on the other had are pretty injury proof,they do not have anyone or two standouts,it's just a matter of everyone doing their bit and if one gets injured they have a host of players to call on who will get the job done. Granted their 7 and 9 a lot of their plays revolve around but they have players who can step up to those roles without the team going backwards

 

[supercoach]

Foran is a good player, but they've hyped him up to something he isn't. He's a tough player who operates the team structure to a letter. The way Parra fans are raving over him you'd think he was some mastermind who toys with opposition teams with pinpoint kicking.

I think he is a great player,always has a dig,can read game,has a kicking game,can attack and is a strong defender. My only concern is his hammys,he has a history of hamstring injuries and anyone who has had hamstring problems will tell you your only even a game or two away from getting that twinge again and can play havoc on your mental state!

 

[Geo]

we are waaayyy of broncos and even parra right now.

Its a hard one to gauge. We probably got a points decision over the Sharks in our trial match, who fielded a strong side and played with plenty of gusto. This same Shark side is being tipped by a lot of experts as a top four side.

I think it is still it is really hard to know if we have a competitive team this year. One part of me says we are well off the top teams and another part of me tells me we could be in for a great year. Anyway we should have a better idea come 730pm Saturday night

we dont have the strength, the stamina or the smarts to play good teams. our best forward has big flaws like lazy marker defense and slow PTB. Both teams played a very simple game, bash it up the middle then go wide. We don't have the forwards to condense the defense to go wide.

in defense, it's just going to be about attitude and how dirty they're willing to get. we are gonna have a lot of penalties blown against us for hanging on to tackles too late and being offside.

Really…. funny that 4 of our 8 wins last year came against sides that finished in the Top 8...Storm Souths Dogs and Dragons and another against the Raiders who were flying at the time and just missed out...

To me it shows we can get up against better teams yet struggle against the teams on or below our level...I'm prepared to wait about a month and a bit into the season before making judgement not before we have kicked a ball in anger...

 

[greatodensraven]

Besides no injuries if I could have 1 wish granted for the Tigers this year it'd be that we defend the way Qld did in origin game 3 last year. Forget about the 50 odd pts they put on NSW's best, their relentless, aggressive line speed would've shut out 3 teams. If we can do this I reckon the attack will take care of itself & we'll have a successful year!

 

[InBenjiWeTrust]

we are waaayyy of broncos and even parra right now.

Its a hard one to gauge. We probably got a points decision over the Sharks in our trial match, who fielded a strong side and played with plenty of gusto. This same Shark side is being tipped by a lot of experts as a top four side.

I think it is still it is really hard to know if we have a competitive team this year. One part of me says we are well off the top teams and another part of me tells me we could be in for a great year. Anyway we should have a better idea come 730pm Saturday night

we dont have the strength, the stamina or the smarts to play good teams. our best forward has big flaws like lazy marker defense and slow PTB. Both teams played a very simple game, bash it up the middle then go wide. We don't have the forwards to condense the defense to go wide.

in defense, it's just going to be about attitude and how dirty they're willing to get. we are gonna have a lot of penalties blown against us for hanging on to tackles too late and being offside.

Really…. funny that 4 of our 8 wins last year came against sides that finished in the Top 8...Storm Souths Dogs and Dragons and another against the Raiders who were flying at the time and just missed out...

To me it shows we can get up against better teams yet struggle against the teams on or below our level...I'm prepared to wait about a month and a bit into the season before making judgement not before we have kicked a ball in anger...

x2

Funny that our best games were against 'good' teams, and we lost motivation against the 'others', go figure :crazy

 

[tsjonathan]

I think we have a very good shot at beating a team that has their whole spine untested. They have never really played together as a unit and will take time to work together. Tigers odds look very juicy.

Have you ever watched a NZ test match?

Indeed, and I would agree with your contention. The warriors played phenomenal football against a mediocre against Kangarooso side.But this is a normal club game. Players drift off and lose concentration. Synergy with your most important player is crucial and I honestly don't believe big stars put together on a team means instant success. I dont' know if you watch NBA. But the LA Lakers signed Kobe, Nash, Dwight and a few other big names. How did their season go?

My point is to be successful it isn't as simple as talent. It is about whether everyone is hardworking to the greater good of the organisation. Willing to stay longer hours at work and make necessary scarifies. It all starts with the individual off the field.

I just don't see the warriors ready yet. Although I honestly don't know how we will turn up. Bu tI do know if we were to pay the warriors now is the absolute best time.

 

[Eddie]

Didn't see last nights game, although the result didn't really surprise me. Brisbane are a well oiled machine and once they get a 10 point lead they don't let teams back in.

Usually in the first month the ruck is a lot quicker, as the refs are on top of everything. Throw in the heat and you can get some open games of football. We usually do ok in this period.

Then the grind kicks in and the grass gets a bit longer and the tough teams come to the fore. Thats there we will still struggle for mine. When everyone is fresh and firing we will cause some trouble. When we have some bumps and bruises most likely 10-13 sides in the comp will be relishing playing us. Our back row looks a real weak point offensively and defensively.

 

[stryker]

As I've said all through the pre season , having a good strong ,mobile back row who can play big minutes with reduced interchange will be crucial

Been true for 100+ years. Most important players on the field :wink:

 

[jirskyr]

You throw Coen Hess into that equation as well ,(kids going to be a superstar) , never played NRL and his Fantasy price is over 350 k and the Cowboys are in this up to their eyeballs as well

I have big raps on Hess as well. He also happens to have a superstar's name, got that unique ring to it, like Sonny Bill.

Hopefully his career is not tarnished by the fact he looks like a young Mark Latham.

 

[MacDougall]

Astute judgement OP. Tonight's game was much the same. The Dogs just outpaced and belted the Manly forward pack into submission.

I think we're better off with Cherrington than Farah because he has a faster delivery which will help our forwards hit the ball at pace. Farah loves to step out of dummy half, which won't suit what I've seen so far as the forward hitting the ball has to slow a step to wait for Farah to make his decision.

The more I think about it though, the more I feel like we can actually do this. Lovett and Woods are the only forwards, regular first graders, we have with slow ball carries, but Lovett looked remarkably improved in the trials in that regard and Woods does have an offload. If Woods can focus on getting his hands free at all opportunities and Lovett pushes ahead with his trial form, Sue, Grant, Ava, Lawrence and Aloiai all run like that. We need to hit the ball at pace, eat the 10 metres, hit the ground and spring up and send it back to Cherrington, rinse and repeat. Start games like that and we will win more than we lose. Don't stand upright in tackles trying to screw around, just hit the ground.

On the other side, the Dogs dominated the tackle. The Manly forwards were put on their backs and the Dogs perfectly timed crawling off them. That's where we will lose games. I don't think we can do that. Forwards just roll through us with no fear. Honestly, the Warriors don't have forwards that do that though. Big bullies like Napa, Boyd, Taumalolo and Papalli are the sorts of forwards that cut us up.

Rather than cutting guys down and putting them on their backs, we should focus on getting men around the ball and holding other teams up, keep them on their feet. It slows the play the ball down more consistently and is never penalised.

 

[Masterton]

Yeah you have to be smart about your interchanges.
I noticed Corey Parker played 60 minutes straight and Nikorima and Jo Ofanhengaue didn't come into the game till the last 15 minutes.

2 games gone, this seems to be the go. Besides a few big boppers like Kasaiano. the coaches are saving most of their interchanges for the 2nd half.

It will be interesting to see if Farah goes off and returns, or Cherro gets the last 20-25 minutes.

 

[happy_tiger]

As I've said all through the pre season , having a good strong ,mobile back row who can play big minutes with reduced interchange will be crucial

Been true for 100+ years. Most important players on the field :wink:

Back in your day second rowers were dates for wingers , admit it :laughing: