Stefano Utoikamanu #241

You aren’t comparing apples with apples.
May in the Roosters system is better than Stef in the Tigers system.
Stef in the Storm system will certainly be improved.
May in the Tigers system could regress.
It’s apples with oranges no matter how you compare them.
May has way more upside then Stef. He will be an upgrade in the tigers system without question and entering his prime years.
 
And that first sentence is the reason why he’ll never be a leader

He needs other players to pick up the slack before he has a crack. I’m hoping May is the polar opposite for us and leads the way
I give him a bit more credit than that. He had himself on the verge of origin in a really poor footy side. This last year I think he was mentally done from the losing but over the course of his contract he was one of our best.
 
Even if he did have an ax to grind, he’s not the first and won’t be the last player to have one. Hell, even one of our recruits has an ax to grind with his ex club.
 
James Graham in his poddy said May was a notch above Stef he is not the most articulate bloke but knows his footy
Again, its hard to compare them at the moment.
May would come onto the field when the likes of JWH, Collins, Lenui, Crichton and Radley had already spent time softening up the rival pack.
Stef was the guy charged with doing the tough work from the start with us....and he didnt recieve much help.
The fact he often failed in this area is not lost on me, but it is a factor that May has not had to contend with so far.
 
Imagine how effective those tackle busts might be with the fast support the Storm possess…
Wishing this bloke ill is poor form when he fulfilled his contract and played every game this year. Plenty recently have failed to do likewise.
I dunno man I think there’s a bit of confirmation bias going on with that .
I watched blore maybe 5 games with the storm , and I thought he was bog average , and lacked involvement , and was exposed defensively . But people were saying he’s an origin bolter because the storm won nearly all those games .
I think stef will get a positive rub just by being in the storm team . He could play 5 minutes , and people will speak glowingly of him because the storm as a club is amazing .thats not to say he won’t improve, but I honestly think blore got a lot of rub last year . Even in the GF the panthers targeted him defensively . But no one mentioned it really in the post game analysis .
Which is a good thing because he is just one player , but yea . If the storm had a few losing seasons I’m curious if that would continue .
 
I dunno man I think there’s a bit of confirmation bias going on with that .
I watched blore maybe 5 games with the storm , and I thought he was bog average , and lacked involvement , and was exposed defensively . But people were saying he’s an origin bolter because the storm won nearly all those games .
I think stef will get a positive rub just by being in the storm team . He could play 5 minutes , and people will speak glowingly of him because the storm as a club is amazing .thats not to say he won’t improve, but I honestly think blore got a lot of rub last year . Even in the GF the panthers targeted him defensively . But no one mentioned it really in the post game analysis .
Which is a good thing because he is just one player , but yea . If the storm had a few losing seasons I’m curious if that would continue .
Blore had a good season.
Bellamy trusted him to average 74 minutes every game for 24 starts.
He defended at close to 96% efficiency and pumped out 74m per match which is low but that also had a bit to do with how he was used.
Not a bad start, he will only improve with another pre season with them. As Loiero is also improving, I think the Storm will have the 2nd best best backrow in the comp in 25.
 
Blore had a good season.
Bellamy trusted him to average 74 minutes every game for 24 starts.
He defended at close to 96% efficiency and pumped out 74m per match which is low but that also had a bit to do with how he was used.
Not a bad start, he will only improve with another pre season with them. As Loiero is also improving, I think the Storm will have the 2nd best best backrow in the comp in 25.
Yea I didn’t see it man ! The tackle efficiency is a flawed stat . It doesn’t take into account poor positioning , and no attempt at all .
I’m purely basing it on the games I watched though . I could have watched his 5 worst games .
It was the same issues I had when he played edge for us . I think he’s a lock . It’s a matter of when not if .
 
Blore had a good season.
Bellamy trusted him to average 74 minutes every game for 24 starts.
He defended at close to 96% efficiency and pumped out 74m per match which is low but that also had a bit to do with how he was used.
Not a bad start, he will only improve with another pre season with them. As Loiero is also improving, I think the Storm will have the 2nd best best backrow in the comp in 25.
Blore was the ultimate role player, uncomplicated job, it’s Bellamy’s trademark for guys like Blore. @Lestronge i don’t think I heard anyone credible calling for origin selection for SB.
 
Blore was the ultimate role player, uncomplicated job, it’s Bellamy’s trademark for guys like Blore. @Lestronge i don’t think I heard anyone credible calling for origin selection for SB.
Yea true , the weren’t exactly credible , but I definitely heard a few podcasts mention it .
I really like blore , but I’ve not been a huge fan of edge player Blore for a few seasons now . He was dynamic when we used him as a lock in the last few games he played for us .
 
Yea true , the weren’t exactly credible , but I definitely heard a few podcasts mention it .
I really like blore , but I’ve not been a huge fan of edge player Blore for a few seasons now . He was dynamic when we used him as a lock in the last few games he played for us .
Papali’i put together a handful of good games for us late too, bit of a farewell gift because the rest of their tenure was shite.
 
Yea I didn’t see it man ! The tackle efficiency is a flawed stat . It doesn’t take into account poor positioning , and no attempt at all .
I’m purely basing it on the games I watched though . I could have watched his 5 worst games .
It was the same issues I had when he played edge for us . I think he’s a lock . It’s a matter of when not if .
It is flawed for that reason, however we are referring to a player from the Melbourne system under coach Bellamy. Theres no way he gets the game time he did this year if he is not positioning himself properly or flat out not attempting tackles. His returns for these two indicators would be very minimal.
Yes he may well be a middle. Id like to see him being used more as an edge runner before they determine that though. His ballplayers will trust him more in 25...we'll get our answer.
 
It is flawed for that reason, however we are referring to a player from the Melbourne system under coach Bellamy. Theres no way he gets the game time he did this year if he is not positioning himself properly or flat out not attempting tackles. His returns for these two indicators would be very minimal.
Yes he may well be a middle. Id like to see him being used more as an edge runner before they determine that though. His ballplayers will trust him more in 25...we'll get our answer.
They’re not gods man ! They have a good system but that doesn’t mean mistakes arnt made and there arnt weaknesses to expose .
I guess I don’t put them on a pedestal.
Also the edge running , I don’t think so . They play a real direct style , that’s less about hole running and more about creating through the collision of eg. Offloads , dummy and go , quick play the balls etc.
I’m not sure they will do that . But hey it will be interesting .
For me , if I’m attacking the storm going at Hughes and Blore would be the channel I’d target as much as possible .
 
They’re not gods man ! They have a good system but that doesn’t mean mistakes arnt made and there arnt weaknesses to expose .
I guess I don’t put them on a pedestal.
Also the edge running , I don’t think so . They play a real direct style , that’s less about hole running and more about creating through the collision of eg. Offloads , dummy and go , quick play the balls etc.
I’m not sure they will do that . But hey it will be interesting .
For me , if I’m attacking the storm going at Hughes and Blore would be the channel I’d target as much as possible .
Its clear you dont watch them play much.
What they are doing is far superior to most clubs....and yes they certainly attack the edges though Katoa. Blore got used a bit this year and will see more of it in 25.
 
Papali’i put together a handful of good games for us late too, bit of a farewell gift because the rest of their tenure was shite.
Yeah, playing in the middle he was pretty decent, his best performances while he was here with us were at lock in his last few games.

I think there were stories going around that he actually would have preferred to play in the middle but for most of the time that he was here we under utilised him and failed to get the best out of him.

Wherever he plays at Penrith you can bet they will get the best out of his game.
 

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