Todd's Blog - 2013

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Courtesy of the official Wests Tigers website:

Todd's Blog: 'I was close to forfeiting Rd 1'
Todd Payten

Wednesday 6 March 2013 10:16 AM
Todd's Blog: 'I was close to forfeiting Rd 1'

Wests Tigers is proud to bring back the popular ‘Todd’s Blog’ for season 2013.

Written by Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten, the weekly blog gives supporters a personal insight into the U20s team and their preparations. Today he talks about how close he was to forfeiting the round one clash against Newcastle.

Todd’s Blog was introduced in 2012 in Payten’s first year of coaching, a season that saw him deliver the Club’s inaugural NYC Premiership.

We hope you again enjoy the weekly ‘Todd’s Blog’ column.

Todd's Blog
It’s footy time again and I must say it can’t come quick enough.

The last week has been upsetting to say the least with the tragic loss of Mosese Fotuaika, one of last year’s NYC heroes and a terrific kid with such a bright future.

It really rocked us. So much so I contemplated forfeiting this game but after more thought, I thought we would all benefit by throwing ourselves into this game and being able to get things back to something near normal.

We did speak as a group on Monday and we are aware that everyone grieves in different ways. I suggested we should all put our hands up to play but if anyone needed more time, I wouldn't hesitate them to let them sit footy out until they felt right mentally to be able to prepare for a game.

Everyone was determined to play and we made a pact to honour Mosese by preparing the best we can. I must say Tuesday’s session was the sharpest we’ve had in a few weeks. We are fortunate that we play Monday night to give us more time to get ready with what has happened and the impending funeral on Thursday.

With all that has happened, it has taken the focus off Newcastle more so than any other game. I am more concerned about us and what we put together before, and on game day.

I watched Newcastle play a trial match against Cronulla in torrential rain, so it was hard to get a gauge where their strengths and weaknesses are.

Their forwards looked hard working and both their hooker and captain Adam Clydesdale and half Eddie Proudler did some clever things.

Footy at this time of year needs to be simple. Generally whoever controls the ball the best and can control where they give the opposition the ball usually comes out on top. Most sides don't have the match fitness and resilience to hold teams out if they can do that.
 
Courtesy of the official Wests Tigers website:

Todd's Blog: 'I was proud of the character shown'
Todd Payten

Wednesday 13 March 2013 3:56 PM
Todd's Blog: 'I was proud of the character shown'

Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten was proud of the character shown by players in Newcastle on Monday night following a dramatic week for the club.

In his weekly 'Todd's Blog', Payten described the win as 'unconvincing' but was proud of the effort put in by his young men following the funeral service of Mosese Fotuaiaka.

Todd's Blog
'We are very happy to start the year with a win over Newcastle. We certainly did it the hard way with only completing half of our sets. We made too many unforced errors and gave away possession each time we started to mount any pressure.

We started well with Leva Li scoring in our first set with a nice in and away on the opposing centre. From there both sides made many mistakes and we gifted them filed position too often. Some last ditch scrambling defence from our boys and some certain try saving efforts from Kurtis Rowe held them to one try before the break.

From there both sides made many mistakes and we gifted them filed position too often. Some last ditch scrambling defence from our boys and some certain try saving efforts from Kurtis Rowe held them to one try before the break.

The second half was pretty much the same as the first as both sides were tardy with their handling. At one stage we had completed 3 from 9 sets and they weren’t much better. A very classy individual effort by Luke Brooks when he threw two dummies to slice through the line, stand up and out sprint the fullback to the corner. It would see us hit the front 10-6\. They managed to hit the front and have the running of play.

Our guys looked out on their feet from a mountain load of defending. They kicked long with Delouise Hoeter reading the play and breaking through two defenders on their kick chase.

He managed to draw and pass the fullback to Kurtis flying on his inside. The next set we worked our yardage set perfectly and on the back of a quick play the ball Manaia Cherrington broke the line and again drew the fullback to Matt Mulcahy to score under the sticks. That's where the score finished but we did endure some more tense moments with some poor decisions made by us. More drops and a lack of discipline invited them back into the contest but they too coughed up possession at critical moments to let us off the hook.

I was certainly disappointed with our completion rate and our lack of discipline and the fact that we all wanted to show how tough we can be, which nearly gifted them the game. We have to be able to learn to play the scoreboard.

Having said all that, I stressed to the guys that I was happy with the fight that we showed. I thought our strength of character really showed all week long. We had a very unique week with preparation something I have never encountered before.

I thought their professionalism and their resilience shone through as both men and footballers. We honoured our mate, Mosese Fotuakia, the best way possible. I was extremely proud.

Prop Nathan Brown took out the coaches award. He took the team forward and come up with some big plays defensively. When he and Kyle Lovett returned to the field in the 2nd half, we gained momentum back. Both their efforts in attack and defence were tremendous.

Kurtis Rowe had a big game as mentioned earlier. Luke Brooks showed glimpses of brilliance and debutant Jake Dooner gave us some spark off the bench constantly finding his front and forcing three errors defensively with some good shots tackling at the ball.'
 
Interesting comment on Jack Dooner given the wraps on the guy in an earlier thread. Sounds as if he may be one to watch.
 
Qld has the Queenslander call when they are doing it tough and need to lift an extra cog

Maybe all 3 sides could use the "Mosese" call when they are doing it tough and need to find that extra something
 
Good idea in theory Happy, but I doubt it would serve much purpose TBH. Maybe for the NYC team but not for first grade IMO….first grade had the chance against the Knights to honour Mosese's memory with a whole-hearted courageous effort (like the one that the NYC team produced) and they played like a bunch of soulless skirts. Doesn't seem to be much spirit or ticker in our top team, no matter what the circumstances in the last year or two.
 
It feels to me that Mick Potter is just keeping the FG coach seat warm for when Todd Payten is ready to step up.
 
@Fade To Black said:
Good idea in theory Happy, but I doubt it would serve much purpose TBH. Maybe for the NYC team but not for first grade IMO….first grade had the chance against the Knights to honour Mosese's memory with a whole-hearted courageous effort (like the one that the NYC team produced) and they played like a bunch of soulless skirts. Doesn't seem to be much spirit or ticker in our top team, no matter what the circumstances in the last year or two.
Click to expand...

_Posted using RoarFEED 2013_
 
Todd's Blog: Pleased with the effort despite result

Thursday 21 March 2013 4:47 PM
Todd's Blog: Pleased with the effort despite result

Welcome to this week's Todd's Blog, written by premiership winning NYC Coach Todd Payten.

In his weekly 'Todd's Blog', Payten talks about the character shown in last week's loss to Penrith at Campbelltown Sports Stadium.

Todd's Blog
We didn't get the result we were after on Sunday. We were beaten by a handy Penrith outfit. I was reasonably pleased with the way we played. I thought we didn't have to change much to get the result.

Both sides completed at 80% and the match was a far better spectacle than the week before. We went into half time 8-4 down and I was a little concerned with the speed of the ruck. At times they were playing the ball to fast and we were constantly on the back foot. We needed to address that

The Penrith team didn't throw anything different to what we trained for and in the end it was a couple of pieces of individual brilliance by their fullback Kieran moss that got them over the line. They scored back to back tries where he played parts in both with 20 minutes to play and we didn't recover.

We had some good performers. At the moment we have our experienced guys working really hard for the full 80 minutes and on the most part our inexperienced players are struggling to adapt to the pace of the Holden cup along with the physical requirements that go with it. Some are also struggling with the senior 80 minute game. We spoke after the game that footy is a collective effort. The good sides have all players contribute and don't rely and wait for their better players to come up with big plays.

I feel at the moment when things get tough some of our guys are cutting corners. It shows in their movement off the ball. That is a mental thing because all of them have put the hard work in over the pre season. They just need to push themselves harder when they get tired. It isn’t schoolboy football any more.

Our best performer was Captain Kyle Lovett. His work rate and movement was excellent. He is leading the way for us on the park and at training. Brenden Santi also worked hard through out the game. He pushes really hard when he gets tired and our boys can learn a lot from the work ethic of both of these guys.

I am also pleased with two first year players who in all honesty I didn't think they’d figure in our side at the start of the season but have earned their way into the side through strong efforts in the pre-season at training and good trial performances.

They are Jake Dooner and Delouise Hoeter. Jake is a Camden kid who plays as a front rower or tight forward. His movement defensively and efforts to find his front with the ball are excellent and he will push himself once he is tired. A good 12 months from him in the gym will do him huge benefits because at the moment he is playing above his weight.

Delouise has come through our Keebra Park system. He is an outside back who’s versatility was always going to keep him close to our squad. In the last two weeks he has played wing and centre and in the trials he was playing at fullback. He has also spent time in the halves at Keebra Park.

His speed and strength are good but his enthusiasm and willingness to learn have been the most impressive things. His performances in the last 2 weeks have pushed players in his positions and with bigger reputations out of the side.'.
 
Courtesy of the official Wests Tigers website:

Todd's Blog: 'Our best win of the season'
Todd Payten
Wests Tigers

Wednesday 27 March 2013 2:28 PM
Todd's Blog: 'Our best win of the season'

NYC Coach Todd Payten has described the Wests Tigers' victory over Parramatta at Leichhardt Oval as his side's best this season.

In his weekly column, Payten talks about the win and the players who really stepped up.

TODD'S BLOG
We turned in our best best performance of the year at Leichhardt Oval last Fruiday night. I thought we controlled the ruck and worked really hard defensively throughout the match. Our edge defenders were more aggressive with the decisions they made.

I was very pleased considering Parramatta were a much bigger side than us and had been rolling through the middle in the last two rounds. It has been their biggest strength. I also thought we played controlled football and built pressure with completions, goal line drop outs and we also had 2 successful 40/20 kicks

Our aggressive effort defensively and the fact we played smart with the football turned their biggest strength into their biggest weakness. Their big forwards became tired earlier than usual and when we were able to repel several sets on our own goal line our confidence grew and theirs waned. We ended up running away with a convincing 40-6 victory.

We had a lot of contributors. Kurtis Rowe took out the players' player award. He scored 2 tries with excellent speed, positioning and anticipation. He also set up 2 with the same attributes and excellent passes to support players. One quickly under pressure from a winger jamming in on him and the other one an around the corner pass on a cover defender whilst falling to the ground at top speed.

Our club has terrific depth at fullback in Tim Moltzen, James Tedesco and Kurtis Rowe.

Forward Brenden Santi took out the coaches award. His effort, movement and talk was excellent. He is certainly leading from the front with our boys. He is never too far from the ball whether it be defensively or when we attack.

Winger David Naufoluma shown some more of his damaging ways from last year and got us on the front foot when he carried the ball.

Manaia Rudolph and Manaia Cherrington played well. Rudolph was a late call up after Matt Mulcahy’s scratching. His ball playing and direction as a half was pleasing but his defence was most pleasing as he had plenty of traffic run at him and made 22 out of 24 tackles.

He was also making good decision on the edge and moving forward to make tackles.

Cherrington was the same. He is always creative out dummy half but he stood up defensively against a big pack. That must be both of their benchmarks for the rest of the season.

I also must mention interchange forwards in Jake Dooner and Andy Fiagatusa. I have spoken about Jake before and he continued his form.
Andy worked hard also and had some good charges forward and cleaned up a few things around the ruck defensively through pure effort.
 
Courtesy of the official Wests Tigers website:

Todd's Blog: What a difference a week makes
Todd Payten
Wests Tigers

Thursday 4 April 2013 2:26 PM
Todd's Blog: What a difference a week makes

Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten says his players experienced the highs and lows of rugby league within a week.

In his weekly column, Payten talks about the disappointing loss to Manly in round four following his side's best win of the season a week earlier.

TODD'S BLOG
What a difference a week makes in football. We were beaten by a side who basically wanted the contest more. We got a real reality check and a lesson on how to compete.

We did absorb a heap of pressure defensively in the first half when they had 6 more sets than us. That was due to a combination of both our errors and a lack of discipline. The penalty count was 6-1 to Manly at half time.

Admittedly we did get a few harsh calls but that is football. We weren’t resilient enough to handle the adversity early and we went into half time 12-4 down. We struggled to deal with the defensive work load of the first half in very steamy conditions and as a result, we played brain dead football when we had the ball in the 2nd half and too many guys took the easy option around 20mins to go.

Our support play was almost non-existent therefore we had no variety through the ruck. Our timing and decoys on what plays we did put on were ordinary. With about 20mins to go they went back to back tries that really broke us and stole any hope of us winning the game.

In saying that the boys did try hard we just played dumb when we had opportunities and it only takes one or two of us taking shortcuts defensively in tough periods for things to come un done.

Forward Brenden Santi again was again a power for us in the middle of the park. His control defensively was excellent. Winger Delouise Hoeter continued his form also through his constant effort and enthusiasm in all his involvements.

Prop Nathan Brown had a strong game. He carried for 139m, 50m further than any other forward. I was also pleased with Dallas Graham who was on debut. He too is has come through the Keebra Park system. He provided us with energy and some punch coming off the bench.
 
Payten demands mental strength
Todd Payten

Friday 12 April 2013 9:04 AM
Payten demands mental strength

This was another game that we lost which was in the balance up to the 60th minute when we crumbled under a bit of adversity when we had the running of play until then.

It has become really concerning for me as it has happened in three of the matches we have lost to Penrith, Manly and Melbourne.

In fairness we weren’t quite as dominant in the Manly game but were still in it.

It was similar timing and similar instances where we just folded after little things like a dropped ball in our end, a penalty on play 4 or a dud call by the referee.

We lack the maturity and the mental toughness to handle those things at the moment. I stressed my disappointment afterwards in the sheds.

It is something that we are going to have to deal with better if we are going to make a dent on the competition.

I have no doubt that we have the capabilities as a team. I think we have more football in us than last year’s team but we lack at the moment the mental strength to push on when things get tough.

We have a lot of first year players and they are struggling a little with the step up in intensity and the duration of that intensity in both games and at training. It is certainly something we have to overcome as a group.

In saying all that I was really pleased with the way they turned up to play.

After not handling the travel mentally last weekend against Manly and the fact that we knew we should beat them our main focus leading into the game was our preparation.

There were more obstacles leading into this weekend’s game than last weekend’s.

The boys were really focused and come out aggressive and were physically dominant for the first 60 minutes of the game.

Defensively we forced Melbourne into a lot of mistakes. We were also winning the field position battle and winning it easily.

To Melbourne’s credit they were able to hold us from scoring more points than we did.

We went in at half time 8-6 up after scoring 2 tries to one.

The game was in the balance until the 55th minute until a big momentum shift occurred when Kurtis Rowe dropped a bomb uncontested.

The boys dropped their heads and Melbourne scored that set. For the next 8 to 10 minutes we were poor.

We had let that one small error and try get to us. We were still only down by 4 points.

It wasn’t until Melbourne scored again with 12 minutes left in the game that we sparked again and finished strong but it was that 10 minute period which had cost us the game.

It is nothing more than concentration and the ability mentally to put things behind you and focus on what has to be done next.

To keep pushing yourself when you’re tired or when things go against you and not to listen to the little voice inside your head. It’s easier said than done and we have to be better at it.

Brendan Santi took out the players player award after an 80 minute effort where he put in a typical effort that we have seen from him over the past two seasons.

He has been leading by example all year. Dallas Graham won the coaches award. It was his first starting opportunity and his aggression defensively was very good. He also took the ball forward strongly all day.

I was also pleased with the effort of all our forwards. It showed in the polling of votes for both awards.
Nathan brown, Daniel Rakvin, Jake Dooner and Andy Fiagatusa were the only vote getters. No backs just the way I like it!

We play St George this weekend who are flying high after 2 consecutive victories.

It is a crucial game for both us and first grade as we don’t want to have to rely on a run of wins to get us into the semi finals.

They have a very smart hooker in Craig Garvey, a big front rower in Kem Seru who has given us some grief in the past and a classy centre in Charly Runciman.
 
Todd's Blog: Good to get back-to-back wins
Wests Tigers

Thursday 16 May 2013 6:00 PM
Todd's Blog: Good to get back-to-back wins

Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten talks about his team's hard fought victory over Cronulla last Friday night in his weekly club blog.

TODD'S BLOG
It was good to record our first back to back wins for the season after beating Cronulla last weekend.

Nine rounds in and we are sitting sixth on the NYC competition ladder. I think it gives a fair indication of where we are at for the moment. We have so much upside in us in terms of improvement.

We lost two games against Manly and Brisbane that we should have won given the positions we were in. We also won a game against the Bulldogs a fortnight ago in which we were fortunate to get home. On top of that we have to deal with a high amount of injuries with seven of our first choice players unavailable for the last couple and next few weeks.

However, it is important that we continue to build on the little momentum we have created. The injuries have given opportunities to some of our inexperienced players and a couple of graduates from the all conquering Balmain SG Ball team. Those boys bring great enthusiasm and energy to our sessions and games.

We did start poorly against the Sharks and after a stern message at half time, the boys came out and put together a reasonable half. We came out and tried to finesse our way through the match. The sharks had come off 50 point thrashings and were placed down the ladder but they turned up with the right intent and at the 20 minute mark they had completed 10 from 10 sets and scored three tries.

We went in at half time with a 2 point advantaged but at no stage did we deserve to be leading. We scored two tries from kicks and an individual effort by Mitch Moses where he chipped regathered and then ran around the fullback to score. They had been running harder than us and tackling with good aggression and we were off the pace.

We lacked effort in all areas and it was plain to see. We had no energy around the ball carrier. No one pushing up in support. We weren’t using our ruck plays or playing to the game plan. Defensively we lacked enough urgency on our retreat which doesn’t allow us any line speed or shoulder contact and they were rolling us down the field.

After halftime we came out with better intent and energy. We were able to play that way for all but 5 minutes after a halt in play when Jake Dooner had to be taken from the field.

Our best was Mitch Moses who won both awards for us. Mitch’s talk and direction as a half is first class. His anticipation, kicking game and speed sets him apart from others.

Other strong contributors were Andy Fiagatusa, Dallas Graham, Kyle Lovett and David Nofoaluma. Andy continued his good form with another game based on pure effort. He is also introducing a pass to his game which helps the side immensely. Dallas Graham set the tone for us in the 2nd half with some power running and aggressive defence. ‘Sarge’ Lovett gave us one of typical performances doing all the little things to perfection.

Nofoaluma ran for 240m in his first game back from a 4 week lay off from injury. I’m delighted for him that he will now make his NRL debut against Souths tomorrow night.
 
Todd's Blog: Time to bounce back
Wests Tigers

Thursday 23 May 2013 3:46 PM
Todd's Blog: Time to bounce back

Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten talks about the loss to South Sydney last week and some of the young guns coming through his team.

TODD'S BLOG
A two point loss to South Sydney last Friday night has halted our momentum and proved to be a costly game in terms of some serious injuries attained by three players.

I wouldn’t say we were out played but we were certainly out completed. They completed a match winning 35 from 38 to our lack lustre 20 from 35\. I thought also defensively we were weak for periods especially through the middle third with not near enough intent or aggression.

Too often Souths were able to find their front and play off the back of quick play the balls. That really concerns me as coach. To try and find positives we fought back and should’ve pinched the game while having only one healthy replacement for the whole of the second half.

We did show some resolve and wrestle back some momentum after being down 26-6 with 26 mins left on the clock. We had all the momentum with 7 to go on the clock and getting within two points but came up with two errors and a couple of poor decisions while tired. To go down 26-24

Best for us was Shane Lalogafau. It was the best game I have seen him play for us over the last two seasons. He was a real handful on the edge in attack and worked real hard defensively while having to play longer minutes due to our injury issues.

Andrew Kazzi and Fosio Tatola also had strong games. Both came off the bench and gave us some great energy. ‘Kazz’ joined us after Christmas and has been terrific at training. He plays well above his weight.

Fosio has joined us from the successful Balmain S.G Ball side. He was one of their best all season and took out man-of-the-match in their grand final.

He has a good motor and leg speed for a front rower and put in a good performance for his debut in the NYC. Both boys work hard off the ball for guys around them.

We go into Friday night’s match against the Cowboys at Leichhardt Oval with 10 boys missing through injury, Luke Brooks is in the NSW Cup while David Nofoaluma is in first grade.

I thought ‘Nofa’ looked at home with the big boys in his NRL debut last week and it gave me a buzz to see it. Being an inexperienced kid, I’m interested to see how he handles all the back slapping after his debut and if he can refocus, he has a real opportunity to hold onto that wing spot for a long time.
 
Todd's Blog: Bye came at the right time
Todd Payten
Wests Tigers

Thursday 6 June 2013 2:30 PM
Todd's Blog: Bye came at the right time

Last weekend's bye came at a great time for us with many of the players having little niggles.

It was what we needed after securing a hard fought win against the Cowboys at a wet Leichhardt Oval the week before. The win kept us in touch with the top 4 but it was a performance far from our best. We toiled away and worked hard but after getting to a comfortable lead, we got in cruise control for a 15minute period midway through the second half which allowed them back into the game and again we had to find another gear and repel their advances for the last ten minutes.

To the boys credit, we were able to defend our errors and hold on to a 12 point margin at the end of the game. I was extremely happy with my forwards. They worked hard together as a pack doing all the little extra efforts around the ruck for each other and defensively we had our lowest number of missed tackles so far this year in 20\. One thing that we still have to get better at is our completions. We were 28 from 39.

There will always be errors in conditions like that but its where you make them and how you respond to them that gets you the result and I thought we responded well for most part of the game. Our last tackle options can also improve. Twice we got tackled without putting an attacking kick on the end of our set. Last tackle is the most important part of the set. Ordinary sets can turn into great sets and vice versa.

Delouise Hoeter played well again, this time at fullback. He made a couple of brilliant cover tackles at the back and was always a handful with the ball in hand. Brendan Santi was a powerhouse in the middle of the park running for 217m from 23 carries. Andy Fiagatusa also performed well. He has really stepped up in the absence of Nathan Brown and Jake Dooner.

We had a chance to get together as a team after the Cowboys match on the Saturday afternoon. I believe it is important that we get a chance to socialise together away from football. It is a matter of being smart about when to do that sort of thing. With the bye, there was no better opportunity to do something like that.
 
Todd's Blog: Time to stand up
Todd Payten
Wests Tigers

Friday 14 June 2013 11:40 AM
Todd's Blog: Time to stand up

Wests Tigers NYC Coach Todd Payten has challenged his players to stand up after their heavy loss to Penrith last weekend.

Here is Todd's weekly blog.

Todd's Blog
We were thumped on the weekend. Beaten comprehensively in all areas of the match. As coach the disappointing thing was the ease in which we turned it up. Yes, Penrith did have a lot of things go their way but that will happen in football. We lacked effort and intent defensively.

Across the board we had a staggering 64 missed tackles. Only having one player not miss a tackle and several missing multiple and a couple nearly hitting double figures. Not good enough and not except able by ours or my standards.

This week's team will look vastly different and some players that missed the axing have been warned that another performance like Saturday's effort and they also won’t be reading their name in the Big League program.

We started poorly giving up two tries. One was by a player who we had done our homework on but still we come up short in effort and intent and he tore straight through us. At 12-0 down, we had Delouise Hoeter sent for ten for a professional foul. In that period we let in two more tries not defending shortsides well at all with a man down. That's where we should number up and leave a man down on the long side and work your butt off from the inside. Again it was lack of effort.

We went in at the break 22-0 down. We showed better effort for the first 20 minutes of the second half but again when they managed to go full length of the field after a missed shoulder charge on Andrew Kazz, we packed it in and from there some efforts were embarrassing.

Out of the whole team these guys can hold their head high. Andy Fiagatusa was by far our standout. He toiled away relentlessly. Ran with aggression and defended with his shoulders. He really stood up as our senior forward seeing we were without Brendan Santi and Kyle Lovett who were starring for state Cup.

Ritchie Ene on debut started slowly but finished strongly. Had some good carries and whacked some boys with solid defence. Nathan Milone looked our only threat out wide and returned strongly from a broken wrist. Luke Brooks was also another who tried hard and looked threatening when taking on the line. He managed to score both of our tries.

Fosio Tatola worked hard. He played 60 minutes straight at lock. His effort and movement around the ball was great. He and Andy were the only guys working hard for other ball runners in support and running options on plays. Rhys Armstrong also did some good things but had a few too many missed tackles but also came up with some good ones.

The latter two boys have come up from S.G. Ball and when we have a fully fit compliment they will put pressure and probably upset more of our senior guys for positions in our 17\. There were a few more players which weren’t as poor as the rest but not good enough to get a mention.

This week we are off to Brisbane in a big match for us as we are just clinging on to our position in the eight. Brisbane is a good side and they rolled us at Campbelltown and currently sit in fourth position. They have a big and skilful pack.

Caleb Timu and Ajuma Adams were a real handful on the edge for us last match along with their clever dummy half Jayden Berrel who runs off the back off his big forward pack. Cameron Cullen also damaged us last match scoring a try slicing through our left edge.

I’m looking for a response from our guys. A definite improvement in intent and attitude to defence and a willingness to work hard for their team mate. Not taking the soft and selfish option no matter the scoreline or situation of the match.
 
Todd's Blog: Strong composed win by my boys
Wests Tigers

Thursday 20 June 2013 11:55 AM
Todd's Blog: Strong composed win by my boys

Wests Tigers Holden Cup Coach Todd Payten talks about the strong win over Brisbane on Monday night in his weekly blog.

Todd's Blog
We returned to the winners circle after a good performance from our boys. Across the park we were a lot better and shared the workload equally. Everyone was willing to work for one another which is a non negotiable in all good teams and something that was missing against Penrith.

Brisbane got out to a 10-0 lead early with a huge weight of possession and field position. We remained composed and stayed in the game by completing our sets and by the half hour mark the possession evened up.
We led the penalty count 3-1 and were able to take the lead going into half time 22-10.

We came out with the same intensity and got to a comfortable lead of 32-10 about the midway point of the 2nd half. For the next 15 minutes we took our foot off their throat and got away from our structure and the things that got us to the handy lead. They were able to go in and then a try really against the run of play steered the ship and we played the last 5 minutes with the right attitude and intensity.

I was relieved to get the win and frustrated in the lapse of concentration in the 2nd half. The top teams go on with it and realistically at the moment we aren’t a top team. I have no doubt we have the ability to be but we aren’t there yet.

As mentioned before everyone contributed but our standouts were Luke Brooks, Manaia Rudolph, Andrew Kazzi, Fosio Tatola, Delouise Hoeter, Brendan Santi and Kyle Lovett.

Brooksy scored a hat-trick. He steered the side around well and made their big men look silly by straightening up to play Brendan Santi into a hole and also taking them on and beating 4 of them through the middle of the ruck.

anaia had his best game at centre. Defended aggressively and was threat when the ball went his side of the field.

Andrew Kazzi and Fosio Tatola came off the bench and had an immediate impact with energy and enthusiasm. They swung the momentum back our way when we were 10 nil down.

Delouise Hoeter was strong at the back and played an unfamiliar position as edge back rower for 20 mins. He was out on his feet but pushed when things were tough and made some crucial tackles. It highlights how good of a footballer he is being able to play two completely different roles

Brendan Santi and Kyle Lovett were their usual selves returning after a stint in NSW Cup. They are mature men and footballers and leaders of our side. They do a mountain of work and all of it quality. Their work on the ground defensively is where I really noticed the difference.
 
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