Tommy Talau #225

[Demps]

Give him time.
He is still on L plates.

They've been saying this about Brooks for years, as well... he's a 10 season veteran.

This is Talau's third year in first grade.
He's been playing the game his whole life.

I don't think the excuse can fly.
You look at NZ's Walsh.. first season and looks at home already.

I'm happy to be the devils advocate.... Talau, needs some time in the UK.

2nd year in firsts yeah?

Debut in 2019...

Second full year id say, yeah..


Remember he’s been bumbled around wing to centre for a fair while now. Give him some sprint training a consistent winger outside him and a bit more time he’ll come good.

Easier said than done.

 

[TrueTiger]

Talau is very much like our team; young, inexperienced, moments of brilliance, huge potential and too many errors.

And to be fair ...these young blokes that are still learning,have errors in them particularly when under pressure,panic passes and misreads are all making Madge look bad,when he is trying to teach,develop and harden them up for the NRL level they need to get to...

 

[Muffstar]

Thought Tommy had a real dig on Saturday, even looked dangerous pushing through the line, well done young fella.

You'd hope he would have a decent game, the Cowboys had a Hooker playing centre so Talau should have dominated but I don't think he did.

 

[carltonleach]

Any update on the eye injury ?

 

[jrtiger]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

 

[Roar_Power]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

Yeah we forget about Kepaoa but I think he will end up being a really solid centre.

 

[Madge]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

 

[jrtiger]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

I've got a mate who had a bit to do with Tommy over the years and he reckons he's made for the 14 role. not sure what the club plans to do with him, but it's certainly not out of the question. in saying all of that though I think either Simpkin or Hastings will play 14 next year.

 

[jrtiger]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

Yeah we forget about Kepaoa but I think he will end up being a really solid centre.

I think he's certainly got the skillset. we locked him up on a massive deal too which reflects the faith the club has in him. a lot of people have written him off due to his time on the wing, when he's actually a centre. got a great pass, makes smart reads in defence and has enough speed to worry his opposite.

I'd have him starting in the centres next year with hopefully HSS on the other. but knowing Madge, it'll be Gildart and Talau and we'll leak 30+ points first game back.

 

[Demps]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

I've got a mate who had a bit to do with Tommy over the years and he reckons he's made for the 14 role. not sure what the club plans to do with him, but it's certainly not out of the question. in saying all of that though I think either Simpkin or Hastings will play 14 next year.

Good post.

Makes sense.

MCK style.

Too slow for the backs, too small for the pack.
Has some ball playing skills apparently from coming through as a half.

 

[Madge]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

I've got a mate who had a bit to do with Tommy over the years and he reckons he's made for the 14 role. not sure what the club plans to do with him, but it's certainly not out of the question. in saying all of that though I think either Simpkin or Hastings will play 14 next year.

haha I've played with Tommy at Moorebank Rams his junior club before he moved over to Westfields sports high school. Also, went to Holsworthy high for a bit with him. When he was younger, he was one of those players that dominated an age group because of his size, speed and skill. The NRL is a different ball game though. It has taken time for him to adapt but I'm hopeful - he really needs to put a lot of focus on the sport if he wants to take the next level and not just play it for fun and with mates. If he does, he will come good.

 

[Madge]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

I've got a mate who had a bit to do with Tommy over the years and he reckons he's made for the 14 role. not sure what the club plans to do with him, but it's certainly not out of the question. in saying all of that though I think either Simpkin or Hastings will play 14 next year.

Good post.

Makes sense.

MCK style.

Too slow for the backs, too small for the pack.
Has some ball playing skills apparently from coming through as a half.

He does mate - everyone coming through wanted to be a 6 because it was the fun position, fullback as well. Tommy enjoyed it. That was mostly because he was toying with kids at a younger age. The position requires a lot more strategical nous to it and in the NRL I don't think he'd cut it in the halves. A centre, backrow or roaming lock off the bench is how I see him moving forward. Not sure how the club view him at this point but it could be either one of these.

 

[Demps]

Talau is incredibly frustrating. shows glimpses but makes the easy look incredibly hard.

great front on contact but struggles at times to make the correct read. manages to draw the centre and winger but then throws a forward pass to his winger. it's a guessing game with him every single week. willing to give him another pre-season and I think he'll start in the centres Round 1 2022, but that all hinges on HSS and whether or not Kepaoa is 100% come Round 1. personally I wouldn't have him there, would much rather Kepaoa.

I really liked that role he played against Canberra to start the year. Came on and added a bit of spark. Although our we wouldn't be getting the most out of our bench if we had him and a hooker on the bench at the same time.

I've got a mate who had a bit to do with Tommy over the years and he reckons he's made for the 14 role. not sure what the club plans to do with him, but it's certainly not out of the question. in saying all of that though I think either Simpkin or Hastings will play 14 next year.

Good post.

Makes sense.

MCK style.

Too slow for the backs, too small for the pack.
Has some ball playing skills apparently from coming through as a half.

He does mate - everyone coming through wanted to be a 6 because it was the fun position, fullback as well. Tommy enjoyed it. That was mostly because he was toying with kids at a younger age. The position requires a lot more strategical nous to it and in the NRL I don't think he'd cut it in the halves. A centre, backrow or roaming lock off the bench is how I see him moving forward. Not sure how the club view him at this point but it could be either one of these.

I'm hearing you brah.

He can be the new MCK.

It's no secret, I don't rate Talau at all.
Everything you're saying makes so much sense.

 

[Mighty_Tiger]

I hate to be the negative guy...
I still don't think he's up to it.

Looks very immature out there and has all year with minimal signs of improvement...

Wouldn't hurt slimming down a little and working on becoming faster.

I like seeing the second generation sons coming through and making their own names but sadly, Talau is a work in progress and MAY not work out.

I can agree it was his best game for us but still, as an individual performance once the dust settles... still wasn't that amazing. 5/10

Grabbing at jerseys and letting players run past him.
Looks very slow.
I'm at a loss with this one, I think if we can recruit some one better, we should and let Talau go.

He's already pretty lean Demps - taking any more off him is going to result in muscle loss. I was thinking about this last night and was wondering whether he could be an option as a 13 down the track - he's mobile to play in the middle or on an edge - he has some ball skills through playing in the juniors as a 6 and he's only 21.

Someone made the point of good 13's having the ability to ball play through the middle and link up with the edges - Talau could fill this role in time - you would want to be throwing him in there from this offseason though. We're really using the likes of Mikaele and Joe O as battering rams with no ball playing abillity - both have the ability to offload, but they are not link players so opposition defences know what they're getting when those two hit the ball up.

Anyway, just one of those things to think about because I don't see Talau as a long term centre.

You can't train for speed or coach it. You can make a fast man faster, it's a lot more to do with genes than training.

If Talau grows into a smarter footballer then he should end up in backrow as he keeps filling out. But right now, he's fast enough for a centre. I feel Kepaoa and him are fighting for a centre spot next year.

I was thinking if he could slim down, he could get faster........

He had his best game last night some day,
He was up against a pairing of a hooker and a utility half, playing out of position. I still saw some poor defensive reads.

Yeah, he's young... still doesn't mean we should persist with mediocrity when better options are available, on market or otherwise.

Schuster is your classic ballplaying backrower, but look at his build - kid is only 20 and plays at 106kg or thereabouts - he's also got that baby fat on him still, but I think that's just his genetics. Talau is big enough to play backrow, he's close to 100kg, so the choice for me is do we shift him to the backrow or lock?

We need some ball playing ability on the edges - Lucy and Blore both have an offload in them and the ability to push through the line. Tuilagi runs good lines and defensively looks ok - Garner can run a good line and can put on a hit but also has a tendency to arm grab which is lazy.

As far as 13's go, we've got Mikaele who really is a prop, Seyfarth and Tuki. Now Tuki provides a lot of upside here with his ability to offload - another offseason under his belt will do him wonders as I'm sure he'll get stronger and fitter. Likewise Seyfarth. Maybe Talau could be that roving backrower/lock as Lucy doesn't have 80 minutes in him?

Just because you have a bloke, who is 100kg+ who cant quite cut it as a centre, doesnt mean they HAVE to play second row. For mine Talaus handling errors and defence would disqualify him for 2nd row and my god he would be the laziest, worst defending lock in the comp.

Im not a huge fan, I can see the physical attributes though and last night was clearly his best for us.

Look what he was up against...

Granville, 32 year old hooker.
Ben Hampton, 30 year old utility.

Imagine if he was up against Melb or Penrith.
It's nice he had a good game but let's call a spade, a spade.. he should've had an unreal game, he didnt and neither did Nofo.

That edge is a problem iMo.

Lets then be consistent and put it into perspective in that AD didn’t carve that pairing up, nor did anyone else.
Most of Talau’s runs where middle field as well as he just didn’t get the ball service most quality halves would have done against that combination.

 

[Tiger5150]

Whichever way you cut it Talau is the best centre at the club. Jet, BJ, Pauga, Chee Kam it’s not a list of representatives.

We need to recruit badly but when he keeps the errors out of his game he can play. Hits hard, can score from close range and is an aerial threat.
Didn’t play juniors at centre he’s not a finished product. Showing signs of improvement.

In the one game he played, I thought that Kepaoa looked particularly good there. He might surprise us if he recovers well from his injury.

 

[Russell]

I hate to be the negative guy...
I still don't think he's up to it.

Looks very immature out there and has all year with minimal signs of improvement...

Wouldn't hurt slimming down a little and working on becoming faster.

I like seeing the second generation sons coming through and making their own names but sadly, Talau is a work in progress and MAY not work out.

I can agree it was his best game for us but still, as an individual performance once the dust settles... still wasn't that amazing. 5/10

Grabbing at jerseys and letting players run past him.
Looks very slow.
I'm at a loss with this one, I think if we can recruit some one better, we should and let Talau go.

Understand what you are saying Demps - however think he will keep on improving.

Gildart and Talau would be a good centre pairing for 2022, with Hastings in there as well, I think we will be in a much better position.

 

[Russell]

'Hard stuff? I'm confident I've seen plenty of dirty carries by TT.

I agree. The problem is sometimes he just drops the ball cold.

I like him but he is like Mikaele. Those plays lose us games against decent opposition.

The problem Earl, is if you are going to adopt the scenario of producing youngers to fill most of the spots in your NRL team, even though you nurse them through the lower grades, when they get to NRL - you have to expect "Rocks and Diamonds."

Every one you move up is not going to be a Sam Walker, Shuster, Suaalii, Stefano etc. straight away like them, most take time and you have to ride the bumps with them, if you believe in them of course.

A lot of these young guys we already have will be much better next year after the NRL games they played this year, a full off season etc.

We will obviously have a couple that won't make it - but we need to make sure they are a fail before we let them go. Look what happened with Paseka and Tatola - I'm hoping that was just impatience rather than the ability to recognise talent.

Exciting times Earl - we are lucky to be able to witness the next few years, providing they stay with the coach and the pathways.

 

[earl]

Exciting times Earl - we are lucky to be able to witness the next few years, providing they stay with the coach and the pathways.

Did you listen to the interview Madge did on MMM. He mentioned building around certain players.

The thing is heaps won't make it but guys like Stef look like being long term quality first graders.

We just have to build the team via keep bringing through quality players.

Talau may still come good as well.

 

[Mighty_Tiger]

I hate to be the negative guy...
I still don't think he's up to it.

Looks very immature out there and has all year with minimal signs of improvement...

Wouldn't hurt slimming down a little and working on becoming faster.

I like seeing the second generation sons coming through and making their own names but sadly, Talau is a work in progress and MAY not work out.

I can agree it was his best game for us but still, as an individual performance once the dust settles... still wasn't that amazing. 5/10

Grabbing at jerseys and letting players run past him.
Looks very slow.
I'm at a loss with this one, I think if we can recruit some one better, we should and let Talau go.

Understand what you are saying Demps - however think he will keep on improving.

Gildart and Talau would be a good centre pairing for 2022, with Hastings in there as well, I think we will be in a much better position.

I think Hastings is an astute pickup for us
I do think that Gildart will struggle to make it in the NRL hope I’m very wrong.
Talau needs a confidence boost, hopefully we finish the season strong and he improves & keeps the momentum into next year. I haven’t written him off yet but geez he is close to being written off.

 

[TigerWest]

I thought he has shown in the last few games he is getting it, hopefully he keeps improving, but certainly worth persevering with at this time.