To be honest i think we have over-performed for the squad we have. I am happy that we have won a couple of games and more so the team is putting in. They are still make silly mistakes and giving away penalties but you get that when you have players that generally wouldn't be playing first grade. Once we get a few TPA's onboard i think we will attract a few quality players. We aren't going to make the 8 but we need to enjoy every win we have and keep cheering on our boys because from what i can see is they are giving all they've got.
Unpopular view, but I reckon we are going Ok
- Thread starter Goose
- Start date
I personally think we are going WORSE then it looks.
Of the 5 teams we have played, only 1 made the top 8 last season (sharks).
We have had one of the easier draws so far and have only had 2 wins, against teams with drastic new personnel, early in the season, before either has gelled (warriors, manly).
If we were to play either side (manly or warriors) this week, we would be beaten.
Realisticly, our 17 is probably weaker now than last year, Richards for rankin and taupau for alioali.
If our team is worse and we ran 15th last year it is hard to see how we can improve when most squads have improved their rosters.
I shudder to think what we would be like without tedesco. Forget brooks and Moses, tedesco is un replacable and must be a priority long term.
I really do hope I'm wrong, and we do improve dramatically, but I just don't see it.
This week against the knights will show what type of season we are in for. A must win for any team that will make the 8.
Of the 5 teams we have played, only 1 made the top 8 last season (sharks).
We have had one of the easier draws so far and have only had 2 wins, against teams with drastic new personnel, early in the season, before either has gelled (warriors, manly).
If we were to play either side (manly or warriors) this week, we would be beaten.
Realisticly, our 17 is probably weaker now than last year, Richards for rankin and taupau for alioali.
If our team is worse and we ran 15th last year it is hard to see how we can improve when most squads have improved their rosters.
I shudder to think what we would be like without tedesco. Forget brooks and Moses, tedesco is un replacable and must be a priority long term.
I really do hope I'm wrong, and we do improve dramatically, but I just don't see it.
This week against the knights will show what type of season we are in for. A must win for any team that will make the 8.
jirskyr
Well-known member
I think lots of people thought we'd get murdered this year.
Then we play 2 good opening games and people get their hopes up. Then we go back to 3 average games and people say "I knew it, stupid Tigers getting my hopes up".
That's where we are right now, on the downward side of an emotional parabola.
Then we play 2 good opening games and people get their hopes up. Then we go back to 3 average games and people say "I knew it, stupid Tigers getting my hopes up".
That's where we are right now, on the downward side of an emotional parabola.
sideline_eye
New member
Any and all of our problems in attack and defence are due to ill discipline. Constantly handing the ball back to the opposition allows the other side to attack at will, tiring our defence. It also means that we need to try low percentage plays in attack because we have so little ball that we can't build any pressure.
Fix the ill discipline, stop blaming the refs and complete our sets and most of our problems are resolved. The quality of our players, whilst not too bad, will be attended to over the next couple of years.
Fix the ill discipline, stop blaming the refs and complete our sets and most of our problems are resolved. The quality of our players, whilst not too bad, will be attended to over the next couple of years.
Love_the_WestsTigers
Well-known member
The other thing we are going ok with so far is the points differential
I will settle for the -6 at this stage
I will settle for the -6 at this stage
Tiger_Watto
New member
@happy tiger said:
Geez Happy, you sound like menopause has kicked in lately… I've heard loose clothing and cold showers helps?
Goose, I reckon that assessment is a little too nice, but don't disagree. I feel our squad biggest area for improvement is concentration. This will contributed to improved discipline and keeping it simple or two to three sets to build.
Add at least 1 more prop into our rotation, and ensure everyone is talking to keep there heads in the game, and we could be in a far better position.
@Tiger Watto said:
Unfortunately Watto,from watching the last 3 games…I don't think some of them have anything in their heads to keep in the game....
They can't keep making the same mistakes,gifting ground and points....and not learning from it...not at this level of NRL...
Tiger_Watto
New member
@TrueTiger said:
Thats a good point also… The poor Forwards cant be as smart as the good looking Halves, and then you have the Fullbacks standing out the back doing nothing but looking around the sky sometimes to fill in time. Oh Look, a Magpie :roll
@TrueTiger said:
Come on TT - this is your regular "down" post - I notice they happen from time to time. They are a basically young team and are going to make mistakes - make no mistake they will learn and it won't be overnight. We had two diamond games and three rocks games so far - it wasn't as if most of us were not expecting it. We could have had a couple of more wins with a little good fortune. Too many people want to pull out the negatives. It is still a long term problem - not enough money for the short term fix.
We would have killed to have played five straight games like this season, had we had them for the first 20 games last season. We are improving but time is a great coach. (Steve just said that is spin - just saving him having to post it).
Chin up chief - let's all keep our eye on the ball, stay positive and support our beloved tigers.
Love_the_WestsTigers
Well-known member
@TrueTiger said:
I think Fatigue has a big part to play in this all
They struggle to get back in the defensive line, out of desperation do even dumber things and concede penalties.
I blame it fairly on JT for asking the boys to play on when they clearly are past their reserve of 10%
Poor rotation IMO
Now to throw a different spin on it;
In motor sports if you don't pit and change those worn tires your lap times continue to suffer due to lack of grip.
Come into the pits, lose 45seconds and go out and make ground in the remaining laps
\
\
Short term loss long term gain
@Russell said:
Russ,I was at the game at Campbelltown on the weekend and ran into some people from Wagga that I haven't seen for awhile ( about 10 yrs) at that Wests Leagues,the guys played AFL in the Riverina and had never been to a live NRL game,we went over to the game and the first thing they said was what a great vocal crowd was there,they enjoyed the game and atmosphere…I was enjoying their company with a few beers and one of the guys said to me,geez your team makes some silly mistakes for a top NRL side...I agreed but made the excuse of saying" they are still young and learning"...at the end of the game the first thing my mate said was,for a young side playing against more seasoned players,they really should have won that game...but they made plenty of errors....
The point I'm making is when will they finally learn,particularly Brooks,he dead set looked like a real rookie on the weekend and he is touted as being our future playmaker...be fairdinkum Russ,he has had 50 games now and should be starting to stand out in games like Tedesco does,but he doesn't...I love the Tigers as much as any passionate supporter or member does....he is the one that disappoints me the most at the moment because I had wraps on him since his debut,he is in the NRL now not NYC,granted he must learn,but how long does it take when you have a huge abundance of talent but seem to do little with it,he and Moses really should have taken hold of that game since they have played so much together and JT has given them much more freedom,however as I said they still looked very much like rookies with that many games under their belt...
stevied
Well-known member
I actually I agree with you Goose that we are, in fact, going okay when you put all factors together. The bottom line is that we've been extremely competitive in our matches and could have won them all with more respect for possession, less silly penalties and greater consistency in defense. But this is a young team with few experienced, quality players to guide, settle and take the pressure off the novices, especially the halves. I would love to see the team on 8 points instead of 4 but it is what it is and the team is acquitting itself better than I expected at the start of the year. I just hope that the Tigers learn to eradicate these shortcomings and continue to improve because, all though not world beaters, the talent is there. It's up to Taylor to harness this talent and utilize it but I guess this where the question lies…..
The most senior players in our side with over 500 games experience gave away 5 of the 12 penalties between them as well as turning their back on the opposition who took a quick tap and raced 30m..Rookie mistakes pfffft…
As for the thread title in context they are playing a much better brand of football but continue with ill-discipline until that can be addressed ...it is an in game issue the results will continue to be inconsistent...we are travelling better than some of the sides touted as better than us...we haven't be flogged yet and have been in every game we have lost....have been saying for ages the key is to get our best performances and worst to narrow is the biggest challenge of Taylor and his staff..
We all love stats and this is a cracker Tedesco (7 tries) has scored more than the entire St George Illawarra team (6 tries) in the opening 5 rounds..a team that made the 8 last year..
As for the thread title in context they are playing a much better brand of football but continue with ill-discipline until that can be addressed ...it is an in game issue the results will continue to be inconsistent...we are travelling better than some of the sides touted as better than us...we haven't be flogged yet and have been in every game we have lost....have been saying for ages the key is to get our best performances and worst to narrow is the biggest challenge of Taylor and his staff..
We all love stats and this is a cracker Tedesco (7 tries) has scored more than the entire St George Illawarra team (6 tries) in the opening 5 rounds..a team that made the 8 last year..
happy_tiger
Well-known member
I can see this thread being revisited about 6.15pm Sunday
One way or the other
One way or the other
supercoach
Well-known member
I think the standard right across the NRL is now so much closer than it was a couple of years ago. So with that in mind blow outs are now a lot less common and most teams are in with a chance on game day if they are on their game and the other mob are just off their game. To say we are going okay can be applied to most teams with the exception of the Chooks, but if we ever want to get out of the cellar, the okay attitude has to be not acceptable. Every presso Taylor talks about "there were a lot of good things out there today", well as fan who is sick of this team being down on the bottom i would rather Taylor focus on the negatives, that being things like discipline, poor 5th tackle options, poor individual defensive efforts, kicking game,goal kicking etc.
We will continue to be okay for ever while people are happy with being okay, but I get the feeling these days players get the same money for being okay as they do for being great, so where is the incentive
We will continue to be okay for ever while people are happy with being okay, but I get the feeling these days players get the same money for being okay as they do for being great, so where is the incentive
foreveratiger
New member
@supercoach said:
The going " O.K " won't get you playing semi final footy.
Some are just content in going " O.K " making the semis 3 times in 15 years is where that mentality of going " O.K " comes into it i guess.
stevied
Well-known member
I said experienced, QUALITY players Geo. I guess Farah and relatively experienced Woods would qualify.
foreveratiger
New member
@TrueTiger said:
I get that….
We have been rebuilding for 3 to 4 years when Sirro , Sue , Brooks , Simona , Teddy , Nofoaluma , Ava all stepped in to the scene and when you add the guidance of experienced Representative players such as Farah , Woods , Halatau , Lawrence......you would think this side would have have gelled by now .
Is it the Coach mmhhhh i wonder, he still must be trying to teach those defensive structures that has Averaged 24 Points per game so far this year but hey lets keep hearing the same dribble from the Man " Plenty of Positives to take out of the game " , would it be defence related JT ? :laughing:
