@jirskyr said in Clarkey's nrl column:

@hodgo said in Clarkey's nrl column:

Defensively, they have also significantly improved. Last year they ranked first for missed tackles with an average of 38 per game. This season they sit dead last for missed tackles on only 21 missed per game.

Silly selective analysis by the writer. Defensively we averaged 17.78 points conceded per game 2018 and 20.18 points per game in 2019.

Say what you will about the style of defence or missed tackles, we are 3 points worse per game under Madge so far. I cannot think of any better measure of defence than points conceded. Who cares how many missed tackles there are if you don’t concede points… the only neg I can think of is energy wasted in scrambling D which might affect your attack.

What is REALLY interesting is that 2018 was our best defensive season ever as Wests Tigers, shading 2011 (17.78 vs 17.92). Next best was 2009 with 20.13 points, so quite a jump. 2019 is therefore running a close 4th.

It’s not just energy wasted, it’s energy conserved for defence as well. Middle forwards not taking as many hit ups because they’re prioritising defence. That crippled our attack last season, we just weren’t applying enough pressure up the middle to create gaps on the edges or space around the ruck.

@TYGA said in Robert Jennings - How Long?:

I am not sure what is going on. He didn’t just finish with the bunnies he ran hard and made big metres. This year he just runs back slowly and submits in every tackle or gets forced backwards. I believe he has the talent there but needs to discover form in reserve grade.
I would give Kane Bradley and Tommy Talau a run and drop Mbye and Jennings.

Opportunities for tries and line breaks for wingers are very dependent upon the team around a player but tackle break % should remain pretty steady for players that make a lot of runs. He has gone from a tackle break % of 21.7 in 2018 with Souths down to 8.8 in 2019 with us…21.7 isn’t elite for a winger but it’s pretty good. 8.8 is dreadful and is reflective of his lack of effort or fitness or something…he’s not what he was last year and it’s not just the players around him.

@gallagher said in Round 17 Discussion *Spoilers:

@rustycage said in Round 17 Discussion *Spoilers:

This late tackle rule is garbage. Gavet gets binned for 10, Welch gets a warning.

Was Gavets on a half? I havnt seen it yet.

Nope it was on Chris Smith who is a lock. He’s not particularly large but bigger than most halves. I only saw replays in slow motion and it looked like he dropped the shoulder after the ball had been passed (but these things often look terrible in slow motion…)

@pawsandclaws1 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Nelson We had a discussion a long while back about a young centre who to me was a player WTs should have made a priority to sign. You disagreed. This player is big, tall, strong, very fast and with good ball skills and can play multiple positions in the backline. In your words, he ticks a lot of boxes and more. So where did he end up? Playing left centre for NSW in SOO. Funa was cut down from behind by a player of average pace in U20s after getting a head start. What are we to make of this and the fact Suli, Parker and Walker are ahead of him at Manly? Hmmm

The discussion was about who was a better fullback: Tedesco or Wighton? Go back and read it. Your horse might have been playing left centre for NSW but mine was playing fullback for NSW so I don’t see that now is a particularly good time for you to reignite that discussion…unless you still want to argue that Wighton is a better fullback than Tedesco?
Walker and Suli are good players, Brad Parker has been in good form and Funa has just recently come back from injury. He may or may not turn out to be a decent player but he has a skillset we need and would be cheap, which is what we can afford. As for him being run down by “a player of average pace in U20’s” - what am I supposed to make of that? You don’t even name who ran him down and you’re talking about something that was 2 years ago at least when he would’ve been 19…

@kiwitiger said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@TYGA said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

Tevita Funa Blacktown winger is a beast and off contract. Looks like a first grader.

A reserve grader. Time to look higher than reserve graders.

If all we can afford are reserve graders there’s not much point window shopping for top shelf talent. Guys like Funa and Hiroti are young, fast and kick goals. They tick a lot of boxes and when you’ve got yourself into a salary cap mess they’re the sort of players you need to be keeping an eye out for.
Bevan French on the other hand I have no interest in…

@MAGPIES1963 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

G’day @Nelson: I feel you telling pawsandclaws1 “using hindsight to be judgemental of them is pretty cheap” is pretty cheap of you IMHO.
Hindsight IS a wonderful tool we have to use to help make things right, as we can look back on my/yours/Our mistakes and hopefully not make the same boo-boo again. And IMHO a classic case of hindsight is Donald Trump. Will the Yanks vote him into the Oval Office again? IMHO, I doubt it.
Plus I feel pawsandclaws1 was rightly venting some frustration at a pathetic situation, cheers mate

He’s not using hindsight as a tool to help make things right into the future, he’s using it to be judgmental of the decisions made by others in the past. That’s why it is cheap. He is using information that was not known at the time and could not have been known to stick the boot in.
Not sure how what I said is cheap but you can think that if you want…

@GNR4LIFE said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@The_Patriot said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@GNR4LIFE said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@851 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@GNR4LIFE said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@851 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

Bennett has just confirmed George Burgess will not be at souths next year, after his suspension his price might be some what reduced

Absolute bonehead with feet for hands.

Still better than what we trot out each week, he is in our starting team, bonehead and all

I will take both Twal and Mikaele over him. Maybe even Aloiai as well.

Ill take Twal, Mikaele, Aloiaia and Burgess as the four rotating props thanks.

Can’t wait to see the throng of clubs racing to sign him. Should be any minute now.

He’s going to attract prime Luke O’Donnell levels of scrutiny from the refs and the judiciary as well…if you were going to sign him you’d want him to agree to forfeit a % of his salary for each game he sits out suspended.

@boonboon said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

I hope we sign Mawene Hiroti from the bunnies

He is a winger/ centre, 80% plus goalkicker, Madge signed him at Souths and is only 21

Is fast, reasonably big and souths have a full backine

That would be a really good signing - off contract and with plenty of upside.

@pawsandclaws1 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Nelson Whoever “they” are got it wrong, but they are paid to get it right This is a constant story with WTs, losing many of the keepers and buying solid players who lack pace and spark. Douehi held is own in a very good Stouhs team until suffering a serious knee injury, which takes around 12 months to recover from. I’d have him back in a flash in our centres. And it is nice that you know who I would be complaining about. How about the club addressing the absolute shambolic lack of pace in the backline? that is the immediate issue which needs to be addressed.

Did you rate Tatola as a better prospect than Felise at the time? Honestly? Nobody making these decisions has a crystal ball and using hindsight to be judgmental of them is pretty cheap. There are plenty of legitimate complaints to be made but that move is not among them.
On Doueihi: is he fast? Would signing him address the “shambolic lack of pace” in our backline? Pretty sure it wouldn’t. You got some holes in your logic there…as for his “spark” it has generated 1 try assist and 2 tries in 18 games. We’ve got plenty of that kind of spark about.

@TigerTiger said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@WT2K He’d be worth it at that price. Maybe offer 375k, but no higher than $400k.

He’s been crap for years, it’d just be throwing money at a name…