I think Brooksy May just be the most misunderstood player in the nrl. He’s just trying to fit in, does whatever is asked of him by coaches and senior players.
Run the ball more? Sure, no problem.
Give Garner a short ball off your left ? Done.
Play second fiddle to Benji, why not.
Get rid of the short kicking game? Ok.
Bring back the short kicking game? Ok.
Now kick some goals please? Alright, anything else?
He’s a team player, just been trying to fit in. Maybe this is the season that the coaching staff and players should do the fitting in?

I’m with Madge all the way!
I couldn’t care less if he needed to sack the lot. I just cannot tolerate players who drag their heels and mope around. It’s just a a pitiful attempt to hide their inability to perform at nrl level.

Gotta be honest, I find it amusing that Brooks’ game only went up a notch, he’s been playing like that all season. The extra 10% was a reflection of the result of improved team performance. I know I keep banging on about this, but Brooks is the canary in the mine shaft, there’s so much focus on him that the other players don’t get scrutinised for their bad play.

@TrueTiger said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Tiger_Steve said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@hobbo1 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Tiger_Steve said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Roar_Power said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@hank37w said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Roar_Power said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@hank37w said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@Earl said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@hank37w said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

Its like employing a financial planner
They are there to help you get the best return on your money

Financial planners being there to get you the best return is actually the complete opposite way to the way the industry works. Financial planners are there to take money out of your hand and offer nothing at all in return.

Warren Buffet agrees with me.

Just for the record, that is not my quote, I was responding to that quote.

My quote was,

“As long as we don’t employ Elijah’s financial planner.
Some of them don’t want to return your money.”

So I guess, along with Warren Buffet we both agree on the usefulness of financial planners.

As a financial planner, thats a little offensive. There are plenty of good ones out there that you don’t hear about. Its only the rogues that get the attention - all industries have them.

Sorry if I offended you, and I would agree that there are good and and bad operators in every industry, and I take it that you are one of the good ones in your industry.

I understand that there has been a bit of a shake up in the industry in recent times relating to disclosure of commissions and requirements to put clients’ interests first and for financial advisors to disclose any conflicts of interest.

However, various inquires and Banking Royal Commissions haven’t done a lot to enhance the reputation of financial advisors.

My own personal experience with 2 or 3 financial advisors that I have had initial meetings with haven’t really given me the confidence to part with the 2 or 3 thousand dollars that they wanted to come up with a plan for my particular situation.

Thats fair enough Hank. The Royal Commission has started raising the bar ie. degree required etc which can only be good for the industry.

Many people are skeptical about advisers for good reason but hopefully that changes once the riff raff has exited.

Financial Planner (and my naivety) cost me $250K after investing in Great Southern and Timbercorp investments. I was lucky - some others committed suicide. Good and bad in every industry- I found the worst grub on the planet

Wow … that’s a pretty horrific ordeal to go through mate …
You must have a well paid job in order to recover …

Went overseas and earned good money. Got me out of trouble. But cost me my marriage and a lot of mental stress I can tell you. Remarried and building a new house now - means a lot in so many ways mate. It’s been a journey

I went through the breast cancer crap with my ex…the chemo and therapy mixed with different drugs got the better of both of us…It really hurts when you personally know your doing your best but end up with a kick in the guts.I have remained very amicable because I know what she went through…in a word horrific…However,I almost wanted to drive my ute over the Macquarie pass because I was in a state of confusion and was hurting…Now I try and keep a sensible head on my shoulders because I know I would hurt family members in more ways than one by doing what I wanted to do…the WTs are my real oak in my life that helps me converse with my forum buddies as well as give me an interest in life…If I get to meet some one I hope she loves the WTs as much as I do…
Theres always hope I suppose…

You’re right TT, there is always hope. During the Great Depression when many lived on bread cooked in dripping and rabbits, they looked for something to cheer about. And it came in the form of Phar Lap, Don Bradman and more recently Reg Gasnier and Gunsynd. I’m sorry Wests Tigers hasn’t quite lived up to our expectations but I feel something is happening. Yesterday I had a 2 hour phone con with my younger sister who has just been told she has breast cancer. After losing a younger sister already to the same battle she is almost inconsolable. We all have our battles, and you obviously have the courage to face yours. You’re not alone mate.

Last nights game against Panthers should have highlighted the major problem Madge has been dealing with.
Clearly Cleary was not confident going into this game against a bottom 8 side? Why? Was it because his team lacked the harmonic motion that only experience can provide? The experience of playing many games together.
Madge has had to turnover the roster and introduce players with limited NRL experience, some with none, due mainly because he inherited 30% of his cap sitting in the stands and leaving at half time.
I put it to you, Madge is a winner, winners always find a way, because they are focussed more on solutions. One of the smartest things Madge has done is to lock down Brooks and build a team for him and this against the odds, against the better judgment of half the WT fan base. 😁
Don’t worry, I’m not getting carried away by last nights win, but it is good to look in the mirror sometimes, just as the players did last night. Looking across the field, they would have seen themselves in Panthers jerseys.

I think our man Luke Brooks was best player on the park tonight. It probably disappointed a few of the WT fan base but gosh, you can’t please everyone. 😂

I would rather WT pay whatever it takes to get Charlie Staines. It’s ridiculous that Panthers have 5 fullbacks and we have none.

When you run through the list of players let go and recruited in the Madge era you must come to a single conclusion…the roster is improving. That in itself is a remarkable achievement, considering the obstacles he faces.

@tiger5150 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@frullens said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@demps said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@frullens said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@tiger5150 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@frullens said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@demps said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@demps said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@demps said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@frullens said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@lauren said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@momo_amp_medo said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@lauren said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@sausagesorcerer said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@tiger-tragic said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@kafta said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

All this talk about leadership ( Finucane) sounds like last year with Tamou.
Who is to say it wont turn out the same way.

I agree completely. Finucane was an honest plodder with the Dogs but is yet another example of the brilliance and influence of Craig Bellamy in transforming his limited skills into excellence.

But, we don’t have Craig Bellamy or his Storm systems. There is no guarantee that Finucane would offer the WT what he does at the Storm, so why pay some inflated price for him?

That’s exactly my thoughts
I’m not exactly against signing him,but he may be another Proctor,Glasby or Blair at another team.

Yep it’s why I’d also prefer Brandon Smith alongside of him. Not doubting his leadership skills at all but just trying to factor in how his age, our team needs and him coming from that system will vary from his current influence or input.
It wouldn’t exactly matter to me if it wasn’t a huge contract offer. But I feel we’d need to be getting game breakers for the price and length (of contract) though.

If it’s a possibility in any shape or form …. Throw all the $s on the “Cheese”, follow that up with Mr. Crichton and then and then any other player as a distant third.

Crichton has always topped my wishlist - him, Munster and Manu - and have always enjoyed watching B Smith play but especially moreso this year. Except last week of course.
Find he gives it his all, every game.

There’s talk about getting Finucane specifically for leadership, in assisting Tamou, but our leadership group needs to be called out for failing with this too. Feel it’s imperative for the group to help with our younger guys.
IIRC it’s Doueihi, Brooks, Twal and Nofo in addition to the captain. Maybe we have named the wrong captain due to his limited capacity to lead at all times but there should be no problems with the rest of them. IMO it’s probably the only area where Brooks warrants some criticism. (Though against the Eels he was very vocal). However, the last 2 games had nothing to do with his role for the team.

Leadership is the biggest issue

Madge talks about learning to wrestle back momentum in the ebbs and flows of the game. You wrestle back momentum with strong leaders.

Our 2020 leadership group:

Tamou is physically struggling to keep up. Heay be a eloquent talker but I don’t see him barking out orders on the field.

Brooks is naturally quiet - getter better when going well, non existent when going gets tough

Twal is naturally quiet - grat worker but not a leader

Nofo - on the wing. Don’t see him talking. Smirks a lot or looks for the camera. Don’t see him as a team player.

Doeuhi is a true leader but has been moved to centre. Should be playing in the spine and take control.

Changes for 2021:
I think when Hastings comes, he is a barker and a natural leader, make him 7. With douehi at 6 and Brooks at 14. Time to make changes.

We need a strong alpha forward leader.
I’d be using the sheens and madge uk connections to find a big strong pommy. Similar to luke Thompson at bulldogs, Graham, Burgess

Hastings and Doueihi would be a terrible pairing.

Don’t be so certain…

I think they could be very dangerous if their defence is on point.

Way too slow

Myth.

It’s not and I am still not convinced that Doueihi is a 5/8th anyway.

His best position is at 6…
The whole slow thing is a myth.

He’s a good runner and could be a star at 6 if the coach didn’t move him to cater to Brooks.
I believe it’s the position he wants to play.

Having a confident 7 outside him like Hastings would allow him to shine.

These two would feed off each other like Walker and Reynolds.

I agree

I’m a supporter of Brooks, but think this team need a stronger leader at 7

Hastings and Douehi are both natural leaders.

All this leader/alpha/introvert/extrovert business is completely invented rubbish. A team doesnt need a leader/extrovert at 6 and 7, it needs a player that passes the ball to the right player at the right time and has the right players in the right positions.

Doueihi can be the best bloke and the best “leader” in the team, if he doesnt pass it to his centre or 2RF it doesnt matter.

Sorry I don’t agree

Name one great half from history who lack confidence and didn’t boss the team around

That’s their job.

They pass it the the right player in the right position, because they have told that player where to be. Because they dictated the 3 plays before to set up the next play.

We did this already

1, Melbourne - Munster, confident half
2, Penrith - Cleary and Romey, confident halves
3, Parramatta, Moses - Confident half
4, South’s- Walker and Josh, confident halves

Look at the bottom teams…

Broncos, none
Dogs, none

Coincidence?
I think not…

Winning teams always have confident, talkative leaders in their important positions.

I think Brooks is one of the few players trying his guts out. I’ve seen a lot of improvement this year. I really like brooks, want him in the team.

But after the weekends disguisting display, I just feel we need someone at 7 who takes control of the team. Who after the first or 2nd try, pulls the players in, gives them a rev up and says follow me.

Brooks isn’t that player.

From what I’ve seen Hastings is that player. So
I’d like to see Hastings at 7 next year.

I would love to see Brooks running at 6.

I’d like to see Deouhi get his hands on the ball more and still have a licence to kick. If that’s at centre, lock or going to 6.

No 7 would have helped change the game on Saturday, we were down 30-0 by the time we got the ball.

Brooks has seriously been our best player for about 6 weeks now.

If we lose Brooks, people will really appreciate quickly how much defence he does.

Brooks is without doubt the best footballer in the team. It must be so frustrating at times for him to see the missed opportunities unfolding, but he just bites his lip and says nothing. And this is what happens when he should be less serious and vocalise the event pre and post. If he gets that going on the park then his leadership qualities will go to another level imo.

So apparently it’s not what Finucane does on the field it’s his behaviour off it, and the way he warms up? The way he prepares for a game? That’s where his real value is apparently, because he hasn’t played a full season for a while, and he’s had 12 tough years as a bulldogs/Storm forward so his game preparation has to be spot on? His value is in his character apparently, not so much in the way he plays the game?
Gosh, does anyone else see something familiar with this deal?
Let’s not shuffle this fact under the carpet? In about 10 weeks his birthday cake will have 30 candles to blow out.
I understand that it would be great for our youngsters to watch him prepare for games but 4 years?
We need players who can get on the park and get the job done and if they have good manners then that’s a bonus.

@tyga said in Dale Finucane:

We need centre’s badly. Finucane is a beast but not sure he makes any difference when teams just spread early and pick us apart.

I think Pauga has some potential.

@jedi_tiger said in How to beat Manly:

Manly forwards are beatable if we aim up in the forwards we can make it a close game

Agree. Raiders beat them mainly because they had 57% possession, due to completing at 90%. We’re getting better at hanging onto the ball.

@tony-soprano said in Fox Spoilers at it again ...:

@swordy said in Fox Spoilers at it again ...:

@liam-g said in Fox Spoilers at it again ...:

The recent “scoop” by Hooper concerning Luke Brooks and Canberra ( the so-called double swap offer ) has been exposed as total fabrication and a sham story unworthy of the title of sports journalism. In short it was utter garbage invented and confected from a Rothfield rumour the previous day. I don’t care which team Hooper professes to support… what a joke! His approach to his work as journalist lacks any basic credibility in my eyes or any sense of impartiality in dealing with issues.

Hooper has an issue with Justin Pascoe and is using every media avenue he can to bad mouth him. It is clear that Hooper is under instruction from someone to sully Pascoe’s name and he is doing his best. Maybe its hair-envy, don’t know.

Player managers

😂

I never read any negative comments about the betting agencies? WT have only run out favourites in one game all season, against an under strength Dragons side.
Compared to other sides, our team doesn’t have the talent to win games, this is no fault of nrl commentary teams. They just call it as they see it.

@bathursttiger1 said in Player Dramas in the NRL Off-Season (Silly Season)😇😈🤡:

@trusted_insider said in Player Dramas in the NRL Off-Season (Silly Season)😇😈🤡:

Koroisau out for two weeks and a $35K fine.

He should have got the rest of the season, Idiot could have stopped the whole NRL comp.

He would have been out for longer if he held a BBQ

My heart wants a win in a tough grinding game, my head tells me we will go to the sheds at the break well behind, my dislocated shoulder is definitely saying something too.

@sully said in How to beat Manly:

@twentyforty said in How to beat Manly:

We need to have a simple plan, get off the line and nail the middle, nail the first and second receivers. Find the grass with long kicks and chase like pig dogs. Build pressure and don’t let up for 80min.

Canberra showed last night that line speed is what troubles some of the good sides as this limits their time to create.

I am nervous that Saab will continue to jump over Noffa or run around him all day though

I think the slow line speed we’ve shown against sides like Eels, Storm, Manly is more a reflection of our inexperience? A reactionary style of play, as opposed to being on the front foot , taking the game by the scruff of the neck. To do this the players need to have a little less respect for their opposition and more for each other. It’s how QLD win games.

@weststigers said in How to beat Manly:

Can’t remember there being many, if any, upsets this year. I think this game will go down the same way.

Schuster, J Turbo and T Turbo are the danger players in attack.

If you watch Manly, most tries feed through their hands.

The Manly backline sits deep and as others have said, limiting time on the ball with line speed is going to be important.

Once Manly get momentum, they are hard to stop. Looking at our last game against them, it wasn’t necessarily that they cut us open at will. We simply missed a number of one on one tackles that led to tries…lazy defence.

Manly will score points against us no doubt, but their defence isn’t the best in the comp either. We’ll have our chances, but we need to limit theirs. Sadly, I don’t think we’ll have the answers.

WT have won 6 games this season, 5 of those wins as underdogs.

We need to have a simple plan, get off the line and nail the middle, nail the first and second receivers. Find the grass with long kicks and chase like pig dogs. Build pressure and don’t let up for 80min.

@jai_donaldson said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@teddy23 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@cochise said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@teddy23 said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@jedi_tiger said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

@speed2burn said in Signing Suggestions & Rumours:

The real joke is believing Pooper

He’s gotta get one right eventually

not about getting it right it either happened or it didn’t and if it was Pascoe then action needs to be taken

Agree, can we put our hate for Pooper on the side and analyse the problem (as much as he gets under my skin too)

If Pascoe did indeed propose that deal, it really should raise concerns…. I’m confident it happened, otherwise tigers would be biting back by now or a club statement etc

The club very rarely releases statements like that.

If the club is being accused of an action, and being made out as a joke on a platform like NRL 360

And it’s false, a club statement coming out denying them accusations would be an appropriate thing to do imo

I’ve seen the club come out with club statements denying particular reports, this situation fits the category

Just hate the idea of this club being laughed at by everyone by it, and most people are just saying nahhh pooper isn’t credible and aren’t looking at it

Maybe I’m thinking too much into it idk

I’ve been involved in conversations with Justin about these sorts of articles, honestly he just doesn’t care what the media is saying and is completely dismissive when it is raised.

It’s probably something he should care about as any negative press like this especially when it’s constant can only paint the club poorly in the eyes of potential recruits.

Maybe.? I’m sure these jousting chats go on almost every weeks between clubs CEOs and coaches. But why was this one reported in the media?