Sorry for the late post but to those who were losing their heads over last weeks loss, the performance against Manly proved that their reaction was premature. I said last week that scoring points doesn't look like its going to a problem and I stand by that comment. The acquisition of Farah could arguably be the one that catapults us into top 8 contention. The hooking role was one of the most hotly contested subjects on these forums last year but the work of Farah on Saturday proved just how crucial a top class no. 9 is and also further emphasised how much we were lacking with McInnes in the team. You could see clearly what Farah was working towards the entire game - he plays with his head, has a plan and I think his ball-in-hand creativity really dovetails Adam Reynolds' attributes and also takes a lot of pressure off him too. Farah along with Reynolds and Cody Walker laid the platform for virtually all of our tries and really silenced those who constantly whinge that we play with no flair and that everything is the same etc. Also, maybe the influence of David Furner has helped these players shine as he was brought in to assist with the attacking side of things.
I'd also like to speak of our much maligned forward pack. Many people will argue that Manly had no front rowers and while that may be so, we still had to beat what was in front of us. Hats off to George Burgess! I don't know what has been said to him but what I saw on Saturday was reminiscent of his 2013-2014 form; sometimes I think the big bugger just needs to get angry! Sam was his usual inspirational best and I also saw real potential in the likes of Musgrove and Crichton - I wouldn't mind seeing Crichton come into the starting team for Kyle Turner at some point. Overall, I thought the forward really ripped in and really got Manly moving backwards. Mind you, it helps when you have two quality hookers helping them out!
I'm not sure if it has been spoken about but both our handling and discipline have been good in both games this season. I hope it was spoken about in the off season because those two aspects of the game really cost us last year. In particular, our handling errors really made it hard for us to compete against the better teams in the comp. On the contrary, when you are completing at 85% you are always going to give yourself a chance, even if you give up an 12-18 point lead early on. Similarly, we've managed to take a lot of defensive pressure off ourselves by not giving away penalties late in the tackle count and in bad positions in the field too.
In terms of our weaknesses, I think defence and the way we start games is going to be the issue. While the tries we gave away weren't necessarily shocking, better teams in the competition are going to capitalise on the 12 point (and potentially 18 point) leads. In saying that, I would be more worried if the tries we conceded were down to poor defensive reads or having our outside backs turned inside out and made to chase as has been the case for the last two seasons. What happened at Brookvale Oval was the product of us simply not muscling up; we had the numbers there and the players involved made reasonable decisions its just that they were overpowered.
In terms of the performances, its hard to fault anyone really. Like I said previously, I thought Robbie Farah was excellent and probably man of the match with Adam Reynolds a close second. The team that we fielded is probably our strongest 17 give or take a player or two. In particular, I really like our back line with Jennings and Hunt in the centres and Goodwin and Burns on the wing. There was much debate as to whether Alex Johnston was up to playing fullback but he didn't do anything wrong and really came alive in the second half. We will definitely face tougher challenges ahead but at least we have something to build on.