Knights peaking at the right time

[roopy]

I don't want to jinx the guys, but it all seems to be coming together at the right end of the season.

The only guy who should be in firstgrade and doesn't look like making it back for the finals is Newton. Apart from him we should have a full squad to choose from.

The top team should be;

O'Davis - back this week with luck
Tahu - back in two weeks
Matt Gidley - in best form of career till a few weeks ago - but will pick up
Quinn - hot and cold, but just ahead of hughes IMO
McDougall - playing for his future, so he will put in
Kurt Gidley - top workrate and looking better every game
Johns - walks on newcastle harbour
Kennedy - fragile as glass when he is not belting the hell out of the biggest guys he can find
Simmo - quiet season, but starting to get fit - watch out
Abes - slowly getting to be our Mr reliable in both attack and defence
Parsons - the big man is starting to feel the power
Buderus - the quiet achiever - he gets the job done better than anyone
Perry - our raging bull - he is starting to be a real force to be reckoned with

Jobson - improving every game and does the job for us now
Woolnough - I hope he is back this week and gets the gametime he needs before the semis
Price - someday he will get over everything at the same time and play a game or two
Rudder - will keep the game going if anyone gets injured and will give his best in the finals

Hughes, Hall, Matt Kennedy, Lowrie and Tanner are guys who are up to the job if needed, but let's hope they arn't.

I think we have the team to do the job if we can have even a fair run with injuries for the rest of the season. I'd back our top side against anyone.

 

[kaon]

Sloppy wins against the Eagles and Cowboys is not exactly "peaking" in my view. The form of those teams is woeful atm and if the Knights are using them as a benchmark, they are going to get hammered in the coming weeks. Against the Raiders in Bruce will be their credibility test.

 

[roopy]

Sloppy wins against the Eagles and Cowboys is not exactly "peaking" in my view. The form of those teams is woeful atm and if the Knights are using them as a benchmark, they are going to get hammered in the coming weeks. Against the Raiders in Bruce will be their credibility test.

How can the largest number of points scored in a half of football in NRL history be sloppy play.
The only way to do better will be to do it to Canberra, which will be a good start at knocking off the pretenders.

12 of the knights top 17 have won grandfinals.
11 of the top 17 are also rep players.
I think they know how to come good when they have to, because they have all played a far higher standard of football than anyone in the Canberra side.
If Canberra think the Knights will not know what they have to do, you are in for a shock when you wake up from that dream.

 

[kaon]

Conceding around 30 points in as many minutes to the cowboys is a good way to signal your intensions isn't it. At least this argument won't go for too long; all bets will be settled in little over a week.

 

[salivor]

I can't believe how much stock your putting in this one performance Roopy. Calling it the perfect game is just bloody laughable. I welcome anyone to show me a Cowobys side that has played worse than that in the clubs history, keeping in mind they have put in some woeful showings.

Johns and Perry won't get easier tries in their careers than they got against the Cowobys. Good luck with that "perfect game" cracking the defence of the top teams. Newcastle fans can revel in that attacking brand of football all they like but if you continue to be the 13th best defensive side in the comp Joeys and the clubs last premiership will be 2001.

 

[roopy]

I can't believe how much stock your putting in this one performance Roopy. Calling it the perfect game is just bloody laughable. I welcome anyone to show me a Cowobys side that has played worse than that in the clubs history, keeping in mind they have put in some woeful showings.

Johns and Perry won't get easier tries in their careers than they got against the Cowobys. Good luck with that "perfect game" cracking the defence of the top teams. Newcastle fans can revel in that attacking brand of football all they like but if you continue to be the 13th best defensive side in the comp Joeys and the clubs last premiership will be 2001.

I'm glad you mentioned 2001. Our defence wasn't up to it that year either according to the critics.
The Cowboys game showed that the boys still know what to do. You can heap all the shit you want on the cowboys, after most people were saying they were a good chance to beat the Knights before the game, but they were blown off the park by a side on fire, as have been many sides over the last few years when the Knights get into the attacking grove, much like Parra in the first half of the 2001 grandfinal for instance. To quote Josh Perry 'they all said me and Parso weren't big enough, strong enough, fast enough, but it looks like we won the grandfinal.'
The Knights have everything they need to win this year. I don't know how many other sides have a good chance, but I know the Knights do.

 

[salivor]

In 2001 the Knights finished 3rd in the minor premiership. As I said to you in another thread that you haven't replied to. Good luck winning from 7th or 8th in the McIntre system. I wouldn't even back the Bulldogs and Roosters from those positions.

 

[roopy]

In 2001 the Knights finished 3rd in the minor premiership. As I said to you in another thread that you haven't replied to. Good luck winning from 7th or 8th in the McIntre system. I wouldn't even back the Bulldogs and Roosters from those positions.

After the first game it is all knock out.
I'd rather be in the top four, but you have to think you can win, or what would be the point showing up.
If the team is good enough they can win from 8th.

 

[salivor]

BTW in 2001 Newcastle had the 5th best defence in the competition. So don't give me this bullshit that their defence wasn't up to it, thats a very different situation to where they are now. Also another nice statistic for you, since 98 the only finals games you've won are the 3 in 2001. You don't have a great record of late in the finals and the last time you finished 7th you were knocked out first round.
Put all this on top of the crap year Newcastle are having and they don't stand a chance against the Roosters and Bulldogs. If they beat either of those teams I will happily scream from the rooftops that you know everything and I know nothing.

 

[~bedsy~]

For starters it was 1 game.
Don't get to excited over 1 game... we still have some hurdles to get over and I doubt we will get anywere this yr... I think we will stay in the 8.... but we could most likely be knocked out the first week.
OK I read it write now.... how could you have Quinn ahead of Hughes?

 

[SpaceMonkey]

No Johns... no chance. Goodbye Newcastle.

 

[roopy]

No Johns... no chance. Goodbye Newcastle.

I agree that we can't win without Johns. It was cruel to see the team coming together and than have the main player pulled out from under us.
The thing is, I now think we will cause a few sleepless nights for whoever has to play us in the finals.
The team is looking good even without Johns.
All our big match experience will mean that sides can't relax against us. If we draw either Canberra or Penrith in the first round I think we can still cause an upset, and I think we will have a good game again in the second round if we make it that far.

 

[antonius]

If we can get over the Dragons this week, (and it's looking more and more likely with the injuries they have), then the top teams will be concerned, don't forget last year we went within a whisker of upsetting the Goosters GF aspirations, this year the guys will have had a couple of successes under their belts without Johns, and will be a different kettle of fish I reckon. I'm not saying we can win the whole thing, but we could go a long way to burying the "One Man Team" tag.

 

[Terminator]

No Johns... no chance. Goodbye Newcastle.

Ahem, SpaceMonkey, er Knights 42-8 over Dragqueens at Jubilee and no Joey?
Care to revise your opinion?

 

[Anonymous]

Even without Johns, the knights will a difficult team to beat in the semi-finals. They have 7 internationals, the forward pack is fit and firing and nobody expects them to win. They also seem to save their best for the finals.

Their form has been improving, that is the key to the last 4 weeks, and the win over St George today showed that they are playing 80min football very quickly and very physically.

Some of the signs of improvement have been creating an NRL points record for a 1st half against Nth Queensland. Outmuscling the Warriors in Newcastle and also playing top quality football against the Raiders in Canberra in terrible conditions.

If I were in the top 4 I would be praying not to get Newcastle in week 1. The knights might find that they swap places with one of them. As you are probably all aware, if the under ranked team defeats the higher ranked team in the current finals system, they swap places in the draw.

At this stage i would suggest that the Knights will play the Roosters at Aussie Stadium. Pay back time.

-GS.

 

[Terminator]

Sounds good to me, our current lineup could beat the crap out of them, Minnichello is their most dangerous player, and that is saying alot, we have to keep him wrapped up.