'10 | R4 | Fri 2:10 | Storm 17-4 Dragons | Etihad

[kia ora storm]

He did well enough to give Nightingale a nice cut out pass for our try.
Boyd is still learning how to play fullback, he'll get better with time.

Storm were bored by then...their defence had gone to the pub already.

Seriously..he will get better with time but how much time would you give him particularly against the better sides.

 

[thommo4pm]

Storm were bored by then...their defence had gone to the pub already.

Seriously..he will get better with time but how much time would you give him particularly against the better sides.

It was only 12-0 with 25mins to go when we scored....bit rich to say they were bored. Gather you were being sarcastic.

I think he has improved a hell of a lot at the start of this year to where he finished off last season.
Another off-season and he will be better again next year.
That being said, I think he will improve again as this season runs on.

 

[Evenflow]

There seems to be a pattern forming here. I keep on hearing that the Dragons were off their game, they played bad, they were flat etc etc etc but it seems to have occurred to those people that maybe, just maybe a reason why they were off their game, played bad, were flat blah blah blah is because the Storm had a lot to do with that. Far too many excuses being made from a great deal of Dragons fans (not all) and not enough credit for the Storm for not allowing them to play the way they have the last few weeks against inferior opposition.

 

[user_nat]

He did well enough to give Nightingale a nice cut out pass for our try.
Boyd is still learning how to play fullback, he'll get better with time.

His been playing there for a year now.. not to mention for the years before that he was a winger. It's not like his gone from being a prop to a fullback.

 

[thommo4pm]

His been playing there for a year now.. not to mention for the years before that he was a winger. It's not like his gone from being a prop to a fullback.

"He has" not his.....

If you don't know there are signifacnt differences from being a fullback to a winger than I don't know what to say to you.

On top of that, he came to a new team / club last season and had to fit into that style of play and get to know his team.

 

[user_nat]

"He has" not his.....

If you don't know there are signifacnt differences from being a fullback to a winger than I don't know what to say to you.

On top of that, he came to a new team / club last season and had to fit into that style of play and get to know his team.

Haha, I have no idea why I always type his. Really bad habit.

Obviously there is a difference between the 2 positions. However, it isn't night and day. If after a year (and a few runs for Brisbane) he hasn't got the hang of it.. when will he?

 

[kia ora storm]

There seems to be a pattern forming here. I keep on hearing that the Dragons were off their game, they played bad, they were flat etc etc etc but it seems to have occurred to those people that maybe, just maybe a reason why they were off their game, played bad, were flat blah blah blah is because the Storm had a lot to do with that. Far too many excuses being made from a great deal of Dragons fans (not all) and not enough credit for the Storm for not allowing them to play the way they have the last few weeks against inferior opposition.

Takes a lot to give credit to the Storm...

 

[thommo4pm]

Haha, I have no idea why I always type his. Really bad habit.

Obviously there is a difference between the 2 positions. However, it isn't night and day. If after a year (and a few runs for Brisbane) he hasn't got the hang of it.. when will he?

:lol: no dramas, you aren't the only one. ;-)

As I said though, I think Boyd has improved a hell of a lot this season so far....he will get better at fullback.

 

[thommo4pm]

Takes a lot to give credit to the Storm...

No excuses here, I think we shot ourselves in the foot a few times and Melbourne were too good and made us pay.

I'm normally shattered after a loss, but thought we competed well today with the best team over the last 5-6 years.
Many other sides will walk away from Melbourne with much heavier defeats than that.
We'll bounce back at home next week against Brisbane.

Congrats on the victory today, the better team and more disciplined team won today.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

There seems to be a pattern forming here. I keep on hearing that the Dragons were off their game, they played bad, they were flat etc etc etc but it seems to have occurred to those people that maybe, just maybe a reason why they were off their game, played bad, were flat blah blah blah is because the Storm had a lot to do with that. Far too many excuses being made from a great deal of Dragons fans (not all) and not enough credit for the Storm for not allowing them to play the way they have the last few weeks against inferior opposition.

Totally.

9 times out of 10, when a team plays poorly it's because they weren't allowed to play well.

My team Parramatta were very flat against the Tigers last week and it's all down to the Tigers defensive intensity.

St George showed today why intensity isn't enough to win a comp. They'll probably get the minor premiership again but when they come up against a team that can match their intensity (which happens almost every week in the finals) they'll once again see they don't have enough attacking options (i.e. superstars) to win a tight game.

The Dragons right now are like the Eels of the late 90's - strong and consistent but sorely lacking for football magic to pull them out of tight contests.

 

[Apey]

There seems to be a pattern forming here. I keep on hearing that the Dragons were off their game, they played bad, they were flat etc etc etc but it seems to have occurred to those people that maybe, just maybe a reason why they were off their game, played bad, were flat blah blah blah is because the Storm had a lot to do with that. Far too many excuses being made from a great deal of Dragons fans (not all) and not enough credit for the Storm for not allowing them to play the way they have the last few weeks against inferior opposition.

agreed and that's what I was trying to get at. It happens with a lot of games though not just this one, hell probably guilty of it myself. This game was a good example.

 

[Red Bear]

Soward doesnt seem to be in great form, getting carried by Hornby at the moment.

I think the Dragons more than any other top side rely on their forward pack being at the top of their game. Soward has a supurb kicking game but his passing and running games are average at best, he needs that time and space the very very good St George pack creates to be at his most effective. He loses a bit of that time/space and his kicking game suffers he doesnt, like some of the other halves around, have that running and passing game to fall back on (at least not to the same degree).

Boyd does an excellent job as a defensive fullback for the dragons, one of the safest around, but he just doesnt seem to have much awareness in attack, and it's very hard to teach awareness. Dragons desperately need a fullback who can run the good lines, hover on the inside or slot into a backline movement, and, bar a few bright spots, he doesnt seem to do this very effectively.

 

[Jason Maher]

There seems to be a pattern forming here. I keep on hearing that the Dragons were off their game, they played bad, they were flat etc etc etc but it seems to have occurred to those people that maybe, just maybe a reason why they were off their game, played bad, were flat blah blah blah is because the Storm had a lot to do with that. Far too many excuses being made from a great deal of Dragons fans (not all) and not enough credit for the Storm for not allowing them to play the way they have the last few weeks against inferior opposition.

I don't know that I've ever seen a group of fans that reacts any different when their team loses. It is natural to focus on what your mob did instead of the other mob.

Havign said that: a) Melbourne didn't cause us to drop balls on the first tackle 3 or 4 times, nor did they force us to make sloppy high tackles, that was purely us, and these are the things we've all been whinging about; and b) every Saints fan here (except maybe Gaba) has congratulated Melbourne on being the better team and deserving the win. I really don't see the problem in a fan bagging their team for bad errors at the same time as congratulating the opposition for beign the better team and still the competition benchmark.

Personally I think you are seeing what you want to see. Yes, there have been a lot of dumb threads and dumb comments from Saints fans this week, but I don't see that crossing over into this thread.

If you really want to see a good example fo what you speak of, go read the Titans-Raiders game thread from last week.

 

[stormbati]

Brett Finch has had a great first month. Along with Tolman, best player at the Storm thus far.
He was killing them with the dummy. Beau Scott and Soward were more interested in Inglis.

What I loved most about the game, the way the Storm just turned it on, like a switch they just went to another level, knew what was needed to be done and did it.

 

[This Year?]

What impressed me tonight was how well Finch and Quinn played. The Storm's defense was awesome and how they slowly picked apart the Dragon's defence was something to envy.

The Dragons looked like they were under pressure and it showed with a higher than usual number of mistakes. Their forwards couldn't create space and their backs were always covered.

 

[Gaba]

the storm and dragons are that far ahead of the other teams in defense its funny.

The attacking teams will not score many points against dragons or storm , but both the dragons and storm will score points against the attacking teams

 

[kia ora storm]

What impressed me tonight was how well Finch and Quinn played. The Storm's defense was awesome and how they slowly picked apart the Dragon's defence was something to envy.

The Dragons looked like they were under pressure and it showed with a higher than usual number of mistakes. Their forwards couldn't create space and their backs were always covered.

Finch has had a strong start to the season...how many gaps did he spot in the first half ??.

Quinn is back to his old self...strong as an ox and has that aggression back that was needed in a tight game like this.

 

[Chriss]

the storm and dragons are that far ahead of the other teams in defense its funny.

The attacking teams will not score many points against dragons or storm , but both the dragons and storm will score points against the attacking teams

You're kidding. Dragons aren't in the same league as the storm and it showed yesterday.

There are 4 leagues at the moment.
1. The Storm
2. Dragons
3. Everyone Else
4. The Sharks

The storm made the dragons look very very ordinary yesterday.

 

[Gaba]

You're kidding. Dragons aren't in the same league as the storm and it showed yesterday.

There are 4 leagues at the moment.
1. The Storm
2. Dragons
3. Everyone Else
4. The Sharks

The storm made the dragons look very very ordinary yesterday.

It took the last 15 mins of the game for the storm to be safe, and the dragons didnt play that well, the dragons had chances to win, if the dragons played 20% better they would have won

so the storm werent that far in front they are lucky to have players like cronk,smith and slater

 

[Noa]

Brett Finch has had a great first month. Along with Tolman, best player at the Storm thus far.
He was killing them with the dummy. Beau Scott and Soward were more interested in Inglis.

What I loved most about the game, the way the Storm just turned it on, like a switch they just went to another level, knew what was needed to be done and did it.

That is really becoming a valuable impact that GI has that doesnt show up on the stat-sheet.

Even Neilsen and Slaters tries were caused by Inglis presence. On Neilsens try he was outside him which kept the defender from shutting that hole Dane went through and Slaters try happened because Greg took 5 players out at the play-the-ball including Weyman who was the one to slow to get across.