Benji Marshall ?

[GT0007]

Maybe it's not our physical size actually. I''ve been thinking that, but I think other forwards in other teams make themselves seem bigger by just being more aggressive. It kind of makes the opposition forget you're smaller than you make yourself out to be. We aren't being helped with soft players like Hunt.

When you are fatigued from backpedaling as you have lost the wrestle in the ruck and can barely get onside you tend to lack aggression as well. I do agree they need to fire up a bit for sure but you have to look at the cause not the symptoms.

 

[GT0007]

I've been as critical of Hunt as anyone but I should clarify I don't in anyway suggest he is the reason we are losing games nor is it Green. My point with those 2 is that I watch them with the ball in their hand and they are stopped in their tracks everytime they take the ball up, most players hope they dont go a season without a try but those 2 are in danger of going without a tackle break or a line break. At times in their careers I've thought both have potential but currently they dont and we have better options. In defense when Hunt makes a tackle he is dragged another 5 or 10mtres and often other players coming in cant get a shot on, basically Hunts 1st contact is weak and has no intent. With Green its a toss of the coin if he's going to make the tackle. It's not personal and if either or both lifted I'd be supporting them

 

[GT0007]

I,ll keep saying this till I'm red in the face, it's not size it's attitude... Matt Scott 105 k, Moa is 105 kg, our boys-are 103- 105kg it's not kilos....it's what in the tank with grit,attitude, aggression.. and we lack it up front. If Moa is on market, then snap him up...FFS, he is about 27 years old, he is in his prime agewise for forward...would serve us we'll for at least next 3 or 4 seasons...

Agreed

 

[Mr Red]

When you are fatigued from backpedaling as you have lost the wrestle in the ruck and can barely get onside you tend to lack aggression as well. I do agree they need to fire up a bit for sure but you have to look at the cause not the symptoms.

Only flaw in your point is that's it's evident within the first 5 to 10 mins of most matches... Can't blame fatigue for that...

 

[bhabs]

the mole on twitter is saying that Cronulla are chance now to sign benji and it's swinging their way, don't really know what to believe from that guy

 

[saint.nick]

No one knows what the f*** is going on. As of this morning you had people like Ray Warren saying, 'Benji will be a Dragon'.

 

[saint.nick]

The mole is clueless. Before the season started he said, 'Foran most likely to sign with Dogs on Friday'. He's not worth listening to.

 

[TruSaint]

Nick,

Longer it goes, i smell something "fishy".

 

[GT0007]

Speed of service and organisational skills from DH is also critical.
I reckon this is not beyond Rein but he needs development.

It would help if we were afforded the same penalties that are awarded against us for slowing the ruck. We are slowed down all the time and rarely get a penalty. I think besides the way we do it we need to be conscious not to do it in the 1st 10mins when the ref is trying to stamp his authority. the other team doesnt have to as they have all the ball but I digress......Reins service is fine its just we are being wrestled out of a quick play the ball consistently

 

[GT0007]

Only flaw in your point is that's it's evident within the first 5 to 10 mins of most matches... Can't blame fatigue for that...

It's not a flaw and you make a very good point in support which I touched on in another post. We dont have any ball in the 1st 10mins of any match. We dont have any field position and by 15mins we are nearly out of the game as we've been backpedaling the whole time. Mostly from losing the wrestle and field position and when we give penalties of course they are in an attacking postion for the other team. This has happened every single week. We are fatigued in the 1st quarter of the game. To our credit we don't give up but we do struggle. I do think we need to man up and try to dominate early but it seems every time we do we get penalized. One could say I'm bias but I see the same thing happen to other teams that are not one of the teams with perceived good discipline. I'm not blaming refs but they are part of the problem....just ask Parra or North Qld or even the Tigers if they are playing Manly!

 

[nrlnrl]

The mole is clueless. Before the season started he said, 'Foran most likely to sign with Dogs on Friday'. He's not worth listening to.

yeah, he's even said on Twitter it's a coin toss ( no doubt he'll claim it as a scoop when the decision is official )

 

[Mattc]

It would help if we were afforded the same penalties that are awarded against us for slowing the ruck. We are slowed down all the time and rarely get a penalty. I think besides the way we do it we need to be conscious not to do it in the 1st 10mins when the ref is trying to stamp his authority. the other team doesnt have to as they have all the ball but I digress......Reins service is fine its just we are being wrestled out of a quick play the ball consistently

We need to struggle to get to our feet more.
Watch our opposition. They're jumping, squirming, turning to get up.
Makes the refs think we are slowing things down more than we are.
We tend to be more submissive.
Comes back to that aggression we have all been wanting.

 

[hardbaby]

This rumour is really gaining traction heh? I'm not a fan based on the last eighteen months of Benji's football but if the price is right it's worth it (especially since he is available immediately and we are 4 and 4). He doesn't have many options so I can't imagine it would cost much higher than 400 - 450k/season.

 

[saint.nick]

Funny what people will believe. The mole says benji will come,'pfffft bullshit, moles a tosser'.
The mole says sharks are new favourites, 'argh bloody doust, can't close a deal if his life depended on it. Knew this would happen'.
Negativity is a powerful thing.
And for those wondering, yes, I do use the dark side of the force.

 

[Cagey Mac]

It would help if we were afforded the same penalties that are awarded against us for slowing the ruck. We are slowed down all the time and rarely get a penalty. I think besides the way we do it we need to be conscious not to do it in the 1st 10mins when the ref is trying to stamp his authority. the other team doesnt have to as they have all the ball but I digress......Reins service is fine its just we are being wrestled out of a quick play the ball consistently

Watch Smith and Farah and others
They position themselves better and faster and allow forwards to take the ball at greater pace.
Rein's not bad but does need to lift his game to be an excellent attacking dummy half

 

[GT0007]

Watch Smith and Farah and others
They position themselves better and faster and allow forwards to take the ball at greater pace.
Rein's not bad but does need to lift his game to be an excellent attacking dummy half

I didn't compare him with the 2 best hookers in the competition, the only one I would put in their catagory is McCulloch. By the time we play the ball the defensive line is set and also at the advantage line by the time Rein touches the ball which limits opportunities for Rein and our runners. What you're talking about is a symptom not a cause. We are slow getting to our feet and I dont necessarily always blame the players, it seems to be open slather in slowing our ruck down.

 

[Dezziedc]

It's not a flaw and you make a very good point in support which I touched on in another post. We dont have any ball in the 1st 10mins of any match. We dont have any field position and by 15mins we are nearly out of the game as we've been backpedaling the whole time. Mostly from losing the wrestle and field position and when we give penalties of course they are in an attacking postion for the other team. This has happened every single week. We are fatigued in the 1st quarter of the game. To our credit we don't give up but we do struggle. I do think we need to man up and try to dominate early but it seems every time we do we get penalized. One could say I'm bias but I see the same thing happen to other teams that are not one of the teams with perceived good discipline. I'm not blaming refs but they are part of the problem....just ask Parra or North Qld or even the Tigers if they are playing Manly!

It's not fatigue, its just that we aren't good in the ruck. Right from the start, we aren't getting them on their back and we have players still getting back on side from the tackle or still laying in the tackle. It's not fatigue at the start of the game, it's just lack of execution. They get a play the ball and their attack is meeting our line - not the other way around. As the game progresses, it is fatigue and that is where they start to make massive meters and breaking the line.

As GT says, I think it is the ruck as well. Mattc points out that we just lie in the tackle as well - we don't make that effort to get out of it as quickly as other teams. We just aren't giving ourselves that opportunity to slow theirs down and speed ours up.

 

[Twenty10]

Back on benji, the longer this drags the more he'll be a shark. We are so bad at the negotiation table perhaps that's what is hurting us. Perhaps also the fact he will need to commute to the gong. That's hardly a selling point for someone living in Sydney

 

[nrlnrl]

Back on benji, the longer this drags the more he'll be a shark. We are so bad at the negotiation table perhaps that's what is hurting us. Perhaps also the fact he will need to commute to the gong. That's hardly a selling point for someone living in Sydney

Maybe he could live in Sydney & look after Josh Dugan. Are there any other Dragons who live in Sydney ?

I reckon his manager is lapping it up after the Tim Moltzen screw up. ( funny thing is, the papers reported that he doesn't look after Moltzen these days ). He's obviously milking this deal for every extra $100 grand he can, as it'll be the last NRL deal for Benji Marshall.

Early on I thought the Sharks had the upper hand with ex Tigers, but that seemed to change when Dragons came in with their late deal & would have a better chance to win a premiership.

 

[BrissyRedV]

I have been pondering the possible signing of benji for days and my opinion has gone from we don't need him to geez he was good and has a great highlights reel, why not? To he was terrible last year and in super 15 and is inconsistent. But then I think he does have something to prove and could provide some real spark for us and now I am back at no, it is too much to risk especially with some of the money figures being tossed around. It is too much of a gamble for mine especially when our major issue is in the forwards and the money spent on benji could be better used to secure some forward talent as well as securing our best forward, mez, before other clubs come sniffing around.

We should get Williams back into 1st grade as he is a potential long term option, and let him try and secure not only his future as a HB, but our own. If he fails and we have this suggested half a million a year for benji, use it to try and lure say a Foran or similar. There is a few quality young halves floating around the 20s at the moment who are worth a look at the moment as well.