Can anybody beat Brisbane for the premiership ?

[renouf]

Got nothing to do with our forwards.. get a clue. We lost our halfback 2 years in a row (2003,2004) we lost our hooker last year and we lost Lockyer for extended periods leading up to the finals. We haven't had a stable halfback/five-eigth/hooker combination for a LONG time - this year we do. We will struggle without Barry Berrigan.. infact we can't win the comp without him.

Provided Lockyer, Seymour and Barry Berrigan are there come finals time nobody will stop us. The forwards work tirelessly. The major difference this year is Brad Thorn. He is one of the major reasons we are also so dominate this year. Even if we beat the dogs on friday nite.. which I know we will people will still be questioning us.

 

[jimmythehand]

Got nothing to do with our forwards.. get a clue. We lost our halfback 2 years in a row (2003,2004) we lost our hooker last year and we lost Lockyer for extended periods leading up to the finals. We haven't had a stable halfback/five-eigth/hooker combination for a LONG time - this year we do. We will struggle without Barry Berrigan.. infact we can't win the comp without him.

Provided Lockyer, Seymour and Barry Berrigan are there come finals time nobody will stop us. The forwards work tirelessly. The major difference this year is Brad Thorn. He is one of the major reasons we are also so dominate this year. Even if we beat the dogs on friday nite.. which I know we will people will still be questioning us.

Nobody can stop you? Do you seriously think the Broncos can compete with a performance like the Dogs put on in the very first half of this year. I think it would be fairer to say that if the Dogs got their best team together in their best form then nobody will be able to stop them.

The Broncos deserve to be favourites, but they are not a dominant team like the Bulldogs and Roosters have been over the last couple of years. They are very beatable.

 

[Mr Saab]

dogs were great in the 1st half this yr vs the dragons...but you are only as good as what your opposition allows you to be. The dragons had NOTHING thats half and the dogs went to school on them. Credit to the dogs sure, but they wont do that every game. Dogs wont put on 40 in one half vs the broncos...never

 

[renouf]

Nobody can stop you? Do you seriously think the Broncos can compete with a performance like the Dogs put on in the very first half of this year. I think it would be fairer to say that if the Dogs got their best team together in their best form then nobody will be able to stop them.

The Broncos deserve to be favourites, but they are not a dominant team like the Bulldogs and Roosters have been over the last couple of years. They are very beatable.

What? Against an average St.George-Illawarra? You guys almost got run down by the Roosters in the GF..so don't think you are so invincable.

Just to add to that, I went to a couple of the semi's last year.. I know how devestating Canterbury are when their forward pack can roll along - but did you see Brisbane on Sunday? You come against a pack like Brisbane and that rollon that Canterbury are use to won't happen. It shall be interesting.. as Friday nite will only be a warmup for what I believe to be the GF.

 

[Timmah]

That's right everyone... focus on Brisbane,,,

 

[Bman]

Message to gregstar, team of champions does not make a champion team
Biggest example ever: Real Madrid, need i say more?

oh real have been sucessful but nearly to the extent the player roster should provide.

 

[jimmythehand]

What? Against an average St.George-Illawarra? You guys almost got run down by the Roosters in the GF..so don't think you are so invincable.

Just to add to that, I went to a couple of the semi's last year.. I know how devestating Canterbury are when their forward pack can roll along - but did you see Brisbane on Sunday? You come against a pack like Brisbane and that rollon that Canterbury are use to won't happen. It shall be interesting.. as Friday nite will only be a warmup for what I believe to be the GF.

This is probably a one-eyed opinion, but Friday night's game probably means a lot more to Brisbane than the dogs - especially given the game earlier in the year against a very weak doggies side.

If the Broncos can't beat the Dogs now it will have an enormous psychological effect on them. If the Dogs lose now then it will put a dampener on their top4 and top8 aspirations - but if they get through to the finals a loss on friday will have no impact on their confidence playing against the Broncos.

We need the win more from a points point of view, but I can tell you what the Broncos are in big trouble if they can't beat the dogs on Friday.

 

[jimmythehand]

renouf - how much different is the Broncos pack now to the side that the Bulldogs destroyed at Suncorp last year? Not being facetious I just can't remember off the top of my head who was playing that day?

 

[Mad Dogg]

Excuses, excuses, the fact is that Brisbane has struggled in the finals over the past few years and their forwards have been shown up to be too slow and un-agile.

It had nothing to do with struggling in the finals, which implies it was something special about the finals that we struggled about. It was simply the amount of injuries that we copped.

Last year we had our first choice halfback, our first and second choice hookers, our first choice centre, our first and second choice wingers (#1 was also our goalkicker), all out for the rest of the season as we approached the finals. Our 5/8th was playing injuried, and most of our forwards missed some of the late season games through niggling injuries. No team can cope with an injury list like that, as seen by the Bulldogs in the first half of this season.

The Broncos deserve to be favourites, but they are not a dominant team like the Bulldogs and Roosters have been over the last couple of years. They are very beatable.

I agree that we're not as dominant as the Bulldogs have been in recent years, but I'll disagree about the Roosters. They've never really looked a very dominating side, except towards the end of 2002 as their defensive tactics took everyone by surprise.

 

[Mr Saab]

I agree that we're not as dominant as the Bulldogs have been in recent years, but I'll disagree about the Roosters. They've never really looked a very dominating side, except towards the end of 2002 as their defensive tactics took everyone by surprise.

brisbane have been ok in that aspectt.
they have only lost 3 games all yr and have won 9 games by 13 plus.
Not a bad effort. The broncos have come back from double digit deficits in 4 games...so they can fight back.
Brisbane...like the Dogs last yr...did win 10 in a row thru the season. Winning 10 in a row is not easy feat.

 

[Bring back John Fifita]

well thankyou for allowing me to like my team!


when the argument is forwarded that the dragons are inconsistent - i'll agree
when the argument is presented that they have under achieved - i'll agree

but when some blind knob, says they don't have quality players - i'll argue strongly against it because it's straight crap.

Concur with all of the above

 

[Meanie]

Got nothing to do with our forwards.. get a clue. We lost our halfback 2 years in a row (2003,2004) we lost our hooker last year and we lost Lockyer for extended periods leading up to the finals. We haven't had a stable halfback/five-eigth/hooker combination for a LONG time - this year we do. We will struggle without Barry Berrigan.. infact we can't win the comp without him.

I disagree, I think Berrick at hooker could get us there.

 

[jimmythehand]

Concur with all of the above

I even posted the dictionary definition of "quality" because no-one here seems to understand what it means. And you'd still concur?

If the Dragons squad has "a high degree of excellence" the Broncos will get the wooden spoon this year without a salary cap scandal.

 

[Lego_Man]

You can't win a comp without Barry Berrigan? Pull the other one, that's like saying you can't win the comp without Minto. Barnes offers you a lot of quality in that position.

 

[renouf]

You obviously have no idea how important a good hooker is to a team.

 

[Lego_Man]

He's not really that good...

 

[Ghoulies]

We can't win it with McGuire at hooker, would be a more accurate statement.

 

[JoeysChiropractor]

I think by the time Berrigan returns, Barnes would have secured the hooking role and have a few 80 minute games with Maguire back on the bench.

I'm not expecting Berrigan to just walk back into the line up. As for class, the Broncos are full of it. If Hunt, Lockyer, Seymour, Barnes/Berrigan, Webcke, Civ and Thorn are fit come the finals, it will be a much different story to the last two years.

As for the them being potentially the weakest side to win a grand final in 10 years? I'd firmly disagree with that, in fact I'd say Broncos of 2000 were weaker, I would also say that we would beat the Knights of 01, the panthers of 03 and many more during the 90s. The 02 Roosters would push us, and for the Dogs winning last year? Yes, great team, but really are they that much better than the Broncos of this year? The Cowboys dominated them in last year's final series and the Bulldogs failed to shut them down. It was only their luck that the Cowboys were robbed in the semi final and didn't have to meet them again.

Broncos best 17:

Hunt
Tate (international experience)
Hodges (origin experience)
Berrigan (international experience)
Bott
Lockyer (international experience)
Seymour
Webcke (international experience)
Barnes
Civ (international experience)
Stagg
Thorn (international experience)
Carroll (international experience)

Costigan
Parker (origin experience)
Carlaw (international experience)
Maguire (origin experience)

Which other team has 3 origin players on their bench? The 6 who don't have any rep experience are all in their first or second year of real FG

 

[renouf]

Well people think Cameron Smith is a good hooker (hes not), so I'll just go with Wayne Bennett's opionion of Barry Berrigan

 

[Lenny_2212]

barry berrigan is a brilliant hooker, extremely underrated. however, renouf, i believe mcguire and barnes offer alot to the squad.