Charity Shield 2019

[Old Kogarah Boy 1]

Mary has indicated that Dufty is the utility in 2019.

Great, that equates to Duffy getting almost 3 minutes of game time every week!
Robson must be the AUP ( Assistant Utility Player ) for 2019.
I better remove the 's' of the minutes quote.

 

[getsmarty]

DRAGONS


McGregor to settle on team early to work on new combinations
Author
Brad Walter NRL.com Senior Reporter
Timestamp
Sat 2 Mar 2019, 11:20 PM

St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor will settle on his team for the opening-round clash with North Queensland in coming days to give new combinations time to gel after Jack de Belin was stood down by the NRL.

With de Belin on Thursday becoming the first player dealt with by the NRL’s new "no-fault stand down" policy while he defends a sexual assault charge in court, McGregor has been forced into a reshuffle and it was obvious in the Charity Shield loss to South Sydney that more work is needed.

While disappointed and upset by the action against de Belin, McGregor acknowledged it put an end to speculation over his fate and enabled the team to focus on the upcoming season knowing he would be missing.

"The decision has been made, we have got a squad now of 28 and we will pick our strongest 17 for round one," McGregor said after the 36-24 loss at Mudgee.

"That’s what we have got to focus on, the other distractions are gone, it is only other people who are talking about it now."

Match Highlights: Rabbitohs v Dragons

Kangaroos forward Tyson Frizell will shift to lock and McGregor indicated Jacob Host had done enough in his 55 minutes at Glenn Willows Sporting Complex to claim the right second-row spot.

The Dragons' defence on the edges was poor at times and Rabbitohs left winger Corey Allan scored a hat-trick of tries but St George Illawarra had a new right side combination of Host, centre Euan Aitken and boom rookie Zac Lomax on the wing.

Lomax also played right centre, while Aitken spent time in the second half at left centre.

Dragons left edge ignites

"They were a bit indecisive but Tyson has been training on that right edge all pre-season and obviously we have moved him this week so the next person who goes there [right second-row] will have a couple of weeks to prepare," McGregor said.

"I will name my centre and winger early next week so that combination can have a couple of weeks to get ready for round one.

"Tonight gave me a little bit of clarity of where I am going to go next week. To back that up I will watch a lot of footage and talk to my leaders and other coaches."

Despite the loss of de Belin, McGregor is confident the Dragons can again start the season well and challenge for the premiership.

Hunt floater for Lomax

"I think we showed that last year, at the back end of the year with guys missing," McGrgeor said. "We didn’t have Paul Vaughan for the finals series and we did alright without him, we lost Gareth [Widdop] going into the second final and we were up 8-2 until we lost Tariq [Sims], and after we lost Tariq we still only got beaten by a field goal.

"The same players are still here, no one’s changed so now it is about knuckling down and doing what we have got to do. I think the resilience and the learnings from last year are pretty important going into this year."

Prop Blake Lawrie appears likely to be the player added to the squad in place of de Belin after playing more than 50 minutes following the loss of Vaughan after just 15 minutes with concussion.

With Korbin Sims suspended for the opening two rounds, Lawrie could play a middle forward role off the interchange.

"The experience those young blokes got in the finals series like Blake, Luciano [Leilua] and guys who had never tasted finals footy, that is the most important thing coming out of last year. That should get them ready."

North Queensland Cowboys v St George Illawarra Dragons
What will be the result in round 1?

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/201...le-on-team-early-to-work-on-new-combinations/

 

[Warabrook saint]

Only need to go back and watch the cuts to Mary in the coaches box against the Bronco’s. It was like WTF where did this come from. By the coach!

Yes he's not bright ....no disrespect to monkeys intended

 

[Warabrook saint]

He's an embarrassment to the club and the ones incharge are no better because they endorse it

 

[TruSaint]

Interesting reading through this thread.

Wasn't that long ago, the CS was the only "trial" that meant anything. I know it meant a lot to the players and fans. It was always the unofficial season opener with some history and a little silverware to play for. Heck , we used to get bigger crowds that most NRL semi finals.

What was the crowd last night ? 9k, in a population of 10.9k. Well done.

2 old rivals playing for their respective charities, sometimes in front of 35k, etc... Its a little bit more than a trial. So whilst we didnt drop any points last night, we lost another Shield. How many is that in succession now?

Disappointing performance. Only 1 or 2 positives which have been covered here.

 

[SaintPauli]

Did everyone notice how south's dragged us around in tackles.?

JDB IS a major loss in middle with defence

Big and fast Josh Kerr no trial game ? What the !
What's his defence like?

Ravalawa needs major practice in bombs and kicks.

I always said Nene was a big loss.
Pearson needed a go in trials. What the!

Lomax is no winger and should be tried in centre to see if he is real deal. He seems undersized imo for nrl at the moment. Although I can see him bulking up.

 

[LINESPEED]

DRAGONS


McGregor to settle on team early to work on new combinations
Author
Brad Walter NRL.com Senior Reporter
Timestamp
Sat 2 Mar 2019, 11:20 PM

St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor will settle on his team for the opening-round clash with North Queensland in coming days to give new combinations time to gel after Jack de Belin was stood down by the NRL.

With de Belin on Thursday becoming the first player dealt with by the NRL’s new "no-fault stand down" policy while he defends a sexual assault charge in court, McGregor has been forced into a reshuffle and it was obvious in the Charity Shield loss to South Sydney that more work is needed.

While disappointed and upset by the action against de Belin, McGregor acknowledged it put an end to speculation over his fate and enabled the team to focus on the upcoming season knowing he would be missing.

"The decision has been made, we have got a squad now of 28 and we will pick our strongest 17 for round one," McGregor said after the 36-24 loss at Mudgee.

"That’s what we have got to focus on, the other distractions are gone, it is only other people who are talking about it now."

Match Highlights: Rabbitohs v Dragons

Kangaroos forward Tyson Frizell will shift to lock and McGregor indicated Jacob Host had done enough in his 55 minutes at Glenn Willows Sporting Complex to claim the right second-row spot.

The Dragons' defence on the edges was poor at times and Rabbitohs left winger Corey Allan scored a hat-trick of tries but St George Illawarra had a new right side combination of Host, centre Euan Aitken and boom rookie Zac Lomax on the wing.

Lomax also played right centre, while Aitken spent time in the second half at left centre.

Dragons left edge ignites

"They were a bit indecisive but Tyson has been training on that right edge all pre-season and obviously we have moved him this week so the next person who goes there [right second-row] will have a couple of weeks to prepare," McGregor said.

"I will name my centre and winger early next week so that combination can have a couple of weeks to get ready for round one.

"Tonight gave me a little bit of clarity of where I am going to go next week. To back that up I will watch a lot of footage and talk to my leaders and other coaches."

Despite the loss of de Belin, McGregor is confident the Dragons can again start the season well and challenge for the premiership.

Hunt floater for Lomax

"I think we showed that last year, at the back end of the year with guys missing," McGrgeor said. "We didn’t have Paul Vaughan for the finals series and we did alright without him, we lost Gareth [Widdop] going into the second final and we were up 8-2 until we lost Tariq [Sims], and after we lost Tariq we still only got beaten by a field goal.

"The same players are still here, no one’s changed so now it is about knuckling down and doing what we have got to do. I think the resilience and the learnings from last year are pretty important going into this year."

Prop Blake Lawrie appears likely to be the player added to the squad in place of de Belin after playing more than 50 minutes following the loss of Vaughan after just 15 minutes with concussion.

With Korbin Sims suspended for the opening two rounds, Lawrie could play a middle forward role off the interchange.

"The experience those young blokes got in the finals series like Blake, Luciano [Leilua] and guys who had never tasted finals footy, that is the most important thing coming out of last year. That should get them ready."

North Queensland Cowboys v St George Illawarra Dragons
What will be the result in round 1?

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/201...le-on-team-early-to-work-on-new-combinations/

“I will name my centre & winger early next week ...”

It’s difficult reading the mind of a cretin:

But there’re the faintest of suggestions in this article that he’s finally in two minds (which he needs) re Aitken?

Fellas, that’d be a massive shift in sentiment & ‘insight’

FMD he was in the coach’s box at the semis after all

If Lomax wears 3 I’ll be gobsmacked - but applaud Waterboy for his capacity to acknowledge the bleeding obvious.

But we’re in for the long haul to get McInnes replaced by Robson, Dufty to fullback, some game time for Kerr & Field injected regularly to break the game open.

I also think Aitken was given enough game time last night to sink his chances & lose the famous No 3 for good.
Why else keep Field benched?

 

[hazzbeen]

Hazz by all means ask for change because of the way dragons finish the seasons below your expectations but I can't see how the Charity Shield has anything to do with it?
The Charity Shield has nothing to do with our late season fade outs.

No it doesn't mate but he is so predictable , I would have liked to see some indication that its a bit different with his coaching , but can't see it .... I hope they and we have a bumper year that's all I ever want ...

 

[BLM01]

Thank god that was a trial game I watched on TV at the Bally Pub while having dinner and listening to a live band.
Nothing to worry about that is mary's grand plan. All out of form, lose the ruck in defense and cant defend a set inside our 20..and nearly another 40 point scoreline against us.
So his plan is no one has a clue who our backs will be come Round 1 including Paul Green.
We will see a different side Round 1 and a fired up one at that too and dont get too uptight about a trial.
Did you see Tigers, Newcastle, Titans, Broncos and Penrith's highlights. They were just as bad in defence.
BTW...still dont miss Nene and his lazy attitude at times and poor positioning. What was on display last night was poor but not even Nene could of turned that around.
But I had to laugh at Aitken s attempt (least he tried) when moved to Lafai's side to pass a ball to Maranta which would of seen him score. That was the slowest unco forward pass I have ever seen.
Problem solved...Aitken cant play left centre either.
But I should of focused on the people at my large table making conversation instead of eyes glued to the TV.
I just had to watch..it was the Dragons after all.....even for the comic relief!
Highlights?. Frizz & Lafai? 4 good tries and goal kicking?..I will let others tell me or read what has been posted later.

 

[hazzbeen]

Wrong.

Wrong....

 

[possm]

Interesting reading through this thread.

Wasn't that long ago, the CS was the only "trial" that meant anything. I know it meant a lot to the players and fans. It was always the unofficial season opener with some history and a little silverware to play for. Heck , we used to get bigger crowds that most NRL semi finals.

What was the crowd last night ? 9k, in a population of 10.9k. Well done.

2 old rivals playing for their respective charities, sometimes in front of 35k, etc... Its a little bit more than a trial. So whilst we didnt drop any points last night, we lost another Shield. How many is that in succession now?

Disappointing performance. Only 1 or 2 positives which have been covered here.

I'm sure that some fans who travelled all the way to Mudgee were very disappointed with the effort put in by the Dragons.

 

[Warabrook saint]

Did everyone notice how south's dragged us around in tackles.?

JDB IS a major loss in middle with defence

Big and fast Josh Kerr no trial game ? What the !
What's his defence like?

Ravalawa needs major practice in bombs and kicks.

I always said Nene was a big loss.
Pearson needed a go in trials. What the!

Lomax is no winger and should be tried in centre to see if he is real deal. He seems undersized imo for nrl at the moment. Although I can see him bulking up.

That's why we need a couple of behemoths that don't take a backward step and take no prisoners

 

[Saint_JimmyG]

Mary has indicated that Dufty is the utility in 2019.

That’s old news, and more importantly, not what I asked.

 

[Old Kogarah Boy 1]

Yes he's not real bright

Warabrook, could you please remove the word, 'real'..... from your sentence.
Many thanks,
OKB

 

[Old Kogarah Boy 1]

“I will name my centre & winger early next week ...”

It’s difficult reading the mind of a cretin:

But there’re the faintest of suggestions in this article that he’s finally in two minds (which he needs) re Aitken?

Fellas, that’d be a massive shift in sentiment & ‘insight’

FMD he was in the coach’s box at the semis after all

If Lomax wears 3 I’ll be gobsmacked - but applaud Waterboy for his capacity to acknowledge the bleeding obvious.

But we’re in for the long haul to get McInnes replaced by Robson, Dufty to fullback, some game time for Kerr & Field injected regularly to break the game open.

I also think Aitken was given enough game time last night to sink his chances & lose the famous No 3 for good.
Why else keep Field benched?

Your a hard but fair man, LS.

 

[Old Kogarah Boy 1]

Did everyone notice how south's dragged us around in tackles.?

JDB IS a major loss in middle with defence

Big and fast Josh Kerr no trial game ? What the !
What's his defence like?

Ravalawa needs major practice in bombs and kicks.

I always said Nene was a big loss.
Pearson needed a go in trials. What the!

Lomax is no winger and should be tried in centre to see if he is real deal. He seems undersized imo for nrl at the moment. Although I can see him bulking up.

Good summary, SP.
This is what peevs everybody off.
McGregor won't play those that need to be trialled in trials.
Just like he refused to give our SoO players rest time after game 3 last year... and previous.
He burnt them out and o ly then, when our young guns had no experience, was forced to play some at the end of the season.

Already in 2019, history is repeating itself.

 

[Crush]

Mary is Mary. Nothing will ever change whilst he is coach. He says as much. I'm pretty sure I read a quote "I will always carry a utility back on the bench"
That adds to burn out.
Then he won't rest any origin players. Like, he'll say he will but then he won't. "We asked the players if they wanted to play and they said they were right"
Then he won't drop underperforming players. So for example if Widdop is ineffective at fullback he won't cancel the experiment and go back to Dufty.
Won't do it. Same as he won't drop McInnes for Robson, no chance in hell. McInnes is his man. He brought him to the club. If he's on the books he plays and plays 80 mins.
Mary is a stubborn conservative and he will never ever change.
But you know that.

 

[SEAT 1A]

BTW, the James Graham knock on in. the first few minutes ...did anyone else scratch their heads at that decision? The ball came off JG to another player behind him.

Souths scored in the next set.

Gave me a chuckle and his reaction was WTF happened there.

 

[SBD82]

Read this thread to chuckle at the meltdowns.

Not bad. 7/10.

 

[SEAT 1A]

We missed both Vaughan and JDB and Au Mau big time and McInnes worked overtime in defence. Thought Robson needed more game time even only to give McInness a rest.

Thought Lomax had a good game after a nervous start and played well in the centres but Mary won't drop Euan. Hopefully, Jonas will be right for round one with Pereira.

Hunt, Norman and Widdop will do better with a few more games together however, thought it was strange to see Widdop on the field when Duffty came on.

Graham, T Simms and Friz had good games and thought Luc needs to work on his fitness. K Simms to lock when he comes back and would like to see what Host can do at lock in the short term.

Souths were grubs in the second half however should have a good year as they were without Inglis and Reynolds.

Mary has a lot of work to do however, it was only a trail so not to fussed about the loss.